nnn/nnn.1

.Dd Apr 13, 2021
.Dt NNN 1
.Os
.Sh NAME
.Nm nnn
.Nd The unorthodox terminal file manager.
.Sh SYNOPSIS
.Nm
.Op Ar -aAcCdDeEfFgHJKlnQrRSuUVwxh
.Op Ar -b key
.Op Ar -p file
.Op Ar -P key
.Op Ar -s name
.Op Ar -t secs
.Op Ar -T key
.Op Ar PATH
.Sh DESCRIPTION
.Nm
.Pq Nnn's Not Noice
is a performance-optimized, feature-packed fork of noice
.Em http://git.2f30.org/noice/
with seamless desktop integration, simplified navigation,
.Em type-to-nav
mode with auto select, disk usage analyzer mode, bookmarks,
contexts, application launcher, familiar navigation shortcuts,
subshell spawning and much more. It remains a simple and
efficient file manager that stays out of your way.
.Pp
.Nm
opens the current working directory by default if
.Ar PATH
is not specified.
.Sh KEYBINDS
.Pp
Press
.Ql \&?
in
.Nm
to see the list of keybinds.
.Sh OPTIONS
.Pp
.Nm
supports the following options:
.Pp
.Fl a
        auto-setup temporary NNN_FIFO (described in ENVIRONMENT section)
.Pp
.Fl A
        disable directory auto-select in type-to-nav mode
.Pp
.Fl "b key"
        specify bookmark key to open
.Pp
.Fl c
        indicates that the opener is a cli-only opener (overrides -e)
.Pp
.Fl C
        8-color scheme - color directories by context, disable file colors
.Pp
.Fl d
        detail mode
.Pp
.Fl D
        show directories in context color with \fBNNN_FCOLORS\fR set
.Pp
.Fl e
        open text files in $VISUAL (else $EDITOR, fallback vi) [preferably CLI]
.Pp
.Fl E
        use $EDITOR for internal undetached edits
.Pp
.Fl f
        use readline history file
.Pp
.Fl F
        show fortune in help and settings screen
.Pp
.Fl g
        use regex filters instead of substring match
.Pp
.Fl H
        show hidden files
.Pp
.Fl J
        disable auto-proceed on select
.Pp
.Fl K
        test for keybind collision
.Pp
.Fl "l val"
        number of lines to move per mouse wheel scroll
.Pp
.Fl n
        start in type-to-nav mode
.Pp
.Fl o
        open files only on Enter key
.Pp
.Fl "p file"
        copy (or \fIpick\fR) selection to file, or stdout if file='-'
.Pp
.Fl "P key"
        specify plugin key to run
.Pp
.Fl Q
        disable confirmation on quit with multiple contexts active
.Pp
.Fl r
        show cp, mv progress
        (Linux-only, needs advcpmv; '^T' shows the progress on BSD/macOS)
.Pp
.Fl R
        disable rollover at edges
.Pp
.Fl "s name"
        load a session by name
.Pp
.Fl S
        persistent session
.Pp
.Fl "t secs"
        idle timeout in seconds to lock terminal
.Pp
.Fl "T key"
        sort order
        keys: 'a'u / 'd'u / 'e'xtension / 'r'everse / 's'ize / 't'ime / 'v'ersion
.Pp
.Fl u
        use selection if available, don't prompt to choose between selection and hovered entry
.Pp
.Fl U
        show user and group names in status bar
.Pp
.Fl V
        show version and exit
.Pp
.Fl w
        place hardware cursor on hovered entry
.Pp
.Fl x
        show notis on selection cp, mv, rm completion
        copy path to system clipboard on select
        show xterm title
.Pp
.Fl h
        show program help and exit
.Sh CONFIGURATION
There is no configuration file. Associated files are at
.Pp
.Pa ${XDG_CONFIG_HOME:-$HOME/.config}/nnn/
.Pp
Configuration is done using a few optional (set if you need) environment
variables. See ENVIRONMENT section.
.Pp
.Nm
uses \fIxdg-open\fR (on Linux), \fIopen(1)\fR (on macOS), \fIcygstart\fR on
(Cygwin) and \fIopen\fR on (Haiku) as the desktop opener. It's also possible
to specify a custom opener. See ENVIRONMENT section.
.Sh CONTEXTS
Open multiple locations with 4 contexts. The status is shown in the top left
corner:
.Pp
- the current context is in reverse video
.br
- other active contexts are underlined
.br
- rest are inactive
.Pp
A new context copies the state of the previous context. Each context can have
its own color. See ENVIRONMENT section.
.Sh SESSIONS
Sessions are a way to save and restore states of work. A session stores the
settings and contexts. Sessions can be loaded at runtime or with a program
option.
.Pp
- When a session is loaded at runtime, the last working state is saved
automatically to a dedicated "auto session" session file. Session option
\fIrestore\fR would restore the "auto session".
.br
- The persistent session option is global. If it is used, the last active session
will be updated with the final state at program quit.
.br
- The "auto session" is used in persistent session mode if no session is active.
.br
- Listing input stream and opening a bookmark by key have a higher priority to
session options (-s/-S).
.Pp
All the session files are located by session name in the directory
.Pp
\fB${XDG_CONFIG_HOME:-$HOME/.config}/nnn/sessions\fR
.Pp
"@" is the "auto session" file.
.Sh FILTERS
Filters are strings (or regex patterns) to find matching entries in the current
directory instantly (\fIsearch-as-you-type\fR). Matches are case-insensitive by
default. The last filter in each context is persisted at runtime or in saved
sessions.
.Pp
Special keys at filter prompt:
.Bd -literal
-------- + ---------------------------------------
  Key    |                Function
-------- + ---------------------------------------
 ^char   | Usual keybind functionality
 Esc     | Exit filter prompt but skip dir refresh
 Alt+Esc | Exit filter prompt and refresh dir
-------- + ---------------------------------------
.Ed
.Pp
Special keys at \fBempty filter prompt\fR:
.Bd -literal
------ + ---------------------------------------
  Key  |                Function
------ + ---------------------------------------
   ?   | Show help and config screen
   /   | Toggle between string and regex
   :   | Toggle case-sensitivity
  ^L   | Clear filter (\fIif prompt is non-empty\fR)
       | OR apply last filter
  Bksp | Stay at filter prompt and refresh dir
  Del  | Stay at filter prompt and refresh dir
------ + ---------------------------------------
.Ed
.Pp
Additional special keys at \fBempty filter prompt\fR
in \fBtype-to-nav\fR mode:
.Bd -literal
------ + ------------------------
  Key  |         Function
------ + ------------------------
   '   | Go to first non-dir file
   +   | Toggle auto-advance
   ,   | Mark CWD
   -   | Go to last visited dir
   .   | Show hidden files
   ;   | Run a plugin by its key
   =   | Launch a GUI application
   >   | Export file list
   @   | Visit start dir
   ]   | Show command prompt
   `   | Visit /
   ~   | Go HOME
------ + ------------------------
.Ed
.Pp
Common regex use cases:
.Pp
(1) To list all matches starting with the filter expression,
    start the expression with a '^' (caret) symbol.
.br
(2) Type '\\.mkv' to list all MKV files.
.br
(3) Use '.*' to match any character (\fIsort of\fR fuzzy search).
.br
(4) Exclude filenames having 'nnn' (compiled with PCRE lib): '^(?!nnn)'
.Pp
In the \fItype-to-nav\fR mode directories are opened in filter
mode, allowing continuous navigation.
.br
When there's a unique match and it's a directory,
.Nm
auto selects the directory and enters it in this mode. Use the relevant
program option to disable this behaviour.
.Sh SELECTION
.Nm
allows file selection across directories and contexts!
.Pp
There are 3 groups of keybinds to add files to selection:
.Pp
(1) hovered file selection toggle
    - deselects if '+' is visible before the entry, else adds to selection
.br
(2) add a range of files to selection
    - repeat the range key on the same entry twice to clear selection completely
.br
(3) add all files in the current directory to selection
.Pp
A selection can be edited, copied, moved, removed, archived or linked.
.Pp
Absolute paths of the selected files are copied to \fB.selection\fR file in
the config directory. The selection file is shared between multiple program
instances. Selection from multiple instances are not merged. The last instance
writing to the file overwrites earlier contents. If you have 2 instances of
.Nm
\fIopen\fR in 2 panes of a terminal multiplexer, you can select in one pane and
use the selection in the other pane.
.Pp
.Nm
clears the selection after an operation with the selection. Plugins are allowed
to define the behaviour individually.
.Pp
.Nm
doesn't match directory entries for selected files after a redraw or after the
user navigates away from the directory. An attempt to do so will increase
memory consumption and processing significantly as
.Nm
allows selection across directories. So the selection marks are cleared. The
selection can still be edited in the same instance.
.Pp
To edit the selection use the _edit selection_ key. Use this key to remove a
file from selection after you navigate away from its directory or to remove
duplicates. Editing doesn't end the selection mode. You can add more files to
the selection and edit the list again. If no file is selected in the current
session, this option attempts to list the selection file.
.Sh FIND AND LIST
There are two ways to search and list:
.Pp
- feed a list of file paths as input
.br
- search using a plugin (e.g. \fIfinder\fR) and list the results
.Pp
File paths must be NUL-separated ('\\0'). Paths and can be relative to the
current directory or absolute. Invalid paths in the input are ignored. Input
limit is 65,536 paths or 256 MiB of data.
.Pp
To list the input stream, start
.Nm
by writing to its standard input. E.g., to list files in current
directory larger than
1M:
.Bd -literal
    find -maxdepth 1 -size +1M -print0 | nnn
.Ed
.Pp
or redirect a list from a file:
.Bd -literal
    nnn < files.txt
.Ed
.Pp
Handy bash/zsh shell function to list files by mime-type in current directory:
.Bd -literal
    # to show video files, run: list video

    list ()
    {
        find . -maxdepth 1 | file -if- | grep "$1" | awk -F: '{printf "%s\0", $1}' | nnn
    }
.Ed
.Pp
A temporary directory will be created containing symlinks to the given
paths. Any action performed on these symlinks will be performed only on their
targets, after which they might become invalid.
.Pp
Right arrow or 'l' on a symlink in the listing dir takes to the target
file. Press '-' to return to the listing dir. Press 'Enter' to open the symlink.
.Pp
Listing input stream can be scripted. It can be extended to pick (option -p)
selected entries from the listed results.
.Sh UNITS
The minimum file size unit is byte (B). The rest are K, M, G, T, P, E, Z, Y
(powers of 1024), same as the default units in \fIls\fR.
.Sh ENVIRONMENT
The SHELL, VISUAL (else EDITOR) and PAGER environment variables are
used. A single combination of arguments is supported for SHELL and PAGER.
.Pp
\fBNNN_OPTS:\fR binary options to
.Nm
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_OPTS="cEnrx"
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_OPENER:\fR specify a custom file opener.
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_OPENER=nuke

    NOTE: 'nuke' is a file opener available in the plugin repository.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_BMS:\fR bookmark string as \fIkey_char:location\fR pairs
separated by \fI;\fR:
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_BMS='d:~/Documents;u:/home/user/Cam Uploads;D:~/Downloads/'
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_PLUG:\fR directly executable plugins as \fIkey_char:plugin\fR pairs
separated by \fI;\fR:
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_PLUG='f:finder;o:fzopen;p:mocplay;d:diffs;t:nmount;v:imgview'

    NOTES:
    1. To run a plugin directly, press \fI;\fR followed by the key.
    2. Alternatively, combine with \fIAlt\fR (i.e. \fIAlt+key\fR).
    3. To skip directory refresh after running a plugin, prefix with \fB-\fR.

    export NNN_PLUG='m:-mediainf'
.Ed
.Pp
    To assign keys to arbitrary non-background non-shell-interpreted cli
    commands and invoke like plugins, add \fI_\fR (underscore) before the
    command.
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_PLUG='x:_chmod +x $nnn;g:_git log;s:_smplayer $nnn'

    To pick and run an unassigned plugin, press \fBEnter\fR at the plugin prompt.
    To run a plugin at startup, use the option `-P` followed by the plugin key.

    NOTES:
    1. Use single quotes for $NNN_PLUG so $nnn is not interpreted
    2. $nnn should be the last argument (IF used)
    3. (Again) add \fB_\fR before the command
    4. To disable directory refresh after running a \fIcommand as plugin\fR,
       prefix with \fB-_\fR
    5. To skip user confirmation after command execution, suffix with \fB*\fR
       Note: Do not use \fB*\fR with programs those run and exit e.g. cat

    export NNN_PLUG='y:-_sync*'

    6. To run a \fIGUI app as plugin\fR, add a \fB|\fR after \fB_\fR

    export NNN_PLUG='m:-_|mousepad $nnn'

    EXAMPLES:
    ----------------------------------- + -------------------------------------------------
                Key:Command             |                   Description
    ----------------------------------- + -------------------------------------------------
    g:-_git diff                        | Show git diff
    k:-_fuser -kiv $nnn*                | Interactively kill process(es) using hovered file
    l:-_git log                         | Show git log
    n:-_vi /home/user/Dropbox/dir/note* | Take quick notes in a synced file/dir of notes
    p:-_less -iR $nnn*                  | Page through hovered file in less
    s:-_|smplayer -minigui $nnn         | Play hovered media file, even unfinished download
    x:_chmod +x $nnn                    | Make the hovered file executable
    y:-_sync*                           | Flush cached writes
    ----------------------------------- + -------------------------------------------------

    Online docs: https://github.com/jarun/nnn/tree/master/plugins
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_COLORS:\fR string of color numbers for each context, e.g.:
.Bd -literal
    # 8 color numbers:
    # 0-black, 1-red, 2-green, 3-yellow, 4-blue (default), 5-magenta, 6-cyan, 7-white
    export NNN_COLORS='1234'

    # xterm 256 color numbers (converted to hex, 2 symbols per context):
    # see https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/1482942/93023823-46a6ba80-f5e1-11ea-9ea3-6a3c757704f4.png
    export NNN_COLORS='#0a1b2c3d'

    # both (256 followed by 8 as fallback, separated by ';')
    export NNN_COLORS='#0a1b2c3d;1234'

    NOTE: If only 256 colors are specified and the terminal doesn't support, default is used.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_FCOLORS:\fR specify file-type specific colors:
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_FCOLORS='c1e2272e006033f7c6d6abc4'

    Specify file-specific colors in xterm 256 color hex numbers (2 symbols per color).
    Order is strict, use 00 to omit/use default terminal color. Defaults:

    ------------------------- + --- + -------------
              Order           | Hex |    Color
    ------------------------- + --- + -------------
    Block device              | c1  | DarkSeaGreen1
    Char device               | e2  | Yellow1
    Directory                 | 27  | DeepSkyBlue1
    Executable                | 2e  | Green1
    Regular                   | 00  | Normal
    Hard link                 | 60  | Plum4
    Symbolic link             | 33  | Cyan1
    Missing OR file details   | f7  | Grey62
    Orphaned symbolic link    | c6  | DeepPink1
    FIFO                      | d6  | Orange1
    Socket                    | ab  | MediumOrchid1
    Unknown OR 0B regular/exe | c4  | Red1
    ------------------------- + --- + -------------

    If the terminal supports xterm 256 colors or more, file-specific colors will be rendered.
    To force the 8-color scheme use option -C.
    If xterm 256 colors aren't supported, 8-color scheme will be used.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_ARCHIVE:\fR archive extensions to be handled silently (default: bzip2, (g)zip, tar).
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_ARCHIVE="\\\\.(7z|bz2|gz|tar|tgz|zip)$"

    NOTE: Non-default formats may require a third-party utility.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_SSHFS:\fR specify custom sshfs command with options:
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_SSHFS='sshfs -o reconnect,idmap=user,cache_timeout=3600'

    NOTE: The options must be comma-separated without any space between them.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_RCLONE:\fR pass additional options to rclone command:
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_RCLONE='rclone mount --read-only --no-checksum'

    NOTE: The options must be preceded by "rclone" and max 5 flags are supported.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_TRASH:\fR trash (instead of \fIrm -rf\fR) files to desktop Trash.
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_TRASH=n
    # n=1: trash-cli, n=2: gio trash
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_SEL:\fR absolute path to custom selection file.
.Pp
\fBNNN_FIFO:\fR path of a named pipe to write the hovered file path:
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_FIFO='/tmp/nnn.fifo'

    NOTES:
    1. Overridden by a temporary path with -a option.
    2. If the FIFO file doesn't exist it will be created,
       but not removed (unless it is generated by -a option).

    Online docs: https://github.com/jarun/nnn/wiki/Live-previews
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_LOCKER:\fR terminal locker program.
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_LOCKER='bmon -p wlp1s0'
    export NNN_LOCKER='cmatrix'
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNNN_MCLICK:\fR key emulated by a middle mouse click.
.Bd -literal
    export NNN_MCLICK='^R'

    NOTE: Only the first character is considered if not a \fICtrl+key\fR combo.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBnnn:\fR this is a special variable.
.Bd -literal
    Set to the hovered file name before starting the command prompt or spawning a shell.
.Ed
.Pp
\fBNO_COLOR:\fR disable ANSI color output (overridden by \fBNNN_COLORS\fR).
.Sh AUTHORS
.An Arun Prakash Jana Aq Mt engineerarun@gmail.com ,
.An Lazaros Koromilas Aq Mt lostd@2f30.org ,
.An Dimitris Papastamos Aq Mt sin@2f30.org .
.Sh HOME
.Em https://github.com/jarun/nnn