ex

Start ex mode

$ ex [file.txt]

$ ex -c "[:%s/old/new/g]" -c "[:wq]" [file.txt]

$ ex [file1.txt] [file2.txt]

$ echo "command" | ex [file.txt]

ex [options] [files...]

ex is the line-editing mode of vi/vim. It provides command-line editing without the visual interface, useful for scripted file modifications.
Commands are entered on a command line rather than visual mode. The same command language powers vi's : commands. ex can process multiple files sequentially.
ex is valuable for batch editing, allowing search/replace and other modifications without interactive use.

FILES

Files to edit.

Execute command after loading.

Silent mode.

Read-only mode.

No swap file.

Verbose mode.

~/.exrc

User configuration file for ex initialization commands.

Shared configuration with vim when ex is invoked via vim.

Learning curve if unfamiliar with ed/vi commands. No visual feedback. Complex edits may be error-prone. Usually invoked via vim -e.

ex was developed by Bill Joy at UC Berkeley in the late 1970s as an extended version of ed. It later gained the visual interface that became vi, with ex remaining as the command mode.

vi(1), vim(1), ed(1), sed(1)