> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.vorto-editor.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Vorto editor and cursor settings: complete config reference

> Complete reference for the [editor] and [cursor] config sections — all field names, types, defaults, and full TOML examples you can copy.

The `[editor]` section of `config.toml` controls how Vorto renders and edits text globally. Every field has a built-in default, so you only need to include the settings you want to change. Per-language overrides use the same field names, but placed directly in `[languages.<name>]` rather than under a nested `[editor]` key — see [Per-language settings](/configuration/languages) for details.

## Editor settings

### `indent_width`

**Type:** integer\
**Default:** `2`

The number of columns Vorto uses when it auto-indents a line — for example, when you press Enter inside a block. This controls how many spaces are inserted (or how many tab stops are advanced when `use_tabs = true`).

### `tab_width`

**Type:** integer\
**Default:** `4`

The visual width of a literal `\t` character in the buffer. This does not affect auto-indent behavior (which is controlled by `indent_width`). Go-style codebases typically set this to `8` to match `gofmt` conventions.

### `use_tabs`

**Type:** boolean\
**Default:** `false`

When `true`, auto-inserted indentation (newlines, bracket level bumps) uses `\t` characters instead of spaces. The most common use is a per-language override for Go.

### `show_whitespace`

**Type:** boolean\
**Default:** `false`

When `true`, spaces and tabs in the buffer are rendered with visible marker glyphs — a middle dot for spaces and an arrow for tabs — drawn in a dim foreground color.

### `format_on_save`

**Type:** boolean\
**Default:** `true`

When `true`, Vorto runs the formatter before writing the file to disk. It uses the external formatter command configured for the language (`formatter.command`), or falls back to `textDocument/formatting` against the first attached LSP if no external formatter is configured. Set to `false` to disable all automatic formatting on save.

### `autoreload`

**Type:** string (or boolean)\
**Default:** `"replace"`\
**Values:** `"replace"`, `"merge"`, `"none"`

Controls how Vorto reacts when the active buffer's backing file changes on disk:

* `"replace"` — prompt to reload the buffer; if it has unsaved edits the prompt warns that reloading replaces them (undo with `u`).
* `"merge"` — follow the external edit via a three-way merge, writing `<<<<<<<` / `=======` / `>>>>>>>` conflict markers only where both sides touched the same lines.
* `"none"` — disable the watcher; reload manually with `:reload`.

The legacy boolean form still works: `true` maps to `"replace"` and `false` maps to `"none"`. See [Conflicts & reload](/editing/conflicts#auto-reload) for the full behavior.

### `theme`

**Type:** string\
**Default:** unset (Vorto's built-in default colors)

The name of the active color theme — a built-in name such as `"catppuccin-mocha"` or the basename of a file in `~/.config/vorto/themes/`. The `:theme` picker writes this key for you when you apply a theme. See [Themes](/configuration/themes).

### `indent_guides`

**Type:** boolean\
**Default:** `true`

When `true`, Vorto draws vertical guide lines at each indentation level. The guide containing the cursor is painted in a distinct color. Set to `false` to hide all guides.

### `indent_guides_skip_levels`

**Type:** integer\
**Default:** `0`

Suppresses the shallowest N indent guides. `0` shows every level. `1` hides the leftmost guide. `2` hides the two shallowest, and so on. When the deepest visible nesting is shallower than this value, no guides appear at all — prefer `0` for files that stay shallow most of the time.

### `indent_guide_style`

**Type:** string\
**Default:** `"line"`\
**Values:** `"line"`, `"p10k"`

Controls the visual style of indent guides:

* `"line"` — draws a plain `│` bar on every guide cell; the active scope's bar is bold.
* `"p10k"` — decorates the active scope with powerlevel10k-style glyphs: a top corner (`╭─`) at the first body row and a turn arrow (`╰─>`) at the cursor row, connected by `│`.

### `indent_animation`

**Type:** boolean\
**Default:** `false`

When `true`, the active indent guide expands from the cursor row outward to the scope boundaries each time the cursor enters a new scope.

### `indent_animation_ms`

**Type:** integer\
**Default:** `100`

Duration of the active-guide expand animation in milliseconds. This setting has no effect unless `indent_animation = true`.

### `compact_folders`

**Type:** boolean\
**Default:** `true`

Controls how the `Space e` file explorer renders directory chains. When `true`, a chain of directories where each link is the only child of its parent is folded into a single row — `src/finder/explorer` instead of three nested rows, the VS Code "compact folders" behavior. Folding stops at any directory that holds a file or a second sibling, so files always keep their own row. When `false`, every directory gets its own row.

## Complete `[editor]` example

```toml theme={null}
[editor]
indent_width = 2
tab_width = 4
use_tabs = false
show_whitespace = false
format_on_save = true
autoreload = "replace"
theme = "catppuccin-mocha"
indent_guides = true
indent_guides_skip_levels = 0
indent_guide_style = "line"
indent_animation = false
indent_animation_ms = 100
compact_folders = true
```

## Cursor settings

The `[cursor]` section controls the cursor shape in each editor mode and whether it blinks. Vorto sends DECSCUSR escape sequences to your terminal, so the effect depends on terminal support.

### `blinking`

**Type:** boolean\
**Default:** `false`

When `true`, the cursor blinks in all modes (unless `terminal` shape is used, which defers blinking behavior to the terminal itself).

### `normal`, `insert`, `visual`, `visual_line`, `visual_block`

**Type:** string\
**Values:** `"block"`, `"bar"`, `"underbar"`, `"terminal"`

Shape of the cursor in each mode. The defaults are:

| Mode           | Default shape |
| -------------- | ------------- |
| `normal`       | `"block"`     |
| `insert`       | `"bar"`       |
| `visual`       | `"underbar"`  |
| `visual_line`  | `"underbar"`  |
| `visual_block` | `"underbar"`  |

* `"block"` — solid filled rectangle
* `"bar"` — thin vertical line (also accepted as `"line"`)
* `"underbar"` — thin horizontal underline (also accepted as `"underscore"` or `"underline"`)
* `"terminal"` — defer to the terminal's own default cursor shape; `blinking` is ignored for this shape (also accepted as `"default"`)

## Complete `[cursor]` example

```toml theme={null}
[cursor]
blinking = false
normal = "block"
insert = "bar"
visual = "underbar"
visual_line = "underbar"
visual_block = "underbar"
```