reset command in Linux with Examples

Last Updated : 16 Oct, 2024

reset command in the Linux system is used to initialize the terminal. This is useful once a program dies leaving a terminal in an abnormal state. Note that you may have to type reset to get the terminal up and work, as carriage-return may no longer work in the abnormal state. Also, the terminal will often not going to echo the command.

Syntax

reset [-IQVcqrsw] [-] [-e ch] [-i ch] [-k ch] [-m mapping] [terminal]

Basic Example

Suppose we have a terminal screen with a bunch of commands written on the screen and when we will use the reset command then we will have an initialized terminal screen as shown below.

Before using reset command:

The terminal screen might be filled with strange symbols or unresponsive to input.

After using reset command:

The terminal screen will be cleared and initialized, giving you a clean slate to continue working.

Common Options for reset Command

--help:

It will print the general syntax of the command along with the various options that can be used with the reset command as well as gives a brief description about each option. --help

Option	Description
`reset -c`	Sets the control characters and modes.
`reset -e`	Sets the erase character to `ch`.
`reset -l`	Does not send the terminal or tab initialization strings to the terminal.
`reset -i`	Sets the interrupt character to `ch`.
`reset -k`	Sets the line kill character to `ch`.
`reset -m`	Specifies a mapping from a port type to a terminal.
`reset -Q`	Does not display values for erase, interrupt, and line kill characters. Normally, these are displayed if they differ from the system’s defaults.
`reset -q`	Displays the terminal type to the standard output without initializing the terminal. The option `-` by itself is equivalent but considered archaic.
`reset -r`	Prints the terminal type to the standard error output.
`reset -s`	Prints shell commands to initialize the environment variable `TERM` to the standard output.
`reset -V`	Reports the version of `ncurses` used in the program and exits.
`reset -w`	Resizes the window to match the size deduced via `setupterm`. Normally, this has no effect unless `setupterm` cannot detect the window size.

Conclusion

The reset command is a powerful and essential tool in any Linux user’s toolkit, especially when working with command-line interfaces prone to instability. By understanding the different options available, you can handle various terminal issues and ensure that your working environment is always in a stable state.

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