Question

How can we escape to the UNIX shell without quitting vi editor?

(a) using ‘:sh’ command

(b) using ctrl-Z

(c) using ctrl-D

(d) using ‘:sh’ command and using ctrl-Z

The question was posed to me in class test.

Origin of the question is Vi-Ex Mode topic in chapter The Vi Editor of Unix

Answer 1

Right option is (d) using ‘:sh’ command and using ctrl-Z

Easiest explanation: We can escape to the shell without quitting the editor using ‘:sh’ command or ctrl-Z. Sometimes it is necessary to return to shell prompt to execute a UNIX command or compile our program. For this purpose, we use these commands.