An Introduction to the Z Shell (original) (raw)

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Startup Files

There are five startup files that zsh will read commands from:

$ZDOTDIR/.zshenv $ZDOTDIR/.zprofile $ZDOTDIR/.zshrc $ZDOTDIR/.zlogin $ZDOTDIR/.zlogout

If ZDOTDIR is not set, then the value of HOME is used; this is the usual case.

`.zshenv' is sourced on all invocations of the shell, unless the-f option is set. It should contain commands to set the command search path, plus other important environment variables. `.zshenv'should not contain commands that produce output or assume the shell is attached to a tty.

`.zshrc' is sourced in interactive shells. It should contain commands to set up aliases, functions, options, key bindings, etc.

`.zlogin' is sourced in login shells. It should contain commands that should be executed only in login shells. `.zlogout' is sourced when login shells exit. `.zprofile' is similar to`.zlogin', except that it is sourced before `.zshrc'.`.zprofile' is meant as an alternative to `.zlogin' for ksh fans; the two are not intended to be used together, although this could certainly be done if desired. `.zlogin' is not the place for alias definitions, options, environment variable settings, etc.; as a general rule, it should not change the shell environment at all. Rather, it should be used to set the terminal type and run a series of external commands (fortune, msgs, etc).

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