System Servicesfile managertext-modevfseditorviewerftpssh

Midnight Commander

GNU Midnight Commander is a text-mode full-screen file manager with a two-panel interface, subshell support, internal editor, viewer, and Virtual Filesystem for remote and archive files.

Description

Midnight Commander provides a visual shell for Unix-like systems, enabling efficient file management in terminal environments. It features a dual-panel layout for simultaneous navigation of directories and a subshell for command execution. The internal editor offers syntax highlighting, while the viewer supports binary files.

Use cases include managing files on local systems, remote servers via FTP or SSH, and archives as if they were local directories thanks to the Virtual Filesystem (VFS). It is particularly useful in text-only environments or for users preferring keyboard-driven workflows.

The tool includes companion binaries like mcdiff for file comparison, mcedit for editing, and mcview for viewing files. Data files are provided in the separate mc-data package.

How It Works

Midnight Commander operates in text-mode using a full-screen two-panel interface. It integrates a subshell for command execution and Virtual Filesystem (VFS) support to handle remote protocols like FTP and SSH, as well as archives, treating them as local files. The internal editor uses syntax highlighting, and the viewer handles binary content. Subshell support can be toggled, and FTP dialogs can be logged.

Installation

bash
sudo apt install mc

Flags

-h, --helpShow help options
--help-allShow all help options
--help-terminalTerminal options
--help-colorColor options
-V, --versionDisplays the current version
-f, --datadirPrint data directory
-F, --datadir-infoPrint extended info about used data directories
--configure-optionsPrint configure options
-P, --printwd=<file>Print last working directory to specified file
-U, --subshellEnables subshell support (default)
-u, --nosubshellDisables subshell support
-l, --ftplog=<file>Log ftp dialog to specified file

Examples

Show help options for mc
mc -h
Display the current version of mc
mc -V
Launch mc with specified directories for panels
mc [this_dir] [other_panel_dir]
Show help for mcdiff tool
mcdiff -h
Compare two files using mcdiff
mcdiff file1 file2
Show help for mcedit, the internal file editor
mcedit -h
Open file in mcedit, optionally at specific line
mcedit [+lineno] file1[:lineno]
Show help for mcview, the internal file viewer
mcview -h
Updated 2026-04-16kali.org ↗