window

`:vsplit / :split / :tabnew`

:split (or :sp) opens a horizontal split, :vsplit (:vsp) a vertical split, :tabnew a new tab page. All three optionally take a filename to open in the new pane/tab.

Syntax

:vsplit [file]   :split [file]   :tabnew [file]  (command mode)

Variations

Keystroke	Effect
:vnew	Vertical split with a new empty buffer
:new	Horizontal split with a new empty buffer
:tabclose	Close the current tab page
gt / gT	Cycle to next / previous tab

Examples

:vsp src/app.js

Open src/app.js in a vertical split on the right

:sp

Split current window horizontally, both showing same buffer

:tabnew README.md

Open README.md in a new tab

Gotcha

Tabs in Vim are 'workspaces' of splits, NOT a list of open files like in modern editors — you probably want buffers (:b, :ls) rather than tabs.

Related

Ctrl-W is the prefix for every window-management command. Follow it with h/j/k/l to move between splits, with =/_/| to resize, or with c/o to close windows.

Edit (open) a file in the current window. With no argument, :e reloads the current file from disk — handy after external changes.

Write (save) the current buffer to disk. Without an argument :w saves to the current file; with an argument it writes a copy without switching buffers. Use :saveas when you want to rename the buffer to the new file and keep editing that one.

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