Feature Request: Support Vim inline character navigation (f, F, t, T, ;, ,) in CLI Vim-mode
Open 💬 0 comments Opened Jun 25, 2026 by LucasAschenbach
What version of Codex CLI is running?
Latest (Feature request applies to current architecture)
What subscription do you have?
ChatGPT Plus
Which model were you using?
gpt-5.5
What platform is your computer?
Linux 5.15.0-130-generic x86_64 x86_64
What terminal emulator and version are you using (if applicable)?
iTerm2
Codex doctor report
{
"schemaVersion": 1,
"generatedAt": "1782415117s since unix epoch",
"overallStatus": "ok",
"codexVersion": "0.142.0",
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"mode": "ephemeral",
"pid file": "/home/lucasaschenbach/.codex/app-server-daemon/app-server.pid (missing)",
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"summary": "auth is configured",
"details": {
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"auth storage mode": "File",
"stored API key": "false",
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"details": {
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"details": {
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"status": "ok",
"summary": "network-related environment looks readable",
"details": {
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"remediation": null,
"durationMs": 0
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"network.provider_reachability": {
"id": "network.provider_reachability",
"category": "reachability",
"status": "ok",
"summary": "active provider endpoints are reachable over HTTP",
"details": {
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"network.websocket_reachability": {
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"status": "ok",
"summary": "running npm on linux-x86_64",
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"summary": "search is OK (bundled)",
"details": {
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}
}What issue are you seeing?
When operating the Codex CLI in its modal line-editing state (Vim mode), the inline character-search motion primitives are missing. Specifically, entering normal mode and executing character find or till operations does not alter the cursor position.
To ensure parity with standard readline/Zsh Vi-modes, the line editor needs to track the buffer string as an indexed array of characters and support stateful jumps to target sub-strings.
What steps can reproduce the bug?
- Launch the Codex CLI in interactive mode.
- Ensure Vim mode editing is enabled.
- Type a line of text, for example: "Build AGI. Make no mistakes."
- Press <Esc> to transition from insert mode to normal mode.
- Attempt to jump to the first occurrence of 'e' by typing: fe
What is the expected behavior?
The cursor should instantly reposition according to standard Vim navigation mechanics.
Let the line buffer string be represented as a 0-indexed sequence of characters $S = c_0c_1\dots c_n$, and the current cursor index be $i$. Given a target search character $x$:
- f (Find forward): Repositions the cursor to the lowest index $j > i$ such that $c_j = x$.
- F (Find backward): Repositions the cursor to the highest index $j < i$ such that $c_j = x$.
- t (Till forward): Repositions the cursor to $j - 1$, where $j$ is the lowest index $j > i$ such that $c_j = x$.
- T (Till backward): Repositions the cursor to $j + 1$, where $j$ is the highest index $j < i$ such that $c_j = x$.
- ; (Repeat last motion): Re-evaluates the active find/till operation in the same direction.
- , (Repeat last motion reversed): Re-evaluates the active find/till operation in the opposite direction.
Additional information
_No response_