How to Change the Default Text Editor in Ubuntu Linux

When you edit configuration files using a command like sudo visudo or crontab -e, Ubuntu Linux will automatically open the file using its default command-line text editor. For most modern Ubuntu installations, this default is Nano. However, if you are a system administrator who prefers the power of Vim, or you accidentally set your default to an editor you don’t know how to exit, you can easily change the system-wide default using the update-alternatives tool.

How to Change the Default Editor

Ubuntu uses a system of symbolic links to manage default applications. You can reconfigure these links interactively.

1. Open your terminal window or SSH into your server.
2. Run the following command:
   sudo update-alternatives --config editor
3. The terminal will output a list of all the text editors currently installed on your system (such as nano, vim.basic, vim.tiny, or ed).

The output will look something like this:

  Selection    Path                Priority   Status
------------------------------------------------------------
* 0            /bin/nano            40        auto mode
  1            /bin/nano            40        manual mode
  2            /usr/bin/vim.basic   30        manual mode
  3            /usr/bin/vim.tiny    15        manual mode

The asterisk (*) indicates your current default editor.

Selecting Your Preference

At the bottom of the list, the prompt will ask: Press <enter> to keep the current choice[*], or type selection number:.

Simply type the number corresponding to your preferred editor (for example, type 2 for vim.basic) and press Enter.

The system will instantly update the symbolic links. From this point forward, any system command or script that relies on the generic $EDITOR variable will automatically launch your chosen application, saving you from having to manually specify your preference every time.