Open the '.vimrc' file using your favourite text editor - vim ~/.vimrc.If you want changes to be permanent, you can save your preferences in a '.vimrc' file that lives in your user's home directory. The same goes for ':set nonumber!' command. If the line numbers are already displayed and you use this command again, it will stop showing line numbers. You should now see line numbers to the left side of the window.įor any reason, if you do not end up liking it, you can turn it off using the ':set nonumber' command or with 'set nonu' command for short.Īctually, ':set number!' command works like a switch. Now type 'set number', or you can type 'set nu' (for short) and hit the 'Enter' key. There should be colon character printed to the bottom left corner of Vim. You can switch to the command mode by pressing the Escape (Esc) key. Make sure that you are in the command mode.It starts with 1 and ends with the number of the last line.Īnd, there are two ways to enable that.

Show absolute line numbers in VimĪbsolute line numbers are what you find in almost all IDEs. To display line numbers in Vim, go into the command mode by pressing Esc key and use: :set number!Įasy, right? Let's see it in details and with examples.Īctually, you can show three kinds of line numbers in Vim:Ĭurious? Let's take a more in-depth look. You might think, “I would switch to Vim immediately if Vim could show me line numbers”. Vim is a remarkable editor that most Linux/UNIX sysadmins have come to love and use every day.

Macvim command line