Can I retrieve the current operating system (Windows, Linux, OS X, ..) using pure Vimscript (no Python or Perl)?
I want to enable different settings in my (synchronized) .vimrc for different types of operation systems I am using.
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Could you provide some specific examples of OS-dependent behaviours that you seek to implement?– 200_successMar 16, 2015 at 8:47
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@200_success I have some scripts and key bindings for MS TFS and msbuild that are pretty useless in non-Windows environments, while I don't need tmux support in gVim on Windows. In addition, there are different fonts installed on different systems, and paths may differ as well.– muffelMar 16, 2015 at 8:52
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6 Answers
The best way is to use has(), with
this function you can check for features of Vim; OS specific features from
:help feature-list:
macunix Macintosh version of Vim, using Unix files (OS-X).
unix Unix version of Vim.
win32 Win32 version of Vim (MS-Windows 95 and later, 32 or
64 bits)
win32unix Win32 version of Vim, using Unix files (Cygwin)
And some older (semi-deprecated) systems:
amiga Amiga version of Vim.
os2 OS/2 version of Vim.
win16 Win16 version of Vim (MS-Windows 3.1).
win64 Win64 version of Vim (MS-Windows 64 bit).
win95 Win32 version for MS-Windows 95/98/ME.
Example:
if has('win32')
echo "Someone please open the Window(s)!"
endif
An alternative way with more flexibility is to call the external uname, this
also allows you to get the version number and such:
let uname = system('uname -a')
Note that uname isn't present on most Windows systems.
It's generally best to use feature detection, rather than OS detection. For example by using one of the features in has() or checking if some path exists. 200_success' post gives a good overview of that, so I'll not repeat the same content here.
answered Mar 16, 2015 at 9:12
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7Very important to note romainl's answer if you want it to work on OS X, though.– RichMar 16, 2015 at 10:33
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1
has() sounds like a good idea until you try it on Mac OS X: in the default /usr/bin/vim, has('unix') is true but both has('macunix') and has('mac') are false while, in the regular MacVim download, all three are true whether you use the GUI or the TUI.
So the best solution is a mix of has('winXX') for Windows and uname on unix-like systems. Note that the output of uname ends with a newline so it must be cleaned before use.
Here is the code I've been using for a while, updated for win64:
if !exists("g:os")
if has("win64") || has("win32") || has("win16")
let g:os = "Windows"
else
let g:os = substitute(system('uname'), '\n', '', '')
endif
endif
After that, you can use the g:os variable anywhere in your vimrc:
if has("gui_running")
if g:os == "Darwin"
set guifont=Fira\ Mono:h12
elseif g:os == "Linux"
set guifont=Fira\ Mono\ 10
elseif g:os == "Windows"
set guifont=Fira_Mono:h12:cANSI
endif
endif
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1Well, OSX is a UNIX system, I believe it's even "certified UNIX". So
has('unix')is accurate. It's odd thathas('macunix')is false, though. This almost sounds like a bug? Mar 16, 2015 at 10:48 -
2I did some checking, and
has('macunix')seems to depend onMACOS_X_UNIX, which is set ifunameisDarwinin theconfigurescript... Mar 16, 2015 at 10:56 -
1@Rich Yes, and that's documented as such. This is really the sane thing to do, do you care if your app is 32 or 64 bits? I don't. The reason it's called 'win32', is because that's the name Microsoft choose for their Windows NT API. Naming things isn't Microsoft's strong point. Mar 16, 2015 at 16:55
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2
has('unix')is also true on Windows Git Bash, so it's not very useful for distinguishing real unix from emulated.– wisbuckyJun 5, 2018 at 9:45 -
1@wisbucky why would you want to distinguish emulated unix? The emulator means to be compatible in the first place.– lilydjwgAug 21, 2021 at 12:26
Environment variables would be useful.
To detect tmux, you could check if !empty($TMUX) or if $TERM == 'screen'.
You can also deduce the operating system from environment variables such as $MACHTYPE (which is set by Bash) or $PATH.
To detect whether a feature such as TFS is installed, you can use the executable() function.
answered Mar 16, 2015 at 9:13
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"$MACHTYPE (which is set by Bash)". Actually, if a variable is set by Bash, that means it is not an environment variable, and you will not be able to access it in vim simply with
$MACHTYPE. You will have to do something likelet machtype=system('echo -n $MACHTYPE')first.– wisbuckyJun 6, 2018 at 0:02
As others have already indicated, a reliable detection can be tricky. Better not reinvent the wheel, so I'd like to mention the vim-misc library, which provides xolox#misc#os#is_mac() and xolox#misc#os#is_win() functions.
answered Mar 16, 2015 at 10:34
I tried has('unix'), but I didn't find it helpful since all my Linux, Mac, and Windows Git Bash returned true for it.
I found uname to be suitable as it distinguishes between Linux, Mac, Windows, without too much granularity.
let uname = substitute(system('uname'), '\n', '', '')
" Example values: Linux, Darwin, MINGW64_NT-10.0, MINGW32_NT-6.1
if uname == 'Linux' || uname == 'Darwin'
" do linux/mac command
else " windows
" do windows command
endif
I use this on my vimscript, currently on Vim v8.0:
if has("mac")
"Mac
elseif has("win32")
"all Windows, ie win32,win64
elseif has("win32unix")
"Cygwin
elseif has("bsd")
"BSD-based, ie freeBSD"
elseif has("linux")
"Linux
end
This covers most of the OS, I hope. One should use has(feature) if possible, and avoid uname, since uname is not portable (ie not available on non-unix-like OS)
