Command Snippets
Snippets are the commands you type often enough to resent typing. Save one, start typing it, press Tab.
They are not scripts. A snippet is a single command with a short name, and nothing about it is analysed, confirmed or sandboxed — it is your own text, typed for you. For anything with parameters, a risk level and a confirmation step, see Recipes.
Saving one
Section titled “Saving one”Open the Snippets panel from the sidebar rail and add one. A snippet has:
| Field | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Name | What you type to summon it |
| Command | The text that gets inserted |
| Description | Optional reminder of what it does |
| Tags | Optional grouping, so a long list stays searchable |
The name is what matters day to day. dcl for docker container ls -a,
logs for journalctl -fu, ports for ss -tulpn. Short enough to be worth
it.
Completing in the terminal
Section titled “Completing in the terminal”Type the first characters of a snippet’s name in any terminal and the match appears. Tab accepts it and the full command replaces what you typed. Carry on typing and it disappears — accepting is always deliberate.
Matching is by prefix, against a trie, so lookup cost depends on how much you have typed rather than on how many snippets you have. A hundred snippets feel the same as three.
Only the first complete match is offered. If log and logs both exist,
typing log offers log; you have to type the s to reach the other. Names
that prefix one another are worth avoiding for that reason.
Where they live
Section titled “Where they live”Snippets are stored with the rest of your Reach data, not on any server, and they are not tied to a session — a snippet saved while connected to one machine is available on every machine. They are yours, not the server’s.
Snippets or recipes?
Section titled “Snippets or recipes?”Both put text into a terminal, and the difference is how much ceremony that deserves.
- Snippet — one command, no parameters, no checks, inserted on Tab. For things you would otherwise type from memory.
- Recipe — a bash script with declared parameters and a risk level, analysed before it runs, with anything above mutating requiring a typed confirmation. For things you would otherwise paste from a wiki.
A rule of thumb: if you would be comfortable typing it blindfolded, it is a snippet.