All
ed commands are single characters, though some require additional parameters. If a command's parameters extend over several lines, then each line except for the last must be terminated with a backslash (‘\').
In general, at most one command is allowed per line. However, most commands accept a print suffix, which is any of
p (print),
l (list), or
n (enumerate), to print the last line affected by the command.
An interrupt (typically ^C) has the effect of aborting the current command and returning the editor to command mode.
ed recognizes the following commands. The commands are shown together with the default address or address range supplied if none is specified (in parentheses), and other possible arguments on the right.
(.)a
Appends text to the buffer after the addressed line. Text is entered in input mode. The current address is set to last line entered.
(.,.)c
Changes lines in the buffer. The addressed lines are deleted from the buffer, and text is appended in their place. Text is entered in input mode. The current address is set to last line entered.
(.,.)d
Deletes the addressed lines from the buffer. If there is a line after the deleted range, then the current address is set to this line. Otherwise the current address is set to the line before the deleted range.
e file
Edits file, and sets the default filename. If file is not specified, then the default filename is used. Any lines in the buffer are deleted before the new file is read. The current address is set to the last line read.
e !command
Edits the standard output of command, (see ! command below). The default filename is unchanged. Any lines in the buffer are deleted before the output of command is read. The current address is set to the last line read.
E file
Edits file unconditionally. This is similar to the e command, except that unwritten changes are discarded without warning. The current address is set to the last line read.
f file
Sets the default filename to file. If file is not specified, then the default unescaped filename is printed.
(1,$)g/re/command-list
Applies
command-list to each of the addressed lines matching a regular expression
re. The current address is set to the line currently matched before
command-list is executed. At the end of the
g command, the current address is set to the last line affected by
command-list.
Each command in
command-list must be on a separate line, and every line except for the last must be terminated by a backslash (‘\'). Any commands are allowed, except for
g,
G,
v, and
V. A newline alone in
command-list is equivalent to a
p command.
(1,$)G/re/
Interactively edits the addressed lines matching a regular expression
re. For each matching line, the line is printed, the current address is set, and the user is prompted to enter a
command-list. At the end of the
G command, the current address is set to the last line affected by (the last)
command-list.
The format of
command-list is the same as that of the
g command. A newline alone acts as a null command list. A single ‘&' repeats the last non-null command list.
H
Toggles the printing of error explanations. By default, explanations are not printed. It is recommended that ed scripts begin with this command to aid in debugging.
h
Prints an explanation of the last error.
(.)i
Inserts text in the buffer before the current line. Text is entered in input mode. The current address is set to the last line entered.
(.,.+1)j
Joins the addressed lines. The addressed lines are deleted from the buffer and replaced by a single line containing their joined text. The current address is set to the resultant line.
(.)klc
Marks a line with a lower case letter lc. The line can then be addressed as 'lc (i.e., a single quote followed by lc) in subsequent commands. The mark is not cleared until the line is deleted or otherwise modified.
(.,.)l
Prints the addressed lines unambiguously. If a single line fills more than one screen (as might be the case when viewing a binary file, for instance), a “--More--” prompt is printed on the last line. ed waits until the RETURN key is pressed before displaying the next screen. The current address is set to the last line printed.
(.,.)m(.)
Moves lines in the buffer. The addressed lines are moved to after the right-hand destination address, which may be the address 0 (zero). The current address is set to the last line moved.
(.,.)n
Prints the addressed lines along with their line numbers. The current address is set to the last line printed.
(.,.)p
Prints the addressed lines. The current address is set to the last line printed.
P
Toggles the command prompt on and off. Unless a prompt was specified with the command-line option -p string, the command prompt is by default turned off.
Q
Quits ed unconditionally. This is similar to the q command, except that unwritten changes are discarded without warning.
($)r file
Reads file to after the addressed line. If file is not specified, then the default filename is used. If there was no default filename prior to the command, then the default filename is set to file. Otherwise, the default filename is unchanged. The current address is set to the last line read.
($)r !command
Reads to after the addressed line the standard output of command, (see the ! command below). The default filename is unchanged. The current address is set to the last line read.
(.,.)s/re/replacement/, (.,.)s/re/replacement/g, (.,.)s/re/replacement/n
Replaces text in the addressed lines matching a regular expression
re with
replacement. By default, only the first match in each line is replaced. If the
g (global) suffix is given, then every match to be replaced. The
n suffix, where
n is a positive number, causes only the
nth match to be replaced. It is an error if no substitutions are performed on any of the addressed lines. The current address is set the last line affected.
re and
replacement may be delimited by any character other than space and newline (see the
s command below). If one or two of the last delimiters is omitted, then the last line affected is printed as though the print suffix
p were specified.
An unescaped ‘&' in
replacement is replaced by the currently matched text. The character sequence
\m, where
m is a number in the range [1,9], is replaced by the
mth backreference expression of the matched text. If
replacement consists of a single ‘%', then
replacement from the last substitution is used. Newlines may be embedded in
replacement if they are escaped with a backslash (‘\').
(.,.)s
Repeats the last substitution. This form of the s command accepts a count suffix n, or any combination of the characters r, g, and p. If a count suffix n is given, then only the nth match is replaced. The r suffix causes the regular expression of the last search to be used instead of that of the last substitution. The g suffix toggles the global suffix of the last substitution. The p suffix toggles the print suffix of the last substitution. The current address is set to the last line affected.
(.,.)t(.)
Copies (i.e., transfers) the addressed lines to after the right-hand destination address, which may be the address 0 (zero). The current address is set to the last line copied.
u
Undoes the last command and restores the current address to what it was before the command. The global commands g, G, v, and V are treated as a single command by undo. u is its own inverse.
(1,$)v/re/command-list
Applies command-list to each of the addressed lines not matching a regular expression re. This is similar to the g command.
(1,$)V/re/
Interactively edits the addressed lines not matching a regular expression re. This is similar to the G command.
(1,$)w file
Writes the addressed lines to file. Any previous contents of file are lost without warning. If there is no default filename, then the default filename is set to file, otherwise it is unchanged. If no filename is specified, then the default filename is used. The current address is unchanged.
(1,$)wq file
Writes the addressed lines to file, and then executes a q command.
(1,$)w !command
Writes the addressed lines to the standard input of command, (see the ! command below). The default filename and current address are unchanged.
(1,$)W file
Appends the addressed lines to the end of file. This is similar to the w command, except that the previous contents of file are not clobbered. The current address is unchanged.
x
Prompts for an encryption key which is used in subsequent reads and writes. If a newline alone is entered as the key, then encryption is turned off. Otherwise, echoing is disabled while a key is read. Encryption/decryption is done using the
bdes(1) algorithm.
(.+1)zn
Scrolls n lines at a time starting at addressed line. If n is not specified, then the current window size is used. The current address is set to the last line printed.
($)=
Prints the line number of the addressed line.
(.+1)newline
Prints the addressed line, and sets the current address to that line.
!command
Executes
command via
sh(1). If the first character of
command is
!, then it is replaced by text of the previous
!command.
ed does not process
command for ‘\' (backslash) escapes. However, an unescaped ‘%' is replaced by the default filename. When the shell returns from execution, a ‘!' is printed to the standard output. The current line is unchanged.