Hey everyone! I hope you're all doing well. As someone who's been a network admin and a hobbyist developer for a while, I constantly work with SSH, Git, and various CLI tools. One frustrating issue is figuring out how to efficiently reuse commands I've typed in before. Often, I find myself either scrolling through my Gnome Terminal history with the up arrow or grepping through `~/.bash_history` (for example, using `cat ~/.bash_history | grep ssh`). After years of handling this manually, I've decided it's time to streamline my workflow.
I'm looking for tools or methods, preferably integrated into the terminal or available through a lightweight GUI, that can help me quickly search, discover, and reuse my command history. Bonus points if they can sync across multiple terminal windows or systems, like through Nextcloud. Would switching terminal emulators help? What tools or shell setups can you recommend? Thanks in advance for your suggestions! 🙂
5 Answers
Here's a neat trick: if there's a long command you tend to forget, just add # useful [your category] to that command. Later, you can hit Ctrl-R and type "useful" to find it easily. Also, there's a tool called arabesque that enhances your bash history search. I love using it to edit my bashrc and improve my history!
I get what you're saying! Another option is to create aliases or scripts for your frequently used commands. Sometimes writing them down in a notepad file for quick copy-pasting can save time too!
We recently switched to using wrapper scripts stored in `/usr/local` or `$HOME/bin`. They work across all shells and are easier to manage with version control.
A great way to access your shell history is by using the `history` command, which gives you a numbered list of previous commands. If you find a command you want to reuse, say, at position 352, just type `!352` to re-execute it. Also, consider using `script` to log all your terminal activity into a file called `typescript` if you want a comprehensive history.
It sounds like you're trying to keep track of commands you use often, but not frequently enough to remember all the variations. Consider writing shell scripts that let you pass in variables, which allows you to run structured commands without memorizing every option. Updating your .profile to create command aliases could achieve the same effect, but keep in mind it will require ongoing management on each system you use.
You can actually search your shell history using built-in editor commands! Depending on whether you have emacs or vi mode set up, you can use Ctrl-R for reverse search or Esc-/ to search for previous commands.
Totally! You can set up aliases and scripts in your bashrc, including a command that reminds you of your custom command names when you forget them.