- -e changes the editor to use
- -l lists the commands instead of calling the editor.
- -n Removes the command numbers when using -l
- -r Reverse the order of the listing -l of the edition -e
- -s re-execute without calling the editor
fc is a small utility that allows you to list, edit and re-execute previous commands entered in an interactive shell. This utility should be included by default with Linux.
The following command opens the editor with the history lines 420 to 423.
$ fc 420 423
The following command execute the lines 420 to 423 without editing.
$ fc -s 420 423
The following command lists the commands 420 to 423 without showing the lines' number and reverse the order
$ fc -l -n -r 420 423
By default, fc will use your system's default editor. Vi is often the system's default and it might give you some trouble. You can use the -e flag to change the browser.
fc -e vim 420 423
To make sure you don't forget the flag or to change it permanently for your user, you can modify your bashrc file.
vim ~/.bashrc
Add the following line. Replace vim by your favorite editor (emacs, nano, etc.)
alias fc="fc -e vim"