How do I keep more marks and registers across sessions by tuning the shada option?
:set shada='200,<1000,s100,h
Default ShaDa settings are conservative, which can make long-running workflows lose useful context between sessions.
Tag: registers
How do I inspect a macro register with escaped control characters so I can debug it safely?
:echo string(getreg('q'))
Macros can fail for subtle reasons: hidden control keys, extra whitespace, or unexpected register contents.
registers #registers #macros #debugging #automation #command-line
How do I append extra keystrokes to a recorded macro from the command line without re-recording it?
:let @q .= "j^"
Live macro recording is fast, but adjusting the tail of a macro by re-recording can be risky once it already works in most places.
macros #macros #registers #automation #normal-mode #workflow
How to configure what Neovim saves between sessions using the ShaDa file?
:set shada
Neovim's ShaDa (Shared Data) file replaces Vim's viminfo and persists session state across restarts — marks, registers, command history, search history, jump
How do I capture command-line output directly into a register?
:redir @a | messages | redir END<CR>
When debugging a session or building repeatable edits, it is useful to turn command output into editable text.
How do the numbered delete registers work and why does deleted text rotate through registers 1 through 9?
"1 through "9
Vim maintains a rotating history of deleted text across registers "1 through "9.
How do I replace a text object with the contents of a register in Neovim 0.11?
gr{motion}
Neovim 0.
How do I inspect the contents of specific Vim registers without listing all of them?
:reg {names}
The :registers command dumps every register at once, which is noisy when you only care about a handful.
How do I paste register contents in insert mode without triggering auto-indentation?
<C-r><C-o>
When you paste a register in insert mode with {reg}, Vim inserts the text as if you had typed it — which means auto-indent, abbreviation expansion, and other
registers #registers #insert-mode #paste #autoindent #editing
How do I append additional keystrokes to a recorded macro using Vimscript without re-recording it?
:let @q .= "keys"
The string concatenation assignment :let @q .
How do I save the current search pattern into a named register before it gets overwritten by a new search?
:let @a = @/
Vim stores the last search pattern in the special / register (@/).
How do I display the contents of only certain registers instead of all of them at once?
:reg a b c
The :reg (alias :registers) command accepts a string of register names as its argument.
How do I inspect a Vim register's full details including its type (charwise, linewise, or blockwise) in Vimscript?
getreginfo('a')
getreginfo('{reg}') (Vim 8.
How do I edit a recorded macro by treating it as plain text?
"qp {edit} 0"qy$ dd
When you record a macro and realize it has a mistake, the easiest fix is to paste the macro's keystrokes as text, edit them, and yank the corrected version back
How do I inspect the current contents of a specific register before pasting or running it as a macro?
:reg {name}
The :reg {name} command displays the current contents of one or more named registers in a formatted listing.
How do I create a self-repeating recursive macro that runs until it reaches the end of the file?
qaq qa...@aq
A recursive macro calls itself at the end of its recording, causing it to repeat automatically until an error — such as reaching the end of the file — stops
How do I access event-specific data like yank contents or inserted characters inside a Vim autocommand?
v:event
The v:event dictionary is populated inside certain autocommand callbacks with data specific to that event.
How do I record a self-repeating recursive macro that automatically stops when it hits an error?
qa{motions}@aq
A recursive macro is one that calls itself at the end of its own recording.
How do I insert all Vim messages into the current buffer so I can read, search, or save them?
:put =execute('messages')
Vim's :messages command shows recent output — error messages, echo'd values, and diagnostic information — but the display is ephemeral and hard to search.
How do I edit a macro without re-recording it?
:let @q = substitute(@q, 'old', 'new', '')
Vim macros are stored as plain text in named registers, which means you can inspect and modify them directly using :let and :echo.