15

Using a default terminal and bash, there is no functionality to search the standard output of commands.

One can gain such functionality using other tools, like emacs shell or screen, but I am wondering why such a useful feature is missing, I do remember a simple C-F used to work in terminals.

Is there a way to make the Gnome terminal app support output search? or is there a better terminal app that support searching output natively?

2
  • Does piping the command into less not give you what you desire? You can search text in less and many other pagers. Also, shouldn't this be on super user?
    – TomMD
    Commented Oct 2, 2010 at 23:54
  • Yes, less is good for one command output, but I often do multiple commands and come back later with the need to search all output
    – Samer Abukhait
    Commented Oct 2, 2010 at 23:58

5 Answers 5

3

You could try script(1). On login just call script and you can then search through the typescript file it generates. It's not a single keystroke like emacs shell and it is buffered, but it might be better than nothing.

1
  • Can you search script while script is running? I tried and couldn't... Commented Apr 25, 2014 at 19:45
24

Try Ctr + Shift + f. This works on Ubuntu terminal and Terminator

2
  • Same hotkey in gnome-terminal. Commented Apr 9, 2016 at 12:24
  • on a Mac zsh terminal: command key + F will search through out all terminar output
    – iamnicoj
    Commented Oct 14, 2022 at 17:37
1

Don't know gnome-terminal but urxvt does that by typing Alt + s. It should be in your repositories, lookup the package rxvt-unicode.

1

Using xterm, you can log everything the terminal displays to a file. Then you can open that file in an editor or less.

1

In screen you can enter copy mode and do searches on output. You can also do logging of output to a file and search it any way you normally would (grep, less, etc.).

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