xref: /vim-8.2.3635/runtime/doc/quickfix.txt (revision cf2d8dee)
1*quickfix.txt*  For Vim version 7.4.  Last change: 2016 Mar 23
2
3
4		  VIM REFERENCE MANUAL    by Bram Moolenaar
5
6
7This subject is introduced in section |30.1| of the user manual.
8
91. Using QuickFix commands		|quickfix|
102. The error window			|quickfix-window|
113. Using more than one list of errors	|quickfix-error-lists|
124. Using :make				|:make_makeprg|
135. Using :grep				|grep|
146. Selecting a compiler			|compiler-select|
157. The error format			|error-file-format|
168. The directory stack			|quickfix-directory-stack|
179. Specific error file formats		|errorformats|
18
19{Vi does not have any of these commands}
20
21The quickfix commands are not available when the |+quickfix| feature was
22disabled at compile time.
23
24=============================================================================
251. Using QuickFix commands			*quickfix* *Quickfix* *E42*
26
27Vim has a special mode to speedup the edit-compile-edit cycle.  This is
28inspired by the quickfix option of the Manx's Aztec C compiler on the Amiga.
29The idea is to save the error messages from the compiler in a file and use Vim
30to jump to the errors one by one.  You can examine each problem and fix it,
31without having to remember all the error messages.
32
33In Vim the quickfix commands are used more generally to find a list of
34positions in files.  For example, |:vimgrep| finds pattern matches.  You can
35use the positions in a script with the |getqflist()| function.  Thus you can
36do a lot more than the edit/compile/fix cycle!
37
38If you are using Manx's Aztec C compiler on the Amiga look here for how to use
39it with Vim: |quickfix-manx|.  If you are using another compiler you should
40save the error messages in a file and start Vim with "vim -q filename".  An
41easy way to do this is with the |:make| command (see below).  The
42'errorformat' option should be set to match the error messages from your
43compiler (see |errorformat| below).
44
45						*location-list* *E776*
46A location list is similar to a quickfix list and contains a list of positions
47in files.  A location list is associated with a window and each window can
48have a separate location list.  A location list can be associated with only
49one window.  The location list is independent of the quickfix list.
50
51When a window with a location list is split, the new window gets a copy of the
52location list.  When there are no references to a location list, the location
53list is destroyed.
54
55The following quickfix commands can be used.  The location list commands are
56similar to the quickfix commands, replacing the 'c' prefix in the quickfix
57command with 'l'.
58
59							*E924*
60If the current window was closed by an |autocommand| while processing a
61location list command, it will be aborted.
62
63							*E925* *E926*
64If the current quickfix or location list was changed by an |autocommand| while
65processing a quickfix or location list command, it will be aborted.
66
67							*:cc*
68:cc[!] [nr]		Display error [nr].  If [nr] is omitted, the same
69			error is displayed again.  Without [!] this doesn't
70			work when jumping to another buffer, the current buffer
71			has been changed, there is the only window for the
72			buffer and both 'hidden' and 'autowrite' are off.
73			When jumping to another buffer with [!] any changes to
74			the current buffer are lost, unless 'hidden' is set or
75			there is another window for this buffer.
76			The 'switchbuf' settings are respected when jumping
77			to a buffer.
78
79							*:ll*
80:ll[!] [nr]		Same as ":cc", except the location list for the
81			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
82
83							*:cn* *:cnext* *E553*
84:[count]cn[ext][!]	Display the [count] next error in the list that
85			includes a file name.  If there are no file names at
86			all, go to the [count] next error.  See |:cc| for
87			[!] and 'switchbuf'.
88
89							*:lne* *:lnext*
90:[count]lne[xt][!]	Same as ":cnext", except the location list for the
91			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
92
93:[count]cN[ext][!]			*:cp* *:cprevious* *:cN* *:cNext*
94:[count]cp[revious][!]	Display the [count] previous error in the list that
95			includes a file name.  If there are no file names at
96			all, go to the [count] previous error.  See |:cc| for
97			[!] and 'switchbuf'.
98
99
100:[count]lN[ext][!]			*:lp* *:lprevious* *:lN* *:lNext*
101:[count]lp[revious][!]	Same as ":cNext" and ":cprevious", except the location
102			list for the current window is used instead of the
103			quickfix list.
104
105							*:cnf* *:cnfile*
106:[count]cnf[ile][!]	Display the first error in the [count] next file in
107			the list that includes a file name.  If there are no
108			file names at all or if there is no next file, go to
109			the [count] next error.  See |:cc| for [!] and
110			'switchbuf'.
111
112							*:lnf* *:lnfile*
113:[count]lnf[ile][!]	Same as ":cnfile", except the location list for the
114			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
115
116:[count]cNf[ile][!]			*:cpf* *:cpfile* *:cNf* *:cNfile*
117:[count]cpf[ile][!]	Display the last error in the [count] previous file in
118			the list that includes a file name.  If there are no
119			file names at all or if there is no next file, go to
120			the [count] previous error.  See |:cc| for [!] and
121			'switchbuf'.
122
123
124:[count]lNf[ile][!]			*:lpf* *:lpfile* *:lNf* *:lNfile*
125:[count]lpf[ile][!]	Same as ":cNfile" and ":cpfile", except the location
126			list for the current window is used instead of the
127			quickfix list.
128
129							*:crewind* *:cr*
130:cr[ewind][!] [nr]	Display error [nr].  If [nr] is omitted, the FIRST
131			error is displayed.  See |:cc|.
132
133							*:lrewind* *:lr*
134:lr[ewind][!] [nr]	Same as ":crewind", except the location list for the
135			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
136
137							*:cfirst* *:cfir*
138:cfir[st][!] [nr]	Same as ":crewind".
139
140							*:lfirst* *:lfir*
141:lfir[st][!] [nr]	Same as ":lrewind".
142
143							*:clast* *:cla*
144:cla[st][!] [nr]	Display error [nr].  If [nr] is omitted, the LAST
145			error is displayed.  See |:cc|.
146
147							*:llast* *:lla*
148:lla[st][!] [nr]	Same as ":clast", except the location list for the
149			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
150
151							*:cq* *:cquit*
152:cq[uit][!]		Quit Vim with an error code, so that the compiler
153			will not compile the same file again.
154			WARNING: All changes in files are lost!  Also when the
155			[!] is not used.  It works like ":qall!" |:qall|,
156			except that Vim returns a non-zero exit code.
157
158							*:cf* *:cfile*
159:cf[ile][!] [errorfile]	Read the error file and jump to the first error.
160			This is done automatically when Vim is started with
161			the -q option.  You can use this command when you
162			keep Vim running while compiling.  If you give the
163			name of the errorfile, the 'errorfile' option will
164			be set to [errorfile].  See |:cc| for [!].
165
166							*:lf* *:lfile*
167:lf[ile][!] [errorfile]	Same as ":cfile", except the location list for the
168			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
169			You can not use the -q command-line option to set
170			the location list.
171
172
173:cg[etfile] [errorfile]					*:cg* *:cgetfile*
174			Read the error file.  Just like ":cfile" but don't
175			jump to the first error.
176
177
178:lg[etfile] [errorfile]					*:lg* *:lgetfile*
179			Same as ":cgetfile", except the location list for the
180			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
181
182							*:caddf* *:caddfile*
183:caddf[ile] [errorfile]	Read the error file and add the errors from the
184			errorfile to the current quickfix list. If a quickfix
185			list is not present, then a new list is created.
186
187							*:laddf* *:laddfile*
188:laddf[ile] [errorfile]	Same as ":caddfile", except the location list for the
189			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
190
191						*:cb* *:cbuffer* *E681*
192:cb[uffer][!] [bufnr]	Read the error list from the current buffer.
193			When [bufnr] is given it must be the number of a
194			loaded buffer.  That buffer will then be used instead
195			of the current buffer.
196			A range can be specified for the lines to be used.
197			Otherwise all lines in the buffer are used.
198			See |:cc| for [!].
199
200						*:lb* *:lbuffer*
201:lb[uffer][!] [bufnr]	Same as ":cbuffer", except the location list for the
202			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
203
204						*:cgetb* *:cgetbuffer*
205:cgetb[uffer] [bufnr]	Read the error list from the current buffer.  Just
206			like ":cbuffer" but don't jump to the first error.
207
208						*:lgetb* *:lgetbuffer*
209:lgetb[uffer] [bufnr]	Same as ":cgetbuffer", except the location list for
210			the current window is used instead of the quickfix
211			list.
212
213							*:cad* *:caddbuffer*
214:cad[dbuffer] [bufnr]	Read the error list from the current buffer and add
215			the errors to the current quickfix list.  If a
216			quickfix list is not present, then a new list is
217			created. Otherwise, same as ":cbuffer".
218
219							*:laddb* *:laddbuffer*
220:laddb[uffer] [bufnr]	Same as ":caddbuffer", except the location list for
221			the current window is used instead of the quickfix
222			list.
223
224							*:cex* *:cexpr* *E777*
225:cex[pr][!] {expr}	Create a quickfix list using the result of {expr} and
226			jump to the first error.
227			If {expr} is a String, then each new-line terminated
228			line in the String is processed using the global value
229			of 'errorformat' and the result is added to the
230			quickfix list.
231			If {expr} is a List, then each String item in the list
232			is processed and added to the quickfix list.  Non
233			String items in the List are ignored.
234			See |:cc| for [!].
235			Examples: >
236				:cexpr system('grep -n xyz *')
237				:cexpr getline(1, '$')
238<
239							*:lex* *:lexpr*
240:lex[pr][!] {expr}	Same as |:cexpr|, except the location list for the
241			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
242
243							*:cgete* *:cgetexpr*
244:cgete[xpr] {expr}	Create a quickfix list using the result of {expr}.
245			Just like |:cexpr|, but don't jump to the first error.
246
247							*:lgete* *:lgetexpr*
248:lgete[xpr] {expr}	Same as |:cgetexpr|, except the location list for the
249			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
250
251							*:cadde* *:caddexpr*
252:cadde[xpr] {expr}	Evaluate {expr} and add the resulting lines to the
253			current quickfix list. If a quickfix list is not
254			present, then a new list is created. The current
255			cursor position will not be changed. See |:cexpr| for
256			more information.
257			Example: >
258    :g/mypattern/caddexpr expand("%") . ":" . line(".") .  ":" . getline(".")
259<
260							*:lad* *:laddexpr*
261:lad[dexpr] {expr}	Same as ":caddexpr", except the location list for the
262			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
263
264							*:cl* *:clist*
265:cl[ist] [from] [, [to]]
266			List all errors that are valid |quickfix-valid|.
267			If numbers [from] and/or [to] are given, the respective
268			range of errors is listed.  A negative number counts
269			from the last error backwards, -1 being the last error.
270			The 'switchbuf' settings are respected when jumping
271			to a buffer.
272
273:cl[ist]! [from] [, [to]]
274			List all errors.
275
276							*:lli* *:llist*
277:lli[st] [from] [, [to]]
278			Same as ":clist", except the location list for the
279			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
280
281:lli[st]! [from] [, [to]]
282			List all the entries in the location list for the
283			current window.
284
285If you insert or delete lines, mostly the correct error location is still
286found because hidden marks are used.  Sometimes, when the mark has been
287deleted for some reason, the message "line changed" is shown to warn you that
288the error location may not be correct.  If you quit Vim and start again the
289marks are lost and the error locations may not be correct anymore.
290
291If vim is built with |+autocmd| support, two autocommands are available for
292running commands before and after a quickfix command (':make', ':grep' and so
293on) is executed. See |QuickFixCmdPre| and |QuickFixCmdPost| for details.
294
295						*QuickFixCmdPost-example*
296When 'encoding' differs from the locale, the error messages may have a
297different encoding from what Vim is using.  To convert the messages you can
298use this code: >
299	function QfMakeConv()
300	   let qflist = getqflist()
301	   for i in qflist
302	      let i.text = iconv(i.text, "cp936", "utf-8")
303	   endfor
304	   call setqflist(qflist)
305	endfunction
306
307	au QuickfixCmdPost make call QfMakeConv()
308
309
310EXECUTE A COMMAND IN ALL THE BUFFERS IN QUICKFIX OR LOCATION LIST:
311							*:cdo*
312:cdo[!] {cmd}		Execute {cmd} in each valid entry in the quickfix list.
313			It works like doing this: >
314				:cfirst
315				:{cmd}
316				:cnext
317				:{cmd}
318				etc.
319<			When the current file can't be |abandon|ed and the [!]
320			is not present, the command fails.
321			When an error is detected excecution stops.
322			The last buffer (or where an error occurred) becomes
323			the current buffer.
324			{cmd} can contain '|' to concatenate several commands.
325
326			Only valid entries in the quickfix list are used.
327			A range can be used to select entries, e.g.: >
328				:10,$cdo cmd
329<			To skip entries 1 to 9.
330
331			Note: While this command is executing, the Syntax
332			autocommand event is disabled by adding it to
333			'eventignore'.  This considerably speeds up editing
334			each buffer.
335			{not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the
336			|+listcmds| feature}
337			Also see |:bufdo|, |:tabdo|, |:argdo|, |:windo|,
338			|:ldo|, |:cfdo| and |:lfdo|.
339
340							*:cfdo*
341:cfdo[!] {cmd}		Execute {cmd} in each file in the quickfix list.
342			It works like doing this: >
343				:cfirst
344				:{cmd}
345				:cnfile
346				:{cmd}
347				etc.
348<			Otherwise it works the same as `:cdo`.
349			{not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the
350			|+listcmds| feature}
351
352							*:ldo*
353:ld[o][!] {cmd}		Execute {cmd} in each valid entry in the location list
354			for the current window.
355			It works like doing this: >
356				:lfirst
357				:{cmd}
358				:lnext
359				:{cmd}
360				etc.
361<			Only valid entries in the location list are used.
362			Otherwise it works the same as `:cdo`.
363			{not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the
364			|+listcmds| feature}
365
366							*:lfdo*
367:lfdo[!] {cmd}		Execute {cmd} in each file in the location list for
368			the current window.
369			It works like doing this: >
370				:lfirst
371				:{cmd}
372				:lnfile
373				:{cmd}
374				etc.
375<			Otherwise it works the same as `:ldo`.
376			{not in Vi} {not available when compiled without the
377			|+listcmds| feature}
378
379=============================================================================
3802. The error window					*quickfix-window*
381
382					    *:cope* *:copen* *w:quickfix_title*
383:cope[n] [height]	Open a window to show the current list of errors.
384
385			When [height] is given, the window becomes that high
386			(if there is room).  When [height] is omitted the
387			window is made ten lines high.
388
389			If there already is a quickfix window, it will be made
390			the current window.  It is not possible to open a
391			second quickfix window.  If [height] is given the
392			existing window will be resized to it.
393
394			The window will contain a special buffer, with
395			'buftype' equal to "quickfix".  Don't change this!
396			The window will have the w:quickfix_title variable set
397			which will indicate the command that produced the
398			quickfix list. This can be used to compose a custom
399			status line if the value of 'statusline' is adjusted
400			properly.
401
402							*:lop* *:lopen*
403:lop[en] [height]	Open a window to show the location list for the
404			current window. Works only when the location list for
405			the current window is present.  You can have more than
406			one location window opened at a time.  Otherwise, it
407			acts the same as ":copen".
408
409							*:ccl* *:cclose*
410:ccl[ose]		Close the quickfix window.
411
412							*:lcl* *:lclose*
413:lcl[ose]		Close the window showing the location list for the
414			current window.
415
416							*:cw* *:cwindow*
417:cw[indow] [height]	Open the quickfix window when there are recognized
418			errors.  If the window is already open and there are
419			no recognized errors, close the window.
420
421							*:lw* *:lwindow*
422:lw[indow] [height]	Same as ":cwindow", except use the window showing the
423			location list for the current window.
424
425Normally the quickfix window is at the bottom of the screen.  If there are
426vertical splits, it's at the bottom of the rightmost column of windows.  To
427make it always occupy the full width: >
428	:botright cwindow
429You can move the window around with |window-moving| commands.
430For example, to move it to the top: CTRL-W K
431The 'winfixheight' option will be set, which means that the window will mostly
432keep its height, ignoring 'winheight' and 'equalalways'.  You can change the
433height manually (e.g., by dragging the status line above it with the mouse).
434
435In the quickfix window, each line is one error.  The line number is equal to
436the error number.  You can use ":.cc" to jump to the error under the cursor.
437Hitting the <Enter> key or double-clicking the mouse on a line has the same
438effect.  The file containing the error is opened in the window above the
439quickfix window.  If there already is a window for that file, it is used
440instead.  If the buffer in the used window has changed, and the error is in
441another file, jumping to the error will fail.  You will first have to make
442sure the window contains a buffer which can be abandoned.
443					*CTRL-W_<Enter>* *CTRL-W_<CR>*
444You can use CTRL-W <Enter> to open a new window and jump to the error there.
445
446When the quickfix window has been filled, two autocommand events are
447triggered.  First the 'filetype' option is set to "qf", which triggers the
448FileType event.  Then the BufReadPost event is triggered, using "quickfix" for
449the buffer name.  This can be used to perform some action on the listed
450errors.  Example: >
451	au BufReadPost quickfix  setlocal modifiable
452		\ | silent exe 'g/^/s//\=line(".")." "/'
453		\ | setlocal nomodifiable
454This prepends the line number to each line.  Note the use of "\=" in the
455substitute string of the ":s" command, which is used to evaluate an
456expression.
457The BufWinEnter event is also triggered, again using "quickfix" for the buffer
458name.
459
460Note: Making changes in the quickfix window has no effect on the list of
461errors.  'modifiable' is off to avoid making changes.  If you delete or insert
462lines anyway, the relation between the text and the error number is messed up.
463If you really want to do this, you could write the contents of the quickfix
464window to a file and use ":cfile" to have it parsed and used as the new error
465list.
466
467						*location-list-window*
468The location list window displays the entries in a location list.  When you
469open a location list window, it is created below the current window and
470displays the location list for the current window.  The location list window
471is similar to the quickfix window, except that you can have more than one
472location list window open at a time. When you use a location list command in
473this window, the displayed location list is used.
474
475When you select a file from the location list window, the following steps are
476used to find a window to edit the file:
477
4781. If a window with the location list displayed in the location list window is
479   present, then the file is opened in that window.
4802. If the above step fails and if the file is already opened in another
481   window, then that window is used.
4823. If the above step fails then an existing window showing a buffer with
483   'buftype' not set is used.
4844. If the above step fails, then the file is edited in a new window.
485
486In all of the above cases, if the location list for the selected window is not
487yet set, then it is set to the location list displayed in the location list
488window.
489
490=============================================================================
4913. Using more than one list of errors			*quickfix-error-lists*
492
493So far has been assumed that there is only one list of errors.  Actually the
494ten last used lists are remembered.  When starting a new list, the previous
495ones are automatically kept.  Two commands can be used to access older error
496lists.  They set one of the existing error lists as the current one.
497
498						*:colder* *:col* *E380*
499:col[der] [count]	Go to older error list.  When [count] is given, do
500			this [count] times.  When already at the oldest error
501			list, an error message is given.
502
503						*:lolder* *:lol*
504:lol[der] [count]	Same as ":colder", except use the location list for
505			the current window instead of the quickfix list.
506
507						*:cnewer* *:cnew* *E381*
508:cnew[er] [count]	Go to newer error list.  When [count] is given, do
509			this [count] times.  When already at the newest error
510			list, an error message is given.
511
512						*:lnewer* *:lnew*
513:lnew[er] [count]	Same as ":cnewer", except use the location list for
514			the current window instead of the quickfix list.
515
516When adding a new error list, it becomes the current list.
517
518When ":colder" has been used and ":make" or ":grep" is used to add a new error
519list, one newer list is overwritten.  This is especially useful if you are
520browsing with ":grep" |grep|.  If you want to keep the more recent error
521lists, use ":cnewer 99" first.
522
523=============================================================================
5244. Using :make						*:make_makeprg*
525
526							*:mak* *:make*
527:mak[e][!] [arguments]	1. If vim was built with |+autocmd|, all relevant
528			   |QuickFixCmdPre| autocommands are executed.
529			2. If the 'autowrite' option is on, write any changed
530			   buffers
531			3. An errorfile name is made from 'makeef'.  If
532			   'makeef' doesn't contain "##", and a file with this
533			   name already exists, it is deleted.
534			4. The program given with the 'makeprg' option is
535			   started (default "make") with the optional
536			   [arguments] and the output is saved in the
537			   errorfile (for Unix it is also echoed on the
538			   screen).
539			5. The errorfile is read using 'errorformat'.
540			6. If vim was built with |+autocmd|, all relevant
541			   |QuickFixCmdPost| autocommands are executed.
542			   See example below.
543			7. If [!] is not given the first error is jumped to.
544			8. The errorfile is deleted.
545			9. You can now move through the errors with commands
546			   like |:cnext| and |:cprevious|, see above.
547			This command does not accept a comment, any "
548			characters are considered part of the arguments.
549
550							*:lmak* *:lmake*
551:lmak[e][!] [arguments]
552			Same as ":make", except the location list for the
553			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
554
555The ":make" command executes the command given with the 'makeprg' option.
556This is done by passing the command to the shell given with the 'shell'
557option.  This works almost like typing
558
559	":!{makeprg} [arguments] {shellpipe} {errorfile}".
560
561{makeprg} is the string given with the 'makeprg' option.  Any command can be
562used, not just "make".  Characters '%' and '#' are expanded as usual on a
563command-line.  You can use "%<" to insert the current file name without
564extension, or "#<" to insert the alternate file name without extension, for
565example: >
566   :set makeprg=make\ #<.o
567
568[arguments] is anything that is typed after ":make".
569{shellpipe} is the 'shellpipe' option.
570{errorfile} is the 'makeef' option, with ## replaced to make it unique.
571
572The placeholder "$*" can be used for the argument list in {makeprg} if the
573command needs some additional characters after its arguments.  The $* is
574replaced then by all arguments.  Example: >
575   :set makeprg=latex\ \\\\nonstopmode\ \\\\input\\{$*}
576or simpler >
577   :let &mp = 'latex \\nonstopmode \\input\{$*}'
578"$*" can be given multiple times, for example: >
579   :set makeprg=gcc\ -o\ $*\ $*
580
581The 'shellpipe' option defaults to ">" for the Amiga, MS-DOS and Win32.  This
582means that the output of the compiler is saved in a file and not shown on the
583screen directly.  For Unix "| tee" is used.  The compiler output is shown on
584the screen and saved in a file the same time.  Depending on the shell used
585"|& tee" or "2>&1| tee" is the default, so stderr output will be included.
586
587If 'shellpipe' is empty, the {errorfile} part will be omitted.  This is useful
588for compilers that write to an errorfile themselves (e.g., Manx's Amiga C).
589
590
591Using QuickFixCmdPost to fix the encoding ~
592
593It may be that 'encoding' is set to an encoding that differs from the messages
594your build program produces.  This example shows how to fix this after Vim has
595read the error messages: >
596
597	function QfMakeConv()
598	   let qflist = getqflist()
599	   for i in qflist
600	      let i.text = iconv(i.text, "cp936", "utf-8")
601	   endfor
602	   call setqflist(qflist)
603	endfunction
604
605	au QuickfixCmdPost make call QfMakeConv()
606
607(Example by Faque Cheng)
608
609==============================================================================
6105. Using :vimgrep and :grep				*grep* *lid*
611
612Vim has two ways to find matches for a pattern: Internal and external.  The
613advantage of the internal grep is that it works on all systems and uses the
614powerful Vim search patterns.  An external grep program can be used when the
615Vim grep does not do what you want.
616
617The internal method will be slower, because files are read into memory.  The
618advantages are:
619- Line separators and encoding are automatically recognized, as if a file is
620  being edited.
621- Uses Vim search patterns.  Multi-line patterns can be used.
622- When plugins are enabled: compressed and remote files can be searched.
623	|gzip| |netrw|
624
625To be able to do this Vim loads each file as if it is being edited.  When
626there is no match in the file the associated buffer is wiped out again.  The
627'hidden' option is ignored here to avoid running out of memory or file
628descriptors when searching many files.  However, when the |:hide| command
629modifier is used the buffers are kept loaded.  This makes following searches
630in the same files a lot faster.
631
632Note that |:copen| (or |:lopen| for |:lgrep|) may be used to open a buffer
633containing the search results in linked form.  The |:silent| command may be
634used to suppress the default full screen grep output.  The ":grep!" form of
635the |:grep| command doesn't jump to the first match automatically.  These
636commands can be combined to create a NewGrep command: >
637
638        command! -nargs=+ NewGrep execute 'silent grep! <args>' | copen 42
639
640
6415.1 using Vim's internal grep
642
643					*:vim* *:vimgrep* *E682* *E683*
644:vim[grep][!] /{pattern}/[g][j] {file} ...
645			Search for {pattern} in the files {file} ... and set
646			the error list to the matches.  Files matching
647			'wildignore' are ignored; files in 'suffixes' are
648			searched last.
649			Without the 'g' flag each line is added only once.
650			With 'g' every match is added.
651
652			{pattern} is a Vim search pattern.  Instead of
653			enclosing it in / any non-ID character (see
654			|'isident'|) can be used, so long as it does not
655			appear in {pattern}.
656			'ignorecase' applies.  To overrule it put |/\c| in the
657			pattern to ignore case or |/\C| to match case.
658			'smartcase' is not used.
659			If {pattern} is empty (e.g. // is specified), the last
660			used search pattern is used. |last-pattern|
661
662			When a number is put before the command this is used
663			as the maximum number of matches to find.  Use
664			":1vimgrep pattern file" to find only the first.
665			Useful if you only want to check if there is a match
666			and quit quickly when it's found.
667
668			Without the 'j' flag Vim jumps to the first match.
669			With 'j' only the quickfix list is updated.
670			With the [!] any changes in the current buffer are
671			abandoned.
672
673			Every second or so the searched file name is displayed
674			to give you an idea of the progress made.
675			Examples: >
676				:vimgrep /an error/ *.c
677				:vimgrep /\<FileName\>/ *.h include/*
678				:vimgrep /myfunc/ **/*.c
679<			For the use of "**" see |starstar-wildcard|.
680
681:vim[grep][!] {pattern} {file} ...
682			Like above, but instead of enclosing the pattern in a
683			non-ID character use a white-separated pattern.  The
684			pattern must start with an ID character.
685			Example: >
686				:vimgrep Error *.c
687<
688							*:lv* *:lvimgrep*
689:lv[imgrep][!] /{pattern}/[g][j] {file} ...
690:lv[imgrep][!] {pattern} {file} ...
691			Same as ":vimgrep", except the location list for the
692			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
693
694						*:vimgrepa* *:vimgrepadd*
695:vimgrepa[dd][!] /{pattern}/[g][j] {file} ...
696:vimgrepa[dd][!] {pattern} {file} ...
697			Just like ":vimgrep", but instead of making a new list
698			of errors the matches are appended to the current
699			list.
700
701						*:lvimgrepa* *:lvimgrepadd*
702:lvimgrepa[dd][!] /{pattern}/[g][j] {file} ...
703:lvimgrepa[dd][!] {pattern} {file} ...
704			Same as ":vimgrepadd", except the location list for
705			the current window is used instead of the quickfix
706			list.
707
7085.2 External grep
709
710Vim can interface with "grep" and grep-like programs (such as the GNU
711id-utils) in a similar way to its compiler integration (see |:make| above).
712
713[Unix trivia: The name for the Unix "grep" command comes from ":g/re/p", where
714"re" stands for Regular Expression.]
715
716							    *:gr* *:grep*
717:gr[ep][!] [arguments]	Just like ":make", but use 'grepprg' instead of
718			'makeprg' and 'grepformat' instead of 'errorformat'.
719			When 'grepprg' is "internal" this works like
720			|:vimgrep|.  Note that the pattern needs to be
721			enclosed in separator characters then.
722
723							    *:lgr* *:lgrep*
724:lgr[ep][!] [arguments]	Same as ":grep", except the location list for the
725			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
726
727							*:grepa* *:grepadd*
728:grepa[dd][!] [arguments]
729			Just like ":grep", but instead of making a new list of
730			errors the matches are appended to the current list.
731			Example: >
732				:call setqflist([])
733				:bufdo grepadd! something %
734<			The first command makes a new error list which is
735			empty.  The second command executes "grepadd" for each
736			listed buffer.  Note the use of ! to avoid that
737			":grepadd" jumps to the first error, which is not
738			allowed with |:bufdo|.
739			An example that uses the argument list and avoids
740			errors for files without matches: >
741                                :silent argdo try
742				  \ | grepadd! something %
743				  \ | catch /E480:/
744				  \ | endtry"
745<
746							*:lgrepa* *:lgrepadd*
747:lgrepa[dd][!] [arguments]
748			Same as ":grepadd", except the location list for the
749			current window is used instead of the quickfix list.
750
7515.3 Setting up external grep
752
753If you have a standard "grep" program installed, the :grep command may work
754well with the defaults.  The syntax is very similar to the standard command: >
755
756	:grep foo *.c
757
758Will search all files with the .c extension for the substring "foo".  The
759arguments to :grep are passed straight to the "grep" program, so you can use
760whatever options your "grep" supports.
761
762By default, :grep invokes grep with the -n option (show file and line
763numbers).  You can change this with the 'grepprg' option.  You will need to set
764'grepprg' if:
765
766a)	You are using a program that isn't called "grep"
767b)	You have to call grep with a full path
768c)	You want to pass other options automatically (e.g. case insensitive
769	search.)
770
771Once "grep" has executed, Vim parses the results using the 'grepformat'
772option.  This option works in the same way as the 'errorformat' option - see
773that for details.  You may need to change 'grepformat' from the default if
774your grep outputs in a non-standard format, or you are using some other
775program with a special format.
776
777Once the results are parsed, Vim loads the first file containing a match and
778jumps to the appropriate line, in the same way that it jumps to a compiler
779error in |quickfix| mode.  You can then use the |:cnext|, |:clist|, etc.
780commands to see the other matches.
781
782
7835.4 Using :grep with id-utils
784
785You can set up :grep to work with the GNU id-utils like this: >
786
787	:set grepprg=lid\ -Rgrep\ -s
788	:set grepformat=%f:%l:%m
789
790then >
791	:grep (regexp)
792
793works just as you'd expect.
794(provided you remembered to mkid first :)
795
796
7975.5 Browsing source code with :vimgrep or :grep
798
799Using the stack of error lists that Vim keeps, you can browse your files to
800look for functions and the functions they call.  For example, suppose that you
801have to add an argument to the read_file() function.  You enter this command: >
802
803	:vimgrep /\<read_file\>/ *.c
804
805You use ":cn" to go along the list of matches and add the argument.  At one
806place you have to get the new argument from a higher level function msg(), and
807need to change that one too.  Thus you use: >
808
809	:vimgrep /\<msg\>/ *.c
810
811While changing the msg() functions, you find another function that needs to
812get the argument from a higher level.  You can again use ":vimgrep" to find
813these functions.  Once you are finished with one function, you can use >
814
815	:colder
816
817to go back to the previous one.
818
819This works like browsing a tree: ":vimgrep" goes one level deeper, creating a
820list of branches.  ":colder" goes back to the previous level.  You can mix
821this use of ":vimgrep" and "colder" to browse all the locations in a tree-like
822way.  If you do this consistently, you will find all locations without the
823need to write down a "todo" list.
824
825=============================================================================
8266. Selecting a compiler					*compiler-select*
827
828						*:comp* *:compiler* *E666*
829:comp[iler][!] {name}		Set options to work with compiler {name}.
830				Without the "!" options are set for the
831				current buffer.  With "!" global options are
832				set.
833				If you use ":compiler foo" in "file.foo" and
834				then ":compiler! bar" in another buffer, Vim
835				will keep on using "foo" in "file.foo".
836				{not available when compiled without the
837				|+eval| feature}
838
839
840The Vim plugins in the "compiler" directory will set options to use the
841selected compiler.  For ":compiler" local options are set, for ":compiler!"
842global options.
843							*current_compiler*
844To support older Vim versions, the plugins always use "current_compiler" and
845not "b:current_compiler".  What the command actually does is the following:
846
847- Delete the "current_compiler" and "b:current_compiler" variables.
848- Define the "CompilerSet" user command.  With "!" it does ":set", without "!"
849  it does ":setlocal".
850- Execute ":runtime! compiler/{name}.vim".  The plugins are expected to set
851  options with "CompilerSet" and set the "current_compiler" variable to the
852  name of the compiler.
853- Delete the "CompilerSet" user command.
854- Set "b:current_compiler" to the value of "current_compiler".
855- Without "!" the old value of "current_compiler" is restored.
856
857
858For writing a compiler plugin, see |write-compiler-plugin|.
859
860
861GCC					*quickfix-gcc*	*compiler-gcc*
862
863There's one variable you can set for the GCC compiler:
864
865g:compiler_gcc_ignore_unmatched_lines
866				Ignore lines that don't match any patterns
867				defined for GCC.  Useful if output from
868				commands run from make are generating false
869				positives.
870
871
872MANX AZTEC C				*quickfix-manx* *compiler-manx*
873
874To use Vim with Manx's Aztec C compiler on the Amiga you should do the
875following:
876- Set the CCEDIT environment variable with the command: >
877	mset "CCEDIT=vim -q"
878- Compile with the -qf option.  If the compiler finds any errors, Vim is
879  started and the cursor is positioned on the first error.  The error message
880  will be displayed on the last line.  You can go to other errors with the
881  commands mentioned above.  You can fix the errors and write the file(s).
882- If you exit Vim normally the compiler will re-compile the same file.  If you
883  exit with the :cq command, the compiler will terminate.  Do this if you
884  cannot fix the error, or if another file needs to be compiled first.
885
886There are some restrictions to the Quickfix mode on the Amiga.  The
887compiler only writes the first 25 errors to the errorfile (Manx's
888documentation does not say how to get more).  If you want to find the others,
889you will have to fix a few errors and exit the editor.  After recompiling,
890up to 25 remaining errors will be found.
891
892If Vim was started from the compiler, the :sh and some :!  commands will not
893work, because Vim is then running in the same process as the compiler and
894stdin (standard input) will not be interactive.
895
896
897PERL					*quickfix-perl* *compiler-perl*
898
899The Perl compiler plugin doesn't actually compile, but invokes Perl's internal
900syntax checking feature and parses the output for possible errors so you can
901correct them in quick-fix mode.
902
903Warnings are forced regardless of "no warnings" or "$^W = 0" within the file
904being checked.  To disable this set g:perl_compiler_force_warnings to a zero
905value.  For example: >
906	let g:perl_compiler_force_warnings = 0
907
908
909PYUNIT COMPILER						*compiler-pyunit*
910
911This is not actually a compiler, but a unit testing framework for the
912Python language.  It is included into standard Python distribution
913starting from version 2.0.  For older versions, you can get it from
914http://pyunit.sourceforge.net.
915
916When you run your tests with the help of the framework, possible errors
917are parsed by Vim and presented for you in quick-fix mode.
918
919Unfortunately, there is no standard way to run the tests.
920The alltests.py script seems to be used quite often, that's all.
921Useful values for the 'makeprg' options therefore are:
922 setlocal makeprg=./alltests.py " Run a testsuite
923 setlocal makeprg=python\ %:S   " Run a single testcase
924
925Also see http://vim.sourceforge.net/tip_view.php?tip_id=280.
926
927
928TEX COMPILER						*compiler-tex*
929
930Included in the distribution compiler for TeX ($VIMRUNTIME/compiler/tex.vim)
931uses make command if possible.  If the compiler finds a file named "Makefile"
932or "makefile" in the current directory, it supposes that you want to process
933your *TeX files with make, and the makefile does the right work.  In this case
934compiler sets 'errorformat' for *TeX output and leaves 'makeprg' untouched.  If
935neither "Makefile" nor "makefile" is found, the compiler will not use make.
936You can force the compiler to ignore makefiles by defining
937b:tex_ignore_makefile or g:tex_ignore_makefile variable (they are checked for
938existence only).
939
940If the compiler chose not to use make, it need to choose a right program for
941processing your input.  If b:tex_flavor or g:tex_flavor (in this precedence)
942variable exists, it defines TeX flavor for :make (actually, this is the name
943of executed command), and if both variables do not exist, it defaults to
944"latex".  For example, while editing chapter2.tex \input-ed from mypaper.tex
945written in AMS-TeX: >
946
947	:let b:tex_flavor = 'amstex'
948	:compiler tex
949<	[editing...] >
950	:make mypaper
951
952Note that you must specify a name of the file to process as an argument (to
953process the right file when editing \input-ed or \include-ed file; portable
954solution for substituting % for no arguments is welcome).  This is not in the
955semantics of make, where you specify a target, not source, but you may specify
956filename without extension ".tex" and mean this as "make filename.dvi or
957filename.pdf or filename.some_result_extension according to compiler".
958
959Note: tex command line syntax is set to usable both for MikTeX (suggestion
960by Srinath Avadhanula) and teTeX (checked by Artem Chuprina).  Suggestion
961from |errorformat-LaTeX| is too complex to keep it working for different
962shells and OSes and also does not allow to use other available TeX options,
963if any.  If your TeX doesn't support "-interaction=nonstopmode", please
964report it with different means to express \nonstopmode from the command line.
965
966=============================================================================
9677. The error format					*error-file-format*
968
969					*errorformat* *E372* *E373* *E374*
970						*E375* *E376* *E377* *E378*
971The 'errorformat' option specifies a list of formats that are recognized.  The
972first format that matches with an error message is used.  You can add several
973formats for different messages your compiler produces, or even entries for
974multiple compilers.  See |efm-entries|.
975
976Each entry in 'errorformat' is a scanf-like string that describes the format.
977First, you need to know how scanf works.  Look in the documentation of your
978C compiler.  Below you find the % items that Vim understands.  Others are
979invalid.
980
981Special characters in 'errorformat' are comma and backslash.  See
982|efm-entries| for how to deal with them.  Note that a literal "%" is matched
983by "%%", thus it is not escaped with a backslash.
984Keep in mind that in the `:make` and `:grep` output all NUL characters are
985replaced with SOH (0x01).
986
987Note: By default the difference between upper and lowercase is ignored.  If
988you want to match case, add "\C" to the pattern |/\C|.
989
990
991Basic items
992
993	%f		file name (finds a string)
994	%l		line number (finds a number)
995	%c		column number (finds a number representing character
996			column of the error, (1 <tab> == 1 character column))
997	%v		virtual column number (finds a number representing
998			screen column of the error (1 <tab> == 8 screen
999			columns))
1000	%t		error type (finds a single character)
1001	%n		error number (finds a number)
1002	%m		error message (finds a string)
1003	%r		matches the "rest" of a single-line file message %O/P/Q
1004	%p		pointer line (finds a sequence of '-', '.', ' ' or
1005			tabs and uses the length for the column number)
1006	%*{conv}	any scanf non-assignable conversion
1007	%%		the single '%' character
1008	%s		search text (finds a string)
1009
1010The "%f" conversion may depend on the current 'isfname' setting.  "~/" is
1011expanded to the home directory and environment variables are expanded.
1012
1013The "%f" and "%m" conversions have to detect the end of the string.  This
1014normally happens by matching following characters and items.  When nothing is
1015following the rest of the line is matched.  If "%f" is followed by a '%' or a
1016backslash, it will look for a sequence of 'isfname' characters.
1017
1018On MS-DOS, MS-Windows and OS/2 a leading "C:" will be included in "%f", even
1019when using "%f:".  This means that a file name which is a single alphabetical
1020letter will not be detected.
1021
1022The "%p" conversion is normally followed by a "^".  It's used for compilers
1023that output a line like: >
1024	    ^
1025or >
1026   ---------^
1027to indicate the column of the error.  This is to be used in a multi-line error
1028message.  See |errorformat-javac| for a  useful example.
1029
1030The "%s" conversion specifies the text to search for to locate the error line.
1031The text is used as a literal string.  The anchors "^" and "$" are added to
1032the text to locate the error line exactly matching the search text and the
1033text is prefixed with the "\V" atom to make it "very nomagic".  The "%s"
1034conversion can be used to locate lines without a line number in the error
1035output.  Like the output of the "grep" shell command.
1036When the pattern is present the line number will not be used.
1037
1038Changing directory
1039
1040The following uppercase conversion characters specify the type of special
1041format strings.  At most one of them may be given as a prefix at the begin
1042of a single comma-separated format pattern.
1043Some compilers produce messages that consist of directory names that have to
1044be prepended to each file name read by %f (example: GNU make).  The following
1045codes can be used to scan these directory names; they will be stored in an
1046internal directory stack.					*E379*
1047	%D		"enter directory" format string; expects a following
1048			  %f that finds the directory name
1049	%X		"leave directory" format string; expects following %f
1050
1051When defining an "enter directory" or "leave directory" format, the "%D" or
1052"%X" has to be given at the start of that substring.  Vim tracks the directory
1053changes and prepends the current directory to each erroneous file found with a
1054relative path.  See |quickfix-directory-stack| for details, tips and
1055limitations.
1056
1057
1058Multi-line messages				*errorformat-multi-line*
1059
1060It is possible to read the output of programs that produce multi-line
1061messages, i.e. error strings that consume more than one line.  Possible
1062prefixes are:
1063	%E		start of a multi-line error message
1064	%W		start of a multi-line warning message
1065	%I		start of a multi-line informational message
1066	%A		start of a multi-line message (unspecified type)
1067	%>		for next line start with current pattern again |efm-%>|
1068	%C		continuation of a multi-line message
1069	%Z		end of a multi-line message
1070These can be used with '+' and '-', see |efm-ignore| below.
1071
1072Using "\n" in the pattern won't work to match multi-line messages.
1073
1074Example: Your compiler happens to write out errors in the following format
1075(leading line numbers not being part of the actual output):
1076
1077     1	Error 275 ~
1078     2	line 42 ~
1079     3	column 3 ~
1080     4	' ' expected after '--' ~
1081
1082The appropriate error format string has to look like this: >
1083   :set efm=%EError\ %n,%Cline\ %l,%Ccolumn\ %c,%Z%m
1084
1085And the |:clist| error message generated for this error is:
1086
1087 1:42 col 3 error 275:  ' ' expected after '--'
1088
1089Another example: Think of a Python interpreter that produces the following
1090error message (line numbers are not part of the actual output):
1091
1092     1	==============================================================
1093     2	FAIL: testGetTypeIdCachesResult (dbfacadeTest.DjsDBFacadeTest)
1094     3	--------------------------------------------------------------
1095     4	Traceback (most recent call last):
1096     5	  File "unittests/dbfacadeTest.py", line 89, in testFoo
1097     6	    self.assertEquals(34, dtid)
1098     7	  File "/usr/lib/python2.2/unittest.py", line 286, in
1099     8	 failUnlessEqual
1100     9	    raise self.failureException, \
1101    10	AssertionError: 34 != 33
1102    11
1103    12	--------------------------------------------------------------
1104    13	Ran 27 tests in 0.063s
1105
1106Say you want |:clist| write the relevant information of this message only,
1107namely:
1108 5 unittests/dbfacadeTest.py:89:  AssertionError: 34 != 33
1109
1110Then the error format string could be defined as follows: >
1111  :set efm=%C\ %.%#,%A\ \ File\ \"%f\"\\,\ line\ %l%.%#,%Z%[%^\ ]%\\@=%m
1112
1113Note that the %C string is given before the %A here: since the expression
1114' %.%#' (which stands for the regular expression ' .*') matches every line
1115starting with a space, followed by any characters to the end of the line,
1116it also hides line 7 which would trigger a separate error message otherwise.
1117Error format strings are always parsed pattern by pattern until the first
1118match occurs.
1119							*efm-%>*
1120The %> item can be used to avoid trying patterns that appear earlier in
1121'errorformat'.  This is useful for patterns that match just about anything.
1122For example, if the error looks like this:
1123
1124	Error in line 123 of foo.c: ~
1125	unknown variable "i" ~
1126
1127This can be found with: >
1128	:set efm=xxx,%E%>Error in line %l of %f:,%Z%m
1129Where "xxx" has a pattern that would also match the second line.
1130
1131Important: There is no memory of what part of the errorformat matched before;
1132every line in the error file gets a complete new run through the error format
1133lines.  For example, if one has: >
1134  setlocal efm=aa,bb,cc,dd,ee
1135Where aa, bb, etc. are error format strings.  Each line of the error file will
1136be matched to the pattern aa, then bb, then cc, etc.  Just because cc matched
1137the previous error line does _not_ mean that dd will be tried first on the
1138current line, even if cc and dd are multi-line errorformat strings.
1139
1140
1141
1142Separate file name			*errorformat-separate-filename*
1143
1144These prefixes are useful if the file name is given once and multiple messages
1145follow that refer to this file name.
1146	%O		single-line file message: overread the matched part
1147	%P		single-line file message: push file %f onto the stack
1148	%Q		single-line file message: pop the last file from stack
1149
1150Example: Given a compiler that produces the following error logfile (without
1151leading line numbers):
1152
1153     1	[a1.tt]
1154     2	(1,17)  error: ';' missing
1155     3	(21,2)  warning: variable 'z' not defined
1156     4	(67,3)  error: end of file found before string ended
1157     5
1158     6	[a2.tt]
1159     7
1160     8	[a3.tt]
1161     9	NEW compiler v1.1
1162    10	(2,2)   warning: variable 'x' not defined
1163    11	(67,3)  warning: 's' already defined
1164
1165This logfile lists several messages for each file enclosed in [...] which are
1166properly parsed by an error format like this: >
1167  :set efm=%+P[%f],(%l\\,%c)%*[\ ]%t%*[^:]:\ %m,%-Q
1168
1169A call of |:clist| writes them accordingly with their correct filenames:
1170
1171  2 a1.tt:1 col 17 error: ';' missing
1172  3 a1.tt:21 col 2 warning: variable 'z' not defined
1173  4 a1.tt:67 col 3 error: end of file found before string ended
1174  8 a3.tt:2 col 2 warning: variable 'x' not defined
1175  9 a3.tt:67 col 3 warning: 's' already defined
1176
1177Unlike the other prefixes that all match against whole lines, %P, %Q and %O
1178can be used to match several patterns in the same line.  Thus it is possible
1179to parse even nested files like in the following line:
1180  {"file1" {"file2" error1} error2 {"file3" error3 {"file4" error4 error5}}}
1181The %O then parses over strings that do not contain any push/pop file name
1182information.  See |errorformat-LaTeX| for an extended example.
1183
1184
1185Ignoring and using whole messages			*efm-ignore*
1186
1187The codes '+' or '-' can be combined with the uppercase codes above; in that
1188case they have to precede the letter, e.g. '%+A' or '%-G':
1189	%-		do not include the matching multi-line in any output
1190	%+		include the whole matching line in the %m error string
1191
1192One prefix is only useful in combination with '+' or '-', namely %G.  It parses
1193over lines containing general information like compiler version strings or
1194other headers that can be skipped.
1195	%-G		ignore this message
1196	%+G		general message
1197
1198
1199Pattern matching
1200
1201The scanf()-like "%*[]" notation is supported for backward-compatibility
1202with previous versions of Vim.  However, it is also possible to specify
1203(nearly) any Vim supported regular expression in format strings.
1204Since meta characters of the regular expression language can be part of
1205ordinary matching strings or file names (and therefore internally have to
1206be escaped), meta symbols have to be written with leading '%':
1207	%\		The single '\' character.  Note that this has to be
1208			escaped ("%\\") in ":set errorformat=" definitions.
1209	%.		The single '.' character.
1210	%#		The single '*'(!) character.
1211	%^		The single '^' character.  Note that this is not
1212			useful, the pattern already matches start of line.
1213	%$		The single '$' character.  Note that this is not
1214			useful, the pattern already matches end of line.
1215	%[		The single '[' character for a [] character range.
1216	%~		The single '~' character.
1217When using character classes in expressions (see |/\i| for an overview),
1218terms containing the "\+" quantifier can be written in the scanf() "%*"
1219notation.  Example: "%\\d%\\+" ("\d\+", "any number") is equivalent to "%*\\d".
1220Important note: The \(...\) grouping of sub-matches can not be used in format
1221specifications because it is reserved for internal conversions.
1222
1223
1224Multiple entries in 'errorformat'			*efm-entries*
1225
1226To be able to detect output from several compilers, several format patterns
1227may be put in 'errorformat', separated by commas (note: blanks after the comma
1228are ignored).  The first pattern that has a complete match is used.  If no
1229match is found, matching parts from the last one will be used, although the
1230file name is removed and the error message is set to the whole message.  If
1231there is a pattern that may match output from several compilers (but not in a
1232right way), put it after one that is more restrictive.
1233
1234To include a comma in a pattern precede it with a backslash (you have to type
1235two in a ":set" command).  To include a backslash itself give two backslashes
1236(you have to type four in a ":set" command).  You also need to put a backslash
1237before a space for ":set".
1238
1239
1240Valid matches						*quickfix-valid*
1241
1242If a line does not completely match one of the entries in 'errorformat', the
1243whole line is put in the error message and the entry is marked "not valid"
1244These lines are skipped with the ":cn" and ":cp" commands (unless there is
1245no valid line at all).  You can use ":cl!" to display all the error messages.
1246
1247If the error format does not contain a file name Vim cannot switch to the
1248correct file.  You will have to do this by hand.
1249
1250
1251Examples
1252
1253The format of the file from the Amiga Aztec compiler is:
1254
1255	filename>linenumber:columnnumber:errortype:errornumber:errormessage
1256
1257	filename	name of the file in which the error was detected
1258	linenumber	line number where the error was detected
1259	columnnumber	column number where the error was detected
1260	errortype	type of the error, normally a single 'E' or 'W'
1261	errornumber	number of the error (for lookup in the manual)
1262	errormessage	description of the error
1263
1264This can be matched with this 'errorformat' entry:
1265	%f>%l:%c:%t:%n:%m
1266
1267Some examples for C compilers that produce single-line error outputs:
1268%f:%l:\ %t%*[^0123456789]%n:\ %m	for Manx/Aztec C error messages
1269					(scanf() doesn't understand [0-9])
1270%f\ %l\ %t%*[^0-9]%n:\ %m		for SAS C
1271\"%f\"\\,%*[^0-9]%l:\ %m		for generic C compilers
1272%f:%l:\ %m				for GCC
1273%f:%l:\ %m,%Dgmake[%*\\d]:\ Entering\ directory\ `%f',
1274%Dgmake[%*\\d]:\ Leaving\ directory\ `%f'
1275					for GCC with gmake (concat the lines!)
1276%f(%l)\ :\ %*[^:]:\ %m			old SCO C compiler (pre-OS5)
1277%f(%l)\ :\ %t%*[^0-9]%n:\ %m		idem, with error type and number
1278%f:%l:\ %m,In\ file\ included\ from\ %f:%l:,\^I\^Ifrom\ %f:%l%m
1279					for GCC, with some extras
1280
1281Extended examples for the handling of multi-line messages are given below,
1282see |errorformat-Jikes| and |errorformat-LaTeX|.
1283
1284Note the backslash in front of a space and double quote.  It is required for
1285the :set command.  There are two backslashes in front of a comma, one for the
1286:set command and one to avoid recognizing the comma as a separator of error
1287formats.
1288
1289
1290Filtering messages
1291
1292If you have a compiler that produces error messages that do not fit in the
1293format string, you could write a program that translates the error messages
1294into this format.  You can use this program with the ":make" command by
1295changing the 'makeprg' option.  For example: >
1296   :set mp=make\ \\\|&\ error_filter
1297The backslashes before the pipe character are required to avoid it to be
1298recognized as a command separator.  The backslash before each space is
1299required for the set command.
1300
1301=============================================================================
13028. The directory stack				*quickfix-directory-stack*
1303
1304Quickfix maintains a stack for saving all used directories parsed from the
1305make output.  For GNU-make this is rather simple, as it always prints the
1306absolute path of all directories it enters and leaves.  Regardless if this is
1307done via a 'cd' command in the makefile or with the parameter "-C dir" (change
1308to directory before reading the makefile).  It may be useful to use the switch
1309"-w" to force GNU-make to print out the working directory before and after
1310processing.
1311
1312Maintaining the correct directory is more complicated if you don't use
1313GNU-make.  AIX-make for example doesn't print any information about its
1314working directory.  Then you need to enhance the makefile.  In the makefile of
1315LessTif there is a command which echoes "Making {target} in {dir}".  The
1316special problem here is that it doesn't print information on leaving the
1317directory and that it doesn't print the absolute path.
1318
1319To solve the problem with relative paths and missing "leave directory"
1320messages Vim uses following algorithm:
1321
13221) Check if the given directory is a subdirectory of the current directory.
1323   If this is true, store it as the current directory.
13242) If it is not a subdir of the current directory, try if this is a
1325   subdirectory of one of the upper directories.
13263) If the directory still isn't found, it is assumed to be a subdirectory
1327   of Vim's current directory.
1328
1329Additionally it is checked for every file, if it really exists in the
1330identified directory.  If not, it is searched in all other directories of the
1331directory stack (NOT the directory subtree!).  If it is still not found, it is
1332assumed that it is in Vim's current directory.
1333
1334There are limitations in this algorithm.  These examples assume that make just
1335prints information about entering a directory in the form "Making all in dir".
1336
13371) Assume you have following directories and files:
1338   ./dir1
1339   ./dir1/file1.c
1340   ./file1.c
1341
1342   If make processes the directory "./dir1" before the current directory and
1343   there is an error in the file "./file1.c", you will end up with the file
1344   "./dir1/file.c" loaded by Vim.
1345
1346   This can only be solved with a "leave directory" message.
1347
13482) Assume you have following directories and files:
1349   ./dir1
1350   ./dir1/dir2
1351   ./dir2
1352
1353   You get the following:
1354
1355   Make output			  Directory interpreted by Vim
1356   ------------------------	  ----------------------------
1357   Making all in dir1		  ./dir1
1358   Making all in dir2		  ./dir1/dir2
1359   Making all in dir2		  ./dir1/dir2
1360
1361   This can be solved by printing absolute directories in the "enter directory"
1362   message or by printing "leave directory" messages..
1363
1364To avoid this problem, ensure to print absolute directory names and "leave
1365directory" messages.
1366
1367Examples for Makefiles:
1368
1369Unix:
1370    libs:
1371	    for dn in $(LIBDIRS); do				\
1372		(cd $$dn; echo "Entering dir '$$(pwd)'"; make); \
1373		echo "Leaving dir";				\
1374	    done
1375
1376Add
1377    %DEntering\ dir\ '%f',%XLeaving\ dir
1378to your 'errorformat' to handle the above output.
1379
1380Note that Vim doesn't check if the directory name in a "leave directory"
1381messages is the current directory.  This is why you could just use the message
1382"Leaving dir".
1383
1384=============================================================================
13859. Specific error file formats			*errorformats*
1386
1387						*errorformat-Jikes*
1388Jikes(TM), a source-to-bytecode Java compiler published by IBM Research,
1389produces simple multi-line error messages.
1390
1391An 'errorformat' string matching the produced messages is shown below.
1392The following lines can be placed in the user's |vimrc| to overwrite Vim's
1393recognized default formats, or see |:set+=| how to install this format
1394additionally to the default. >
1395
1396  :set efm=%A%f:%l:%c:%*\\d:%*\\d:,
1397	\%C%*\\s%trror:%m,
1398	\%+C%*[^:]%trror:%m,
1399	\%C%*\\s%tarning:%m,
1400	\%C%m
1401<
1402Jikes(TM) produces a single-line error message when invoked with the option
1403"+E", and can be matched with the following: >
1404
1405  :setl efm=%f:%l:%v:%*\\d:%*\\d:%*\\s%m
1406<
1407						*errorformat-javac*
1408This 'errorformat' has been reported to work well for javac, which outputs a
1409line with "^" to indicate the column of the error: >
1410  :setl efm=%A%f:%l:\ %m,%-Z%p^,%-C%.%#
1411or: >
1412  :setl efm=%A%f:%l:\ %m,%+Z%p^,%+C%.%#,%-G%.%#
1413<
1414Here is an alternative from Michael F. Lamb for Unix that filters the errors
1415first: >
1416  :setl errorformat=%Z%f:%l:\ %m,%A%p^,%-G%*[^sl]%.%#
1417  :setl makeprg=javac\ %:S\ 2>&1\ \\\|\ vim-javac-filter
1418
1419You need to put the following in "vim-javac-filter" somewhere in your path
1420(e.g., in ~/bin) and make it executable: >
1421   #!/bin/sed -f
1422   /\^$/s/\t/\ /g;/:[0-9]\+:/{h;d};/^[ \t]*\^/G;
1423
1424In English, that sed script:
1425- Changes single tabs to single spaces and
1426- Moves the line with the filename, line number, error message to just after
1427  the pointer line. That way, the unused error text between doesn't break
1428  vim's notion of a "multi-line message" and also doesn't force us to include
1429  it as a "continuation of a multi-line message."
1430
1431						*errorformat-ant*
1432For ant (http://jakarta.apache.org/) the above errorformat has to be modified
1433to honour the leading [javac] in front of each javac output line: >
1434  :set efm=%A\ %#[javac]\ %f:%l:\ %m,%-Z\ %#[javac]\ %p^,%-C%.%#
1435
1436The 'errorformat' can also be configured to handle ant together with either
1437javac or jikes.  If you're using jikes, you should tell ant to use jikes' +E
1438command line switch which forces jikes to generate one-line error messages.
1439This is what the second line (of a build.xml file) below does: >
1440  <property name = "build.compiler"       value = "jikes"/>
1441  <property name = "build.compiler.emacs" value = "true"/>
1442
1443The 'errorformat' which handles ant with both javac and jikes is: >
1444  :set efm=\ %#[javac]\ %#%f:%l:%c:%*\\d:%*\\d:\ %t%[%^:]%#:%m,
1445	   \%A\ %#[javac]\ %f:%l:\ %m,%-Z\ %#[javac]\ %p^,%-C%.%#
1446<
1447						*errorformat-jade*
1448parsing jade (see http://www.jclark.com/) errors is simple: >
1449  :set efm=jade:%f:%l:%c:%t:%m
1450<
1451						*errorformat-LaTeX*
1452The following is an example how an 'errorformat' string can be specified
1453for the (La)TeX typesetting system which displays error messages over
1454multiple lines.  The output of ":clist" and ":cc" etc. commands displays
1455multi-lines in a single line, leading white space is removed.
1456It should be easy to adopt the above LaTeX errorformat to any compiler output
1457consisting of multi-line errors.
1458
1459The commands can be placed in a |vimrc| file or some other Vim script file,
1460e.g. a script containing LaTeX related stuff which is loaded only when editing
1461LaTeX sources.
1462Make sure to copy all lines of the example (in the given order), afterwards
1463remove the comment lines.  For the '\' notation at the start of some lines see
1464|line-continuation|.
1465
1466		First prepare 'makeprg' such that LaTeX will report multiple
1467		errors; do not stop when the first error has occurred: >
1468 :set makeprg=latex\ \\\\nonstopmode\ \\\\input\\{$*}
1469<
1470		Start of multi-line error messages: >
1471 :set efm=%E!\ LaTeX\ %trror:\ %m,
1472	\%E!\ %m,
1473<		Start of multi-line warning messages; the first two also
1474		include the line number.  Meaning of some regular expressions:
1475		  - "%.%#"  (".*")   matches a (possibly empty) string
1476		  - "%*\\d" ("\d\+") matches a number >
1477	\%+WLaTeX\ %.%#Warning:\ %.%#line\ %l%.%#,
1478	\%+W%.%#\ at\ lines\ %l--%*\\d,
1479	\%WLaTeX\ %.%#Warning:\ %m,
1480<		Possible continuations of error/warning messages; the first
1481		one also includes the line number: >
1482	\%Cl.%l\ %m,
1483	\%+C\ \ %m.,
1484	\%+C%.%#-%.%#,
1485	\%+C%.%#[]%.%#,
1486	\%+C[]%.%#,
1487	\%+C%.%#%[{}\\]%.%#,
1488	\%+C<%.%#>%.%#,
1489	\%C\ \ %m,
1490<		Lines that match the following patterns do not contain any
1491		important information; do not include them in messages: >
1492	\%-GSee\ the\ LaTeX%m,
1493	\%-GType\ \ H\ <return>%m,
1494	\%-G\ ...%.%#,
1495	\%-G%.%#\ (C)\ %.%#,
1496	\%-G(see\ the\ transcript%.%#),
1497<		Generally exclude any empty or whitespace-only line from
1498		being displayed: >
1499	\%-G\\s%#,
1500<		The LaTeX output log does not specify the names of erroneous
1501		source files per line; rather they are given globally,
1502		enclosed in parentheses.
1503		The following patterns try to match these names and store
1504		them in an internal stack.  The patterns possibly scan over
1505		the same input line (one after another), the trailing "%r"
1506		conversion indicates the "rest" of the line that will be
1507		parsed in the next go until the end of line is reached.
1508
1509		Overread a file name enclosed in '('...')'; do not push it
1510		on a stack since the file apparently does not contain any
1511		error: >
1512	\%+O(%f)%r,
1513<		Push a file name onto the stack.  The name is given after '(': >
1514	\%+P(%f%r,
1515	\%+P\ %\\=(%f%r,
1516	\%+P%*[^()](%f%r,
1517	\%+P[%\\d%[^()]%#(%f%r,
1518<		Pop the last stored file name when a ')' is scanned: >
1519	\%+Q)%r,
1520	\%+Q%*[^()])%r,
1521	\%+Q[%\\d%*[^()])%r
1522
1523Note that in some cases file names in the LaTeX output log cannot be parsed
1524properly.  The parser might have been messed up by unbalanced parentheses
1525then.  The above example tries to catch the most relevant cases only.
1526You can customize the given setting to suit your own purposes, for example,
1527all the annoying "Overfull ..." warnings could be excluded from being
1528recognized as an error.
1529Alternatively to filtering the LaTeX compiler output, it is also possible
1530to directly read the *.log file that is produced by the [La]TeX compiler.
1531This contains even more useful information about possible error causes.
1532However, to properly parse such a complex file, an external filter should
1533be used.  See the description further above how to make such a filter known
1534by Vim.
1535
1536						*errorformat-Perl*
1537In $VIMRUNTIME/tools you can find the efm_perl.pl script, which filters Perl
1538error messages into a format that quickfix mode will understand.  See the
1539start of the file about how to use it.  (This script is deprecated, see
1540|compiler-perl|.)
1541
1542
1543
1544 vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl:
1545