Vim Tutorial for Beginners to Advanced (plus nano): Modes, Commands, Search and Replace

By Ravindra Bagale, trainer · LinkedIn · Last updated: 25 October 2026

1. An everyday example: a typewriter with a remote

Why do we need this?

Imagine a typewriter with two buttons. One button puts it in 'typing' mode, so keys print letters. The other puts it in 'remote' mode, so keys move the paper, cut lines and copy pages. Once you know which mode you are in, you never type garbage.

What is it?

Typing mode = Insert mode (press i). Remote mode = Normal mode (press Esc). The control panel where you type :wq = Command-line mode. Selecting with a highlighter = Visual mode (v).

How to do it (step by step)

2. nano: the quick and friendly editor

Why do we need this?

Sometimes you need to change one line now and do not want to learn modes.

What is it?

nano shows its shortcuts at the bottom. ^ means Ctrl. Type directly. Ctrl+O saves (Write Out). Ctrl+X exits. Ctrl+W searches. Ctrl+K cuts a line, Ctrl+U pastes. Alt+U undoes. Ctrl+_ goes to a line number.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Open a file at line 20.

nano +20 /etc/hosts

What it means: The cursor starts on line 20.

2. Edit a root-owned file.

sudo nano /etc/ssh/sshd_config

What it means: Without sudo, Ctrl+O fails with Permission denied.

3. Show line numbers.

nano -l app.conf

What it means: -l prints numbers on the left.

3. Vim modes and survival kit

Why do we need this?

People get 'stuck in vim' because they do not know the modes. Learn these five things and you will never be stuck.

What is it?

Vim opens in Normal mode, where keys are commands. i enters Insert mode to type. Esc returns to Normal. : opens Command-line mode for :w (save), :q (quit), :wq or :x (save and quit), :q! (quit without saving). vimtutor is a 30-minute built-in lesson.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Open a file.

vim notes.txt

Output:

~
~
"notes.txt" [New]

What it means: Normal mode. ~ means empty lines.

2. Type text.

i  Hello Pune  Esc

Output:

Hello Pune

What it means: i entered Insert mode; Esc left it.

3. Save and quit.

:wq

Output:

"notes.txt" [New] 1L, 11B written

What it means: 1 line, 11 bytes saved.

4. Quit without saving after a mistake.

:q!

What it means: All changes since the last save are gone.

5. Learn more with the tutor.

vimtutor

Output:

= W e l c o m e   t o   t h e   V I M   T u t o r

What it means: A safe practice copy opens.

4. Moving fast in Normal mode

Why do we need this?

Arrow keys are slow. Vim motions let you jump by words, lines and patterns, and they combine with every edit command.

What is it?

h j k l = left down up right. w = next word, b = back a word, e = end of word. 0 = start of line, ^ = first non-space, $ = end of line. gg = first line, G = last line, 42G or :42 = line 42. Ctrl+d / Ctrl+u = half page down/up. % = matching bracket. A number before a motion repeats it: 5j = 5 lines down.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Jump to the end of the file.

G

Output:

(cursor on the last line)

What it means: Great for reading the latest log lines.

2. Jump to line 120 (from an error message).

:120

Output:

(cursor on line 120)

What it means: Or open directly: vim +120 app.py.

3. Move 3 words right.

3w

What it means: Count + motion.

4. Show line numbers.

:set number

Output:

  1 server {
  2   listen 80;

What it means: Turn off with :set nonumber.

5. Editing: delete, copy, paste, undo, change

Why do we need this?

Most editing is deleting, copying and changing small pieces. Vim does each in two or three keys.

What is it?

Operator + motion. d = delete, y = yank (copy), c = change (delete then Insert). dd = delete line, yy = copy line, p = paste after, P = paste before. dw = delete word, d$ or D = delete to end of line, ciw = change inner word. x = delete one character. u = undo, Ctrl+r = redo, . = repeat the last change. o / O = new line below/above. A = append at end of line.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Delete 3 lines.

3dd

Output:

3 fewer lines

What it means: They go into the register, so p can paste them.

2. Move a line down (cut and paste).

ddp

What it means: Delete the line, paste after the next one.

3. Change a word.

ciw  production  Esc

Output:

env = production

What it means: Replaced the word under the cursor.

4. Change a value in quotes.

ci"  10.0.1.20  Esc

Output:

host = "10.0.1.20"

What it means: Works anywhere on the line inside the quotes.

5. Repeat the same change on the next match.

n.

What it means: n goes to the next search hit, . repeats.

6. Undo twice, redo once.

u u Ctrl+r

Output:

1 change; before #4

What it means: Undo is unlimited in a session.

6. Search and replace

Why do we need this?

Changing a host name in 40 places by hand is slow and error-prone.

What is it?

/text searches forward, ?text searches back, n = next, N = previous, * = search the word under the cursor. :s/old/new/ replaces the first match on the line. :%s/old/new/g replaces all in the file. Add c to confirm each: :%s/old/new/gc. :10,20s/// limits to lines 10–20. :noh clears highlight.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Find errors in a log.

/ERROR

Output:

search hit BOTTOM, continuing at TOP

What it means: Press n for the next one.

2. Replace all in the file.

:%s/db-old.internal/db-new.internal/g

Output:

12 substitutions on 12 lines

What it means: % = whole file, g = every match on each line.

3. Replace with confirm.

:%s/8080/9090/gc

Output:

replace with 9090 (y/n/a/q/l/^E/^Y)?

What it means: y = yes, n = skip, a = all, q = quit.

4. Only in lines 5 to 15.

:5,15s/^/# /

Output:

11 substitutions on 11 lines

What it means: Comments out lines 5–15 (^ = line start).

5. Delete all blank lines.

:g/^$/d

Output:

8 fewer lines

What it means: :g runs a command on every matching line.

7. Advanced: visual mode, macros, registers, splits

Why do we need this?

For big edits (YAML blocks, CSV columns, the same change on 200 lines) you need power tools.

What is it?

v = select characters, V = select lines, Ctrl+v = select a block (columns). After selecting: d, y, >, < or : work on it. Macros: qa starts recording into register a, q stops, @a plays, 10@a plays 10 times. Registers: "ayy copies into a, "ap pastes from a, "+y copies to system clipboard. Splits: :split and :vsplit, Ctrl+w w to move. :!cmd runs a shell command. :r !cmd inserts its output.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Indent a YAML block.

V 4j >

Output:

5 lines >ed 1 time

What it means: Selected 5 lines and shifted them right.

2. Add # to the start of 10 lines (block insert).

Ctrl+v 9j I # Esc

Output:

# line1
# line2 ...

What it means: I in block mode types on every selected line.

3. Record a macro that quotes a word and moves down.

qa I" Esc A", Esc j q

Output:

"apple",

What it means: Recorded into register a.

4. Play it on 50 more lines.

50@a

Output:

"banana",
"cherry", ...

What it means: Same edit, 50 times, in a second.

5. Open two files side by side.

:vsplit nginx.conf

What it means: Ctrl+w w jumps between windows.

6. Insert today's date from the shell.

:r !date

Output:

Sun Oct 25 11:02:10 IST 2026

What it means: Shell output inside your file.

7. Save a root file you opened without sudo.

:w !sudo tee % > /dev/null

What it means: % is the current file name. Reload with :e! after.

8. Your .vimrc: make vim yours

Why do we need this?

Typing :set number every time is boring. Settings in ~/.vimrc load on every start.

What is it?

~/.vimrc is a text file of settings. Good starters: number, relativenumber, tabs as spaces for YAML, search options and syntax on.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Write a starter .vimrc.

cat > ~/.vimrc <<'V'
syntax on
set number relativenumber
set expandtab tabstop=2 shiftwidth=2
set ignorecase smartcase incsearch hlsearch
set paste?
V

What it means: Every new vim session now has these.

2. Check a setting.

:set tabstop?

Output:

  tabstop=2

What it means: ? shows the current value.

3. Set vim as the default editor (git, crontab, visudo).

echo 'export EDITOR=vim VISUAL=vim' >> ~/.bashrc && source ~/.bashrc

What it means: crontab -e and git commit now open vim.

9. Real examples from many industries

Why do we need this?

The same Linux skill shows up in every kind of company. Seeing it in many places helps you remember it.

What is it?

Each row is a made-up team. It shows who uses this and how.

How to do it (step by step)

10. Common errors and how to fix them

Why do we need this?

Everyone hits these errors. Knowing the cause saves hours.

What is it?

Read the exact message first. Then match it to a row below.

How to do it (step by step)

11. Troubleshooting step by step

Why do we need this?

When vim behaves oddly, it is almost always the mode, the file permission or a setting.

What is it?

Go top to bottom. Stop at the first step that shows the problem.

How to do it (step by step)

1. Press Esc twice. Now you are in Normal mode.

2. Undo what happened.

u

3. Check the mode line at the bottom (INSERT, VISUAL, recording).

4. Check whether you can write the file.

:!ls -l %

5. Check settings that change typing.

:set paste? expandtab? autoindent?

6. Start clean without your vimrc.

vim -u NONE file

12. Lab 1: Fix a broken config with vim only

Why do we need this?

Grace is on call for a bakery chain in Cape Town. The app config points to an old database and has a wrong port. Fix it in vim.

What is it?

A full hands-on lab. Run every step on a test Linux machine (an EC2 instance, a VM, or WSL).

How to do it (step by step)

1. Create the file.

printf 'db_host = "db-old.internal"\ndb_port = 5433\nreplica = "db-old.internal"\ndebug = true\n' > app.conf

2. Open it with numbers.

vim +'set number' app.conf

Output:

  1 db_host = "db-old.internal"
  2 db_port = 5433
  3 replica = "db-old.internal"
  4 debug = true

3. Replace the host everywhere.

:%s/db-old/db-new/g

Output:

2 substitutions on 2 lines

4. Go to line 2 and change the port.

:2 then $ ciw 5432 Esc

Output:

db_port = 5432

5. Delete the debug line.

G dd

Output:

3 lines

6. Save and quit, then check.

:wq then cat app.conf

Output:

db_host = "db-new.internal"
db_port = 5432
replica = "db-new.internal"

13. Lab 2: Turn a list into JSON with a macro

Why do we need this?

Convert 100 city names into a JSON array in under a minute.

What is it?

A full hands-on lab. Run every step on a test Linux machine (an EC2 instance, a VM, or WSL).

How to do it (step by step)

1. Make the list.

printf '%s\n' Pune Mumbai Delhi Paris Lagos Lima > cities.txt && vim cities.txt

2. Record: quote the line, add a comma, go down.

qq I" Esc A", Esc j q

Output:

"Pune",

3. Play on the rest.

100@q

Output:

"Mumbai",
...
"Lima",

4. Remove the last comma.

G $ x

5. Add brackets.

gg O [ Esc G o ] Esc :wq

Output:

[
"Pune",
...
"Lima"
]

6. Validate.

python3 -m json.tool cities.txt | head -3

Output:

[
    "Pune",
    "Mumbai",

14. Frequently asked questions

15. Interview questions and answers

Beginner level

Mid level level

Senior level

16. Related chapters

• Linux Ops Refresh for DevOps
• Bash Scripting for Automation
• Linux grep and find Commands with Examples
• How to Set Up Passwordless SSH Between Linux Servers

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