How do I run a terminal inside of Vim?

I am used to Emacs, but I am trying out Vim to see which one I like better.

One thing that I like about Emacs is the ability to run a terminal inside Emacs. Is this possible inside of Vim? I know that you can execute commands from Vim, but I would like to be able to run a terminal inside of a tab.

Outdated from August 2011

Check out Conque Shell (also on GitHub). Lets you run any interactive program inside vim, not just a shell.

I'm not sure exactly what you're trying to achieve (I've never used Emacs), but you can run commands in Vim by typing:

:! somecommand [ENTER]

And if you want to type in several commands, or play around in a shell for a while, you can always use:

:! bash (or your favourite shell) [ENTER]

Once the command or shell terminates, you'll be given the option to press Enter to return to your editor window

Vim is intentionally lightweight and lacking in the ability to do non-editorish type things, just as running a full-blown shell inside a Vim pane/tab, but as mentioned above there are third-party addons such as vim-shell that allow you to do that sort of thing.

Typically if I want to switch between Vim and my shell (Bash), I just hit CTRL+Z to pause the Vim process, play around in my shell, then type 'fg' when I want to go back to Vim - keeping my editor and my shell nice and separate.

Updated answer (11 years later...):

• I would recommend using tmux instead of screen as suggested in the original answer below, if you choose to use that solution.
• Vim 8.1 now has a built in terminal that can be opened with the :term command. This provides much more complete integration with the rest of the Vim features.

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I would definitely recommend screen for something like this. Vim is a text editor, not a shell.

I would use Ctrl+AS to split the current window horizontally, or in Ubuntu's screen and other patched versions, you can use Ctrl+A|(pipe) to split vertically. Then use Ctrl+ATab (or equivalently on some systems, Ctrl+ACtrl+I which may be easier to type) to switch between the windows. There are other commands to change the size and arrangement of the windows.

Or a less advanced use of screen is just to open multiple full-screen windows and toggle between them. This is what I normally do, I only use the split screen feature occasionally.

The GNU Screen Survival Guide question has a number of good tips if you're unfamiliar with its use.

The way that I get around this is:

• pause Vim with Ctrl + Z,
• play in the terminal,
• then return to exactly where you left with Vim by just typing the command fg.

If enabled in your version of Vim, a terminal can be started with the :term command.

Terminal window support was added to Vim 8. It is an optional feature that can be enabled when compiling Vim with the +terminal feature. If your version of Vim has terminal support, :echo has('terminal') will output "1".

Entering :term will place you in Terminal-Job mode, where you can use the terminal as expected.

Within Terminal-Job mode, pressing Ctrl-W N or Ctrl-\ Ctrl-N switches the mode to Terminal-Normal, which allows the cursor to be moved and commands to be ran similarly to Vim's Normal mode. To switch back to Terminal-Job mode, press i.

Other answers mention similar functionality in Neovim.

:sh then Ctrl+D to get back in (bash)

Update:

You could map Ctrl+D in vim to run :sh, which allows you to toggle between bash and vim quickly.

noremap <C-d> :sh<cr>

The main new feature of Vim 8.1 is support for running a terminal in a Vim window.

:term will open the terminal in another window inside Vim.

:term

Added in Vim 8.1.

Keep in mind that whenever a terminal window is active, most keystrokes will simply be passed to the terminal instead of having their usual functions. Ctrl-W and its subcommands are the main exception. To send a literal ^W input to the terminal, press Ctrl-W .. You can also open the Vim : command line by pressing Ctrl-W :. The other Ctrl-W commands work as normal, so managing windows works the same no matter what type of window is currently selected.

Eventually a native :terminal command was added to vim in 2017.

Here is an excerpt from the :terminal readme:

> This feature is for running a terminal emulator in a Vim window. A > job can be started connected to the terminal emulator. For example, to > run a shell: > > :term bash > > Or to run build command: > > :term make myprogram > > The job runs asynchronously from Vim, the window will be updated to > show output from the job, also while editing in another window.

This question is rather old, but for those finding it, there's a new possible solution: Neovim contains a full-fledged, first-class terminal emulator, which does exactly what ConqueTerm tried to. Simply run :term <your command here>.

<C-\><C-n> will exit term mode back to normal-mode. If you're like me and prefer that escape still exit term mode, you can add this to your nvimrc:

tnoremap <ESC><ESC> <C-\><C-N>

And then hitting ESC twice will exit terminal mode back to normal-mode, so you can manipulate the buffer that the still-running command is writing to.

Though keep in mind, as nvim is under heavy development at the time I'm posting this answer, another way to exit terminal mode may be added. As Ctrl+</kbd>Ctrl+n switches to normal mode from almost any mode, I don't expect that this answer will become wrong, but be aware that if it doesn't work, this answer might be out of date.

https://github.com/neovim/neovim

I know that I'm not directly answering the question, but I think it's a good approach. Nobody has mentioned tmux (or at least not as a standalone answer). Tmux is a terminal multiplexor like screen. Most stuff can be made in both multiplexors, but afaik tmux it's more easily to configure. Also tmux right now is being more actively developed than screen and there's quite a big ecosystem around it, like tools that help the configuration, ecc.

Also for vim, there's another plugin: ViMUX, that helps a lot in the interaction between both tools. You can call commands with:

:call VimuxRunCommand("ls")

That command creates a small horizontal split below the current pane vim is in.

It can also let you run from a prompt in case you don't want to run the whole command:

<Leader>vp :VimuxPromptCommand<CR>

As it weren't enought, there are at least 6 'platform specific plugins':

• vim-vroom: runner for rspec, cucumber and test/unit; vimux support via g:vroom_use_vimux
• vimux-ruby-test: a set of commands to easily run ruby tests
• vimux-cucumber: run Cucumber Features through Vimux
• vim-turbux: Turbo Ruby testing with tmux
• vimux-pyutils: A set of functions for vimux that allow to run code blocks in ipython
• vimux-nose-test: Run nose tests in vimux

Here is a nice "use case": Tests on demand using Vimux and Turbux with Spork and Guard

Someone already suggested https://github.com/Shougo/vimshell.vim, but they didn't mention why. Consequently, when I came away from this question I wasted a lot of other time trying the other (much higher ranked) options.

[Shougo/vimshell][1] is the answer. Here's why:

In addition to being a terminal emulator, VimShell allows you to navigate through terminal output in normal and visual mode. Thus, if a command you run results in output that you'd like to copy and paste using the keyboard only...VimShell covers this.

None of the other options mentioned, including the :terminal command in NeoVim do this. Neovim's :terminal comes close, but falls short in at least the following ways as of 2/18/2017:

• Moves the cursor to the end of the buffer, instead of at the last keeping it in the same spot like VimShell does. Huge waste of time.

• Doesn't support modifiable = 1 see [a discussion on this at Github][2], so helpful plugins like vim-easymotion can't be used.

• Doesn't support the display of line numbers like Vimshell does.

Don't waste time on the other options, including Neovim's :terminal. Go with VimShell.

[1]: https://github.com/Shougo/vimshell.vim/ "Shougo/vimshell" [2]: https://github.com/neovim/neovim/issues/2607

You might want to take a look at the :sh command (see :help sh in Vim).

Various commands

No, you cannot:

http://vimdoc.sourceforge.net/htmldoc/tips.html#shell-window

By far, I have tried a lot of solutions mentioned here, what I really wanted is to keep the terminal open while coding a similar experience in VsCode. Then I came across this solution which is working perfectly for me.

Before Installing:

• I am using Nvim 0.5 but I think it can work for any version and checked also on vim
• I am using macOS Catalina Version 10.15.7

Setup your integrated terminal

Step -1-

• Create a script with the name myQuickTerminal.vim or whatever name you want.
• Put the following script

"==============================================================================
"
" ▒█▀▀█ █░░█ ░▀░ █▀▀ █░█ 　 ▀▀█▀▀ █▀▀ █▀▀█ █▀▄▀█ ░▀░ █▀▀▄ █▀▀█ █░░
" ▒█░▒█ █░░█ ▀█▀ █░░ █▀▄ 　 ░▒█░░ █▀▀ █▄▄▀ █░▀░█ ▀█▀ █░░█ █▄▄█ █░░
" ░▀▀█▄ ░▀▀▀ ▀▀▀ ▀▀▀ ▀░▀ 　 ░▒█░░ ▀▀▀ ▀░▀▀ ▀░░░▀ ▀▀▀ ▀░░▀ ▀░░▀ ▀▀▀
"
"==============================================================================
" " This is a script that will trigger a terminal quickly than the FloatTerminal
" open new split panes to right and below
"link: https://betterprogramming.pub/setting-up-neovim-for-web-development-in-2020-d800de3efacd
"==============================================================================
set splitright
set splitbelow
" turn terminal to normal mode with escape
tnoremap <Esc> <C-\><C-n>
" start terminal in insert mode
au BufEnter * if &buftype == 'terminal' | :startinsert | endif
" open terminal on ctrl+n
function! OpenTerminal()
  split term://zsh
  resize 10
endfunction
nnoremap <leader> n :call OpenTerminal()<CR>

NOTE: if you want to run bash instead of zsh for a particular reason then replace zsh with bash.

Step -2-

Lets source it, put this in init.vim for neovim or `.vimrc' for vim

source $HOME/.config/nvim/modules/mySpecialScripts/myQuickTerminal.vim

This will be preloaded ahead as you save and resource it, you can use source $MYVIMRC for quick reloading the init.vim file.

Step -3-

I mapped as you can see in the script n to open a terminal in a new pane, my is the (Space bar) and once I click (space + n) a terminal will be triggered and I will enjoy writing my code while the terminal is opened.

• To quit insert mode in the terminal, press Esc. Now, to switch to the code editor pane, use CTRL+w w. This shortcut can get annoying once you have more than two panels open, so I added the following shortcuts too. I mapped these too for quick jumping among opened panes, use these

" Better window navigation
nnoremap <C-h> <C-w>h
nnoremap <C-j> <C-w>j
nnoremap <C-k> <C-w>k
nnoremap <C-l> <C-w>l

Optional

If you want your terminal to exit the current buffer with key. you can use

tnoremap <Esc> <C-\><C-n>:q!<CR>

But since I want to switch in between several buffers I use without close the terminal I use instead:

tnoremap <Leader><Esc> <C-\><C-n>:q!<CR>

Final results

---

Reference:

• https://betterprogramming.pub/setting-up-neovim-for-web-development-in-2020-d800de3efacd

Only way I know of is by using vim-shell, a third-party patch.

It's possible to open a new tab with a terminal in vim since 2017 as @fjardon said:

Just type: :terminal. It will open a tab by default above your current tab.

If you want it to open in another place you can try the following options:

• :below terminal : open the terminal below current tab.
• :below vertical terminal : open the terminal always vertically to the right.

You can play with these until you find what you like. After this you can set a map in your .vimrc configuration file, for me, I use:

nmap <leader>tt :below vertical terminal<CR>

This way I can type <space>tt (space my leader key) to open it quickly.

As a side note:

• You can switch between your tabs (terminal and other buffers) with Ctrl+W Ctrl+W.
• You can enter an editable mode in your terminal if you want to copy your commands with Ctrl+W N and go to normal terminal mode with i or a.

Cheers!

I use this now, you may can try. VimShell

Split the screen and run command term ++curwin to run the terminal inside the Vim buffer. Following command does both and worked for me:

:bo 10sp | term ++curwin

If you are interested in quick answer, here is it: :vert term. It will split your screen vertically and open up terminal.

Try vterm, which is a pretty much full feature shell inside vim. It is slightly buggy with its history and clear functions, and still in development, but it still is pretty good

Assuming your version of vim supports +term command first, set shell for vim to use in one command (e.g. set=/usr/bin/zsh), and then run the command +term (i.e. bo 15vs +term). you may have to do some additional maneuvering of your windows (i.e. deleting one and rotating), but you'll have your terminal.

With vim 8.1.3741, just type :terminal to start a terminal inside of vim.

Try map :nnoremap ]t :terminal<CR> to do that quicker!

I acknowledge that I am not strictly answering your question, but what has worked better for me when using Vim and Terminals in the same window is Tmux (which is kind of a "run in the background software" like, similar to screen, although this one works better with splits and tabs).

This post will help you to understand how they work together: 'Tmux and Vim — even better together'.

This way we can convert Vim into a powerful IDE