.. _faq: Frequently Asked Questions ========================== Q: How can I copy & paste without decorations? ---------------------------------------------- :Answer: There are a couple ways to do this: * Use the :ref:`bookmark` hotkeys to mark lines and then press :kbd:`c` to copy to the local system keyboard. The system clipboard is accessed using commands like :code:`pbcopy` and :code:`xclip`. See the :ref:`tuning` section for more details. If a system clipboard is not available, the `OSC 52 `_ terminal escape sequence will be tried. If your terminal supports this escape sequence, the selected text will be copied to the clipboard, even if you are on an SSH connection. * Press :kbd:`CTRL` + :kbd:`l` to temporarily switch to "lo-fi" mode where the contents of the current view are printed to the terminal. This option is useful when you are logged into a remote host. Q: How can I force a format for a file? --------------------------------------- :Answer: The log format for a file is automatically detected and cannot be forced. :Solution: Add some of the log file lines to the :ref:`sample` array and then startup lnav to get a detailed explanation of where the format patterns are not matching the sample lines. :Details: The first lines of the file are matched against the :ref:`regular expressions defined in the format definitions`. The order of the formats is automatically determined so that more specific formats are tried before more generic ones. Therefore, if the expected format is not being chosen for a file, then it means the regular expressions defined by that format are not matching the first few lines of the file. See :ref:`format_order` for more information. Q: How can I search backwards, like pressing :kbd:`?` in less? -------------------------------------------------------------- :Answer: Searches in **lnav** runs in the background and do not block input waiting to find the first hit. While the search prompt is open, pressing :kbd:`CTRL` + :kbd:`j` will jump to the previous hit that was found. A preview panel is also opened that shows the hits that have been found so far. After pressing :kbd:`Enter` at the search prompt, the view will jump to the first hit that was found. Then, you can press :kbd:`n` to move to the next search hit and :kbd:`N` to move to the previous one. If you would like to add a hotkey for jumping to the previous hit by default, enter the following configuration command: .. code-block:: lnav :config /ui/keymap-defs/default/x3f/command :prompt --alt search ? Q: Why isn't my log file highlighted correctly? ----------------------------------------------- TBD Q: Why isn't a file being displayed? ------------------------------------ :Answer: Plaintext files are displayed separately from log files in the TEXT view. :Solution: Press the :kbd:`t` key to switch to the text view. Or, open the files configuration panel by pressing :kbd:`TAB` to cycle through the panels, and then press :kbd:`/` to search for the file you're interested in. If the file is a log, a new :ref:`log format` will need to be created or an existing one modified. :Details: If a file being monitored by lnav does not match a known log file format, it is treated as plaintext and will be displayed in the TEXT view. Q: How can I search for an exact word? -------------------------------------- :Solution: Surround the word to search for with :code:`\b`. :Details: The :code:`\b` means "word break" and matches a position where a "word" ends. That is, right before a space character, punctuation, etc, or at EOL.