nano

Simple, user-friendly text editor for the terminal

Syntax

nano [options] [file]

Basic Usage

Open a file

nano filename.txt

Opens the specified file in nano editor.

Create a new file

nano

Open file with line numbers

nano -l filename.txt

Common Options

-B: Create backup files
-c: Constantly show cursor position
-i: Auto-indent new lines
-l: Show line numbers
-m: Enable mouse support
-r: Set line wrapping column
-s: Enable smooth scrolling
-t: Save files without backup
-v: View file (read-only)
-w: Disable line wrapping

Essential Keyboard Shortcuts

File Operations

Ctrl+O: Save file
Ctrl+X: Exit nano
Ctrl+R: Insert another file
Ctrl+G: Display help

Editing

Ctrl+K: Cut current line
Ctrl+U: Paste cut text
Ctrl+6: Set mark (for selection)
Alt+6: Copy marked text
Ctrl+A: Go to beginning of line
Ctrl+E: Go to end of line
Ctrl+W: Search for text
Ctrl+\: Search and replace

Navigation

Ctrl+V: Next page
Ctrl+Y: Previous page
Ctrl+P: Previous line
Ctrl+N: Next line
Ctrl+F: Forward one character
Ctrl+B: Backward one character

Practical Examples

Edit configuration file

nano /etc/nginx/nginx.conf

Create new file with line numbers

nano -l newfile.txt

Edit file with backup

nano -B important.conf

View file in read-only mode

nano -v logfile.log

Edit with auto-indent enabled

nano -i script.sh

Set line wrapping at column 80

nano -r 80 longfile.txt

Search and Replace

Search for text

Ctrl+W (then type search term)

Search and replace

Ctrl+\ (then type search term, press Enter, type replacement)

Find next occurrence

Alt+W

Best Practices

When to Use Nano

Quick text editing tasks
Configuration file editing
Simple script creation
Learning text editing in terminal
When you need a simple, non-intimidating editor

Important Notes

Always save before exiting (Ctrl+O, then Ctrl+X)
Use Ctrl+G for help when unsure about shortcuts
Backup important files before editing
Be careful when editing system configuration files
Use sudo when editing files that require root privileges