@env{EDITOR} to @samp{emacs}, they invoke Emacs---but in an
inconvenient fashion, by starting a new, separate Emacs process. This
is inconvenient because it takes time and because the new Emacs process
-doesn't share the buffers in any existing Emacs process.
+doesn't share the buffers with any existing Emacs process.
You can arrange to use your existing Emacs process as the editor for
-programs like @code{mail} by using the Emacs client and Emacs server
-programs. Here is how.
+programs like @code{mail} by using the Emacs client program and the
+server that is part of Emacs. Here is how.
@cindex @env{TEXEDIT} environment variable
- First, the preparation. Within Emacs, call the function
-@code{server-start}. (Your @file{.emacs} file can do this automatically
-if you add the expression @code{(server-start)} to it.) Then, outside
-Emacs, set the @env{EDITOR} environment variable to @samp{emacsclient}.
-(Note that some programs use a different environment variable; for
-example, to make @TeX{} use @samp{emacsclient}, you should set the
-@env{TEXEDIT} environment variable to @samp{emacsclient +%d %s}.)
+@findex server-start
+ First, the preparations. Within Emacs, call the function
+@code{server-start}. (Your @file{.emacs} init file can do this
+automatically if you add the expression @code{(server-start)} to it,
+see @ref{Init File}.) Then, outside Emacs, set the @env{EDITOR}
+environment variable to @samp{emacsclient}. (Note that some programs
+use a different environment variable; for example, to make @TeX{} use
+@samp{emacsclient}, you should set the @env{TEXEDIT} environment
+variable to @samp{emacsclient +%d %s}.)
+
+@pindex emacs.bash
+@cindex Bash command to use Emacs server
+ As an alternative to using @code{emacsclient}, the file
+@file{etc/emacs.bash} defines a Bash command @code{edit} which will
+communicate with a running Emacs session, or start one if none exist.
@kindex C-x #
@findex server-edit
- Then, whenever any program invokes your specified @env{EDITOR}
+ Now, whenever any program invokes your specified @env{EDITOR}
program, the effect is to send a message to your principal Emacs telling
it to visit a file. (That's what the program @code{emacsclient} does.)
Emacs displays the buffer immediately and you can immediately begin
-editing it.
+editing it in the already running Emacs session.
When you've finished editing that buffer, type @kbd{C-x #}
(@code{server-edit}). This saves the file and sends a message back to
each one a unique ``server name'', using the variable
@code{server-name}. For example, @kbd{M-x set-variable @key{RET}
server-name @key{RET} foo @key{RET}} sets the server name to
-@samp{foo}. The @code{emacsclient} program can visit a server by name
-using the @samp{-s} option. @xref{Invoking emacsclient}.
+@samp{foo}. The @code{emacsclient} program can specify a server by
+name using the @samp{-s} option. @xref{Invoking emacsclient}.
While @code{mail} or another application is waiting for
@code{emacsclient} to finish, @code{emacsclient} does not read terminal
@node Invoking emacsclient,, Emacs Server, Emacs Server
@subsection Invoking @code{emacsclient}
+@cindex @code{emacsclient} invocation and options
To run the @code{emacsclient} program, specify file names as arguments,
and optionally line numbers as well, like this:
@code{emacsclient}, then it returns immediately. (You can take as
long as you like to edit the files in Emacs.)
- The option @samp{--alternate-editor=@var{command}} specifies a
-command to run if @code{emacsclient} fails to contact Emacs. This is
-useful when running @code{emacsclient} in a script. For example, the
-following setting for the @env{EDITOR} environment variable will
-always give you an editor, even if no Emacs server is running:
+ The option @samp{-a @var{command}} or
+@samp{--alternate-editor=@var{command}} specifies a command to run if
+@code{emacsclient} fails to contact Emacs. This is useful when
+running @code{emacsclient} in a script. For example, the following
+setting for the @env{EDITOR} environment variable will always give you
+an editor, even if no Emacs server is running:
@example
EDITOR="emacsclient --alternate-editor emacs +%d %s"
@end example
@noindent
+@cindex @env{ALTERNATE_EDITOR} environment variable
The environment variable @env{ALTERNATE_EDITOR} has the same effect, with
the value of the @samp{--alternate-editor} option taking precedence.
-@pindex emacs.bash
- Alternatively, the file @file{etc/emacs.bash} defines a bash
-function which will communicate with a running Emacs server, or start
-one if none exists.
-
If you use several displays, you can tell Emacs on which display to
-open the given files with the option @samp{--display=@var{DISPLAY}}.
-This can be used typically when connecting from home to an Emacs
-server running on your machine at your workplace.
+open the given files with the @samp{-d @var{display}} or
+@samp{--display=@var{display}} option to @code{emacsclient}. This is
+handy when connecting from home to an Emacs session running on your
+machine at your workplace.
If there is more than one Emacs server running, you can specify a
-server name with the option @samp{-s @var{name}}.
+server name with the @samp{-s @var{name}} or
+@samp{--socket-name=@var{name}} option to @code{emacsclient}. (This
+option is not supported on MS-Windows.)
You can also use @code{emacsclient} to execute any piece of Emacs Lisp
-code, using the option @samp{--eval}. When this option is given, the
-rest of the arguments is not taken as a list of files to visit but as
-a list of expressions to evaluate.
+code, using the @samp{-e} or @samp{--eval} option. When this option
+is given, the rest of the arguments is interpreted as a list of
+expressions to evaluate, not a list of files to visit.
+
+@cindex @env{EMACS_SERVER_FILE} environment variable
+When you start the Emacs server (by calling @code{server-start}),
+Emacs creates a file with information about the TCP connection to the
+server: the host where Emacs runs, the port where it listens for
+@code{emacsclient} requests, and the authentication string to use for
+the connection. @code{emacsclient} uses this information if it needs
+to connect to the server via TCP. By default, this TCP configuration
+file is placed in the @file{~/.emacs.d/server/} directory@footnote{
+On MS-Windows, if @env{HOME} is not set or the TCP configuration file
+cannot be found there, Emacs in addition attempts to find the file in
+the @file{.emacs.d/server/} subdirectory of the directory pointed
+to by the @env{APPDATA} environment variable, which is a user-specific
+directory for application data files. This is similar to what Emacs
+does on MS-Windows to search for the user's @file{.emacs} file.}
+; you can
+direct @code{emacsclient} to use a different file with the @samp{-f
+@var{file}} or @samp{--server-file=@var{file}} option, or by defining
+the @env{EMACS_SERVER_FILE} environment variable that points to the
+non-default TCP configuration file.
@node Printing, Sorting, Emacs Server, Top
@section Printing Hard Copies
projects / emacs.git / commitdiff