# Vim documentation: usr_90

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    *usr_90.txt*	For Vim version 8.1.  Last change: 2008 Sep 10

    		     VIM USER MANUAL - by Bram Moolenaar

    				Installing Vim

    								*install*
    Before you can use Vim you have to install it.  Depending on your system it's
    simple or easy.  This chapter gives a few hints and also explains how
    upgrading to a new version is done.

    |90.1|	Unix
    |90.2|	MS-Windows
    |90.3|	Upgrading
    |90.4|	Common installation issues
    |90.5|	Uninstalling Vim

     Previous chapter: |usr_45.txt|  Select your language
    Table of contents: |usr_toc.txt|

    ==============================================================================

    *90.1*	Unix

    First you have to decide if you are going to install Vim system-wide or for a
    single user.  The installation is almost the same, but the directory where Vim
    is installed in differs.
       For a system-wide installation the base directory "/usr/local" is often
    used.  But this may be different for your system.  Try finding out where other
    packages are installed.
       When installing for a single user, you can use your home directory as the
    base.  The files will be placed in subdirectories like "bin" and "shared/vim".

    FROM A PACKAGE

    You can get precompiled binaries for many different UNIX systems.  There is a
    long list with links on this page:

    	http://www.vim.org/binaries.html

    Volunteers maintain the binaries, so they are often out of date.  It is a
    good idea to compile your own UNIX version from the source.  Also, creating
    the editor from the source allows you to control which features are compiled.
    This does require a compiler though.

    If you have a Linux distribution, the "vi" program is probably a minimal
    version of Vim.  It doesn't do syntax highlighting, for example.  Try finding
    another Vim package in your distribution, or search on the web site.

    FROM SOURCES

    To compile and install Vim, you will need the following:

    	-  A C compiler (GCC preferred)
    	-  The GZIP program (you can get it from www.gnu.org)
    	-  The Vim source and runtime archives

    To get the Vim archives, look in this file for a mirror near you, this should
    provide the fastest download:

    	ftp://ftp.vim.org/pub/vim/MIRRORS

    Or use the home site ftp.vim.org, if you think it's fast enough.  Go to the
    "unix" directory and you'll find a list of files there.  The version number is
    embedded in the file name.  You will want to get the most recent version.
       You can get the files for Unix in two ways: One big archive that contains
    everything, or four smaller ones that each fit on a floppy disk.  For version
    6.1 the single big one is called:

    	vim-6.1.tar.bz2

    You need the bzip2 program to uncompress it.  If you don't have it, get the
    four smaller files, which can be uncompressed with gzip.  For Vim 6.1 they are
    called:

    	vim-6.1-src1.tar.gz
    	vim-6.1-src2.tar.gz
    	vim-6.1-rt1.tar.gz
    	vim-6.1-rt2.tar.gz

    COMPILING

    First create a top directory to work in, for example:

    	mkdir ~/vim
    	cd ~/vim

    Then unpack the archives there.  If you have the one big archive, you unpack
    it like this:

    	bzip2 -d -c path/vim-6.1.tar.bz2 | tar xf -

    Change "path" to where you have downloaded the file.

    	gzip -d -c path/vim-6.1-src1.tar.gz | tar xf -
    	gzip -d -c path/vim-6.1-src2.tar.gz | tar xf -
    	gzip -d -c path/vim-6.1-rt1.tar.gz | tar xf -
    	gzip -d -c path/vim-6.1-rt2.tar.gz | tar xf -

    If you are satisfied with getting the default features, and your environment
    is setup properly, you should be able to compile Vim with just this:

    	cd vim61/src
    	make

    The make program will run configure and compile everything.  Further on we
    will explain how to compile with different features.
       If there are errors while compiling, carefully look at the error messages.
    There should be a hint about what went wrong.  Hopefully you will be able to
    correct it.  You might have to disable some features to make Vim compile.
    Look in the Makefile for specific hints for your system.

    TESTING

    Now you can check if compiling worked OK:

    	make test

    This will run a sequence of test scripts to verify that Vim works as expected.
    Vim will be started many times and all kinds of text and messages flash by.
    If it is alright you will finally see:

    	test results:
    	ALL DONE

    If you get "TEST FAILURE" some test failed.  If there are one or two messages
    about failed tests, Vim might still work, but not perfectly.  If you see a lot
    of error messages or Vim doesn't finish until the end, there must be something
    wrong.  Either try to find out yourself, or find someone who can solve it.
    You could look in the |maillist-archive| for a solution.  If everything else
    fails, you could ask in the vim |maillist| if someone can help you.

    INSTALLING

    							*install-home*
    If you want to install in your home directory, edit the Makefile and search
    for a line:

    	#prefix = $(HOME)

    Remove the # at the start of the line.
       When installing for the whole system, Vim has most likely already selected
    a good installation directory for you.  You can also specify one, see below.
    You need to become root for the following.

    To install Vim do:

    	make install

    That should move all the relevant files to the right place.  Now you can try
    running vim to verify that it works.  Use two simple tests to check if Vim can
    find its runtime files:

    	:help
    	:syntax enable

    If this doesn't work, use this command to check where Vim is looking for the
    runtime files:

    	:echo $VIMRUNTIME

    You can also start Vim with the "-V" argument to see what happens during
    startup:

    	vim -V

    Don't forget that the user manual assumes you Vim in a certain way.  After
    installing Vim, follow the instructions at |not-compatible| to make Vim work
    as assumed in this manual.

    SELECTING FEATURES

    Vim has many ways to select features.  One of the simple ways is to edit the
    Makefile.  There are many directions and examples.  Often you can enable or
    disable a feature by uncommenting a line.
       An alternative is to run "configure" separately.  This allows you to
    specify configuration options manually.  The disadvantage is that you have to
    figure out what exactly to type.
       Some of the most interesting configure arguments follow.  These can also be
    enabled from the Makefile.

    	--prefix={directory}		Top directory where to install Vim.

    	--with-features=tiny		Compile with many features disabled.
    	--with-features=small		Compile with some features disabled.
    	--with-features=big		Compile with more features enabled.
    	--with-features=huge		Compile with most features enabled.
    					See |+feature-list| for which feature
    					is enabled in which case.

    	--enable-perlinterp		Enable the Perl interface.  There are
    					similar arguments for ruby, python and
    					tcl.

    	--disable-gui			Do not compile the GUI interface.
    	--without-x			Do not compile X-windows features.
    					When both of these are used, Vim will
    					not connect to the X server, which
    					makes startup faster.

    To see the whole list use:

    	./configure --help

    You can find a bit of explanation for each feature, and links for more
    information here: |feature-list|.
       For the adventurous, edit the file "feature.h".  You can also change the
    source code yourself!

    ==============================================================================

    *90.2*	MS-Windows

    There are two ways to install the Vim program for Microsoft Windows.  You can
    uncompress several archives, or use a self-installing big archive.  Most users
    with fairly recent computers will prefer the second method.  For the first
    one, you will need:

    	- An archive with binaries for Vim.
    	- The Vim runtime archive.
    	- A program to unpack the zip files.

    To get the Vim archives, look in this file for a mirror near you, this should
    provide the fastest download:

    	ftp://ftp.vim.org/pub/vim/MIRRORS

    Or use the home site ftp.vim.org, if you think it's fast enough.  Go to the
    "pc" directory and you'll find a list of files there.  The version number is
    embedded in the file name.  You will want to get the most recent version.
    We will use "61" here, which is version 6.1.

    	gvim61.exe		The self-installing archive.

    This is all you need for the second method.  Just launch the executable, and
    follow the prompts.

    For the first method you must chose one of the binary archives.  These are
    available:

    	gvim61.zip		The normal MS-Windows GUI version.
    	gvim61ole.zip		The MS-Windows GUI version with OLE support.
    				Uses more memory, supports interfacing with
    				other OLE applications.
    	vim61w32.zip		32 bit MS-Windows console version.  For use in
    				a Win NT/2000/XP console.  Does not work well
    				on Win 95/98.
    	vim61d32.zip		32 bit MS-DOS version.  For use in the
    				Win 95/98 console window.
    	vim61d16.zip		16 bit MS-DOS version.  Only for old systems.
    				Does not support long filenames.

    You only need one of them.  Although you could install both a GUI and a
    console version.  You always need to get the archive with runtime files.

    	vim61rt.zip		The runtime files.

    Use your un-zip program to unpack the files.  For example, using the "unzip"
    program:

    	cd c:\
    	unzip path\gvim61.zip
    	unzip path\vim61rt.zip

    This will unpack the files in the directory "c:\vim\vim61".  If you already
    have a "vim" directory somewhere, you will want to move to the directory just
    above it.
       Now change to the "vim\vim61" directory and run the install program:

    	install

    Carefully look through the messages and select the options you want to use.
    If you finally select "do it" the install program will carry out the actions
    you selected.
       The install program doesn't move the runtime files.  They remain where you
    unpacked them.

    In case you are not satisfied with the features included in the supplied
    binaries, you could try compiling Vim yourself.  Get the source archive from
    the same location as where the binaries are.  You need a compiler for which a
    makefile exists.  Microsoft Visual C works, but is expensive.  The Free
    Borland command-line compiler 5.5 can be used, as well as the free MingW and
    Cygwin compilers.  Check the file src/INSTALLpc.txt for hints.

    ==============================================================================

    *90.3*	Upgrading

    If you are running one version of Vim and want to install another, here is
    what to do.

    UNIX

    When you type "make install" the runtime files will be copied to a directory
    which is specific for this version.  Thus they will not overwrite a previous
    version.  This makes it possible to use two or more versions next to
    each other.
       The executable "vim" will overwrite an older version.  If you don't care
    about keeping the old version, running "make install" will work fine.  You can
    delete the old runtime files manually.  Just delete the directory with the
    version number in it and all files below it.  Example:

    	rm -rf /usr/local/share/vim/vim58

    There are normally no changed files below this directory.  If you did change
    the "filetype.vim" file, for example, you better merge the changes into the
    new version before deleting it.

    If you are careful and want to try out the new version for a while before
    switching to it, install the new version under another name.  You need to
    specify a configure argument.  For example:

    	./configure --with-vim-name=vim6

    Before running "make install", you could use "make -n install" to check that
    no valuable existing files are overwritten.
       When you finally decide to switch to the new version, all you need to do is
    to rename the binary to "vim".  For example:

    	mv /usr/local/bin/vim6 /usr/local/bin/vim

    MS-WINDOWS

    Upgrading is mostly equal to installing a new version.  Just unpack the files
    in the same place as the previous version.  A new directory will be created,
    e.g., "vim61", for the files of the new version.  Your runtime files, vimrc
    file, viminfo, etc. will be left alone.
       If you want to run the new version next to the old one, you will have to do
    some handwork.  Don't run the install program, it will overwrite a few files
    of the old version.  Execute the new binaries by specifying the full path.
    The program should be able to automatically find the runtime files for the
    right version.  However, this won't work if you set the $VIMRUNTIME variable
    somewhere.
       If you are satisfied with the upgrade, you can delete the files of the
    previous version.  See |90.5|.

    ==============================================================================

    *90.4*	Common installation issues

    This section describes some of the common problems that occur when installing
    Vim and suggests some solutions.  It also contains answers to many
    installation questions.

    Q: I Do Not Have Root Privileges.  How Do I Install Vim? (Unix)

    Use the following configuration command to install Vim in a directory called
    $HOME/vim:

    	./configure --prefix=$HOME

    This gives you a personal copy of Vim.  You need to put $HOME/bin in your
    path to execute the editor.  Also see |install-home|.

    Q: The Colors Are Not Right on My Screen. (Unix)

    Check your terminal settings by using the following command in a shell:

    	echo $TERM

    If the terminal type listed is not correct, fix it.  For more hints, see
    |06.2|.  Another solution is to always use the GUI version of Vim, called
    gvim.  This avoids the need for a correct terminal setup.

    Q: My Backspace And Delete Keys Don't Work Right

    The definition of what key sends what code is very unclear for backspace <BS>
    and Delete <Del> keys.  First of all, check your $TERM setting.  If there is
    nothing wrong with it, try this:

    	:set t_kb=^V<BS>
    	:set t_kD=^V<Del>

    In the first line you need to press CTRL-V and then hit the backspace key.
    In the second line you need to press CTRL-V and then hit the Delete key.
    You can put these lines in your vimrc file, see |05.1|.  A disadvantage is
    that it won't work when you use another terminal some day.  Look here for
    alternate solutions: |:fixdel|.

    Q: I Am Using RedHat Linux.  Can I Use the Vim That Comes with the System?

    By default RedHat installs a minimal version of Vim.  Check your RPM packages
    for something named "Vim-enhanced-version.rpm" and install that.

    Q: How Do I Turn Syntax Coloring On?  How do I make plugins work?

    Use the example vimrc script.  You can find an explanation on how to use it
    here: |not-compatible|.

    See chapter 6 for information about syntax highlighting: |usr_06.txt|.

    Q: What Is a Good vimrc File to Use?

    See the www.vim.org Web site for several good examples.

    Q: Where Do I Find a Good Vim Plugin?

     See the Vim-online site:	http://vim.sf.net. Many users have uploaded useful
    Vim scripts and plugins there.

    Q: Where Do I Find More Tips?

     See the Vim-online site:	http://vim.sf.net. There is an archive with hints
    from Vim users.  You might also want to search in the |maillist-archive|.

    ==============================================================================

    *90.5*	Uninstalling Vim

    In the unlikely event you want to uninstall Vim completely, this is how you do
    it.

    UNIX

    When you installed Vim as a package, check your package manager to find out
    how to remove the package again.
       If you installed Vim from sources you can use this command:

    	make uninstall

    However, if you have deleted the original files or you used an archive that
    someone supplied, you can't do this.  Do delete the files manually, here is an
    example for when "/usr/local" was used as the root:

    	rm -rf /usr/local/share/vim/vim61
    	rm /usr/local/bin/eview
    	rm /usr/local/bin/evim
    	rm /usr/local/bin/ex
    	rm /usr/local/bin/gview
    	rm /usr/local/bin/gvim
    	rm /usr/local/bin/gvim
    	rm /usr/local/bin/gvimdiff
    	rm /usr/local/bin/rgview
    	rm /usr/local/bin/rgvim
    	rm /usr/local/bin/rview
    	rm /usr/local/bin/rvim
    	rm /usr/local/bin/rvim
    	rm /usr/local/bin/view
    	rm /usr/local/bin/vim
    	rm /usr/local/bin/vimdiff
    	rm /usr/local/bin/vimtutor
    	rm /usr/local/bin/xxd
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/eview.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/evim.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/ex.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/gview.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/gvim.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/gvimdiff.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/rgview.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/rgvim.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/rview.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/rvim.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/view.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/vim.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/vimdiff.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/vimtutor.1
    	rm /usr/local/man/man1/xxd.1

    MS-WINDOWS

    If you installed Vim with the self-installing archive you can run
    the "uninstall-gui" program located in the same directory as the other Vim
    programs, e.g. "c:\vim\vim61".  You can also launch it from the Start menu if
    installed the Vim entries there.  This will remove most of the files, menu
    entries and desktop shortcuts.  Some files may remain however, as they need a
    Windows restart before being deleted.
       You will be given the option to remove the whole "vim" directory.  It
    probably contains your vimrc file and other runtime files that you created, so
    be careful.

    Else, if you installed Vim with the zip archives, the preferred way is to use
    the "uninstal" program (note the missing l at the end).  You can find it in
    the same directory as the "install" program, e.g., "c:\vim\vim61".  This
    should also work from the usual "install/remove software" page.
       However, this only removes the registry entries for Vim.  You have to
    delete the files yourself.  Simply select the directory "vim\vim61" and delete
    it recursively.  There should be no files there that you changed, but you
    might want to check that first.
       The "vim" directory probably contains your vimrc file and other runtime
    files that you created.  You might want to keep that.

    ==============================================================================

    Table of contents: |usr_toc.txt|

    Copyright: see |manual-copyright|  vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl:
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