Neovim¶

Written: 2026-08-23

Overview¶

Neovim — a modern fork of Vim with first-class Lua scripting, built-in LSP, Tree-sitter, and an async architecture.

Aspect	Detail
Config	`~/.config/nvim/init.lua`
Plugin manager	lazy.nvim (standard), packer.nvim (legacy)
Language	Lua (primary), VimScript (compatible)
LSP	Built-in client (nvim-lspconfig)
Tree-sitter	Built-in (syntax highlighting, text objects)

Directory Structure¶

~/.config/nvim/
├── init.lua                  # Entry point
├── lua/
│   ├── config/
│   │   ├── lazy.lua          # Plugin manager setup
│   │   ├── keymaps.lua       # Key mappings
│   │   ├── options.lua       # Vim options
│   │   └── autocmds.lua      # Autocommands
│   └── plugins/
│       ├── lsp.lua           # LSP configuration
│       ├── telescope.lua     # Fuzzy finder
│       ├── treesitter.lua    # Syntax
│       ├── cmp.lua           # Completion
│       └── ui.lua            # Theme, statusline

Core Configuration¶

init.lua¶

-- Entry point
require("config.options")
require("config.keymaps")
require("config.lazy")
require("config.autocmds")

Options¶

-- lua/config/options.lua
local opt = vim.opt

opt.number = true
opt.relativenumber = true
opt.cursorline = true
opt.signcolumn = "yes"
opt.termguicolors = true
opt.scrolloff = 8
opt.sidescrolloff = 8

opt.tabstop = 4
opt.shiftwidth = 4
opt.expandtab = true
opt.smartindent = true

opt.ignorecase = true
opt.smartcase = true

opt.splitbelow = true
opt.splitright = true

opt.undofile = true
opt.swapfile = false
opt.backup = false

opt.updatetime = 250
opt.timeoutlen = 300
opt.clipboard = "unnamedplus"

Keymaps¶

-- lua/config/keymaps.lua
vim.g.mapleader = " "
local map = vim.keymap.set

-- File operations
map("n", "<leader>w", "<cmd>w<cr>", { desc = "Save" })
map("n", "<leader>q", "<cmd>q<cr>", { desc = "Quit" })

-- Window navigation
map("n", "<C-h>", "<C-w>h", { desc = "Window left" })
map("n", "<C-j>", "<C-w>j", { desc = "Window down" })
map("n", "<C-k>", "<C-w>k", { desc = "Window up" })
map("n", "<C-l>", "<C-w>l", { desc = "Window right" })

-- Buffer navigation
map("n", "<S-l>", "<cmd>bnext<cr>", { desc = "Next buffer" })
map("n", "<S-h>", "<cmd>bprev<cr>", { desc = "Prev buffer" })
map("n", "<leader>bd", "<cmd>bdelete<cr>", { desc = "Delete buffer" })

-- Clear search highlight
map("n", "<Esc>", "<cmd>noh<cr>", { desc = "Clear highlight" })

-- Move lines
map("v", "J", ":m '>+1<cr>gv=gv", { desc = "Move line down" })
map("v", "K", ":m '<-2<cr>gv=gv", { desc = "Move line up" })

-- Better paste (don't overwrite register)
map("x", "<leader>p", '"_dP', { desc = "Paste without yank" })

Plugin Manager (lazy.nvim)¶

-- lua/config/lazy.lua
local lazypath = vim.fn.stdpath("data") .. "/lazy/lazy.nvim"
if not vim.loop.fs_stat(lazypath) then
    vim.fn.system({
        "git", "clone", "--filter=blob:none",
        "https://github.com/folke/lazy.nvim.git",
        "--branch=stable", lazypath,
    })
end
vim.opt.rtp:prepend(lazypath)

require("lazy").setup("plugins", {
    install = { colorscheme = { "catppuccin" } },
    checker = { enabled = true, notify = false },
    change_detection = { notify = false },
})

Key Plugins¶

Telescope (Fuzzy Finder)¶

-- lua/plugins/telescope.lua
return {
    "nvim-telescope/telescope.nvim",
    dependencies = { "nvim-lua/plenary.nvim" },
    keys = {
        { "<leader>ff", "<cmd>Telescope find_files<cr>", desc = "Find files" },
        { "<leader>fg", "<cmd>Telescope live_grep<cr>", desc = "Grep" },
        { "<leader>fb", "<cmd>Telescope buffers<cr>", desc = "Buffers" },
        { "<leader>fh", "<cmd>Telescope help_tags<cr>", desc = "Help" },
        { "<leader>fr", "<cmd>Telescope oldfiles<cr>", desc = "Recent files" },
    },
}

Tree-sitter¶

-- lua/plugins/treesitter.lua
return {
    "nvim-treesitter/nvim-treesitter",
    build = ":TSUpdate",
    config = function()
        require("nvim-treesitter.configs").setup({
            ensure_installed = {
                "lua", "python", "rust", "typescript",
                "javascript", "bash", "json", "yaml", "markdown",
            },
            highlight = { enable = true },
            indent = { enable = true },
            incremental_selection = { enable = true },
        })
    end,
}

LSP¶

-- lua/plugins/lsp.lua
return {
    "neovim/nvim-lspconfig",
    dependencies = {
        "williamboman/mason.nvim",
        "williamboman/mason-lspconfig.nvim",
    },
    config = function()
        require("mason").setup()
        require("mason-lspconfig").setup({
            ensure_installed = { "lua_ls", "pyright", "rust_analyzer", "ts_ls" },
        })

        local lspconfig = require("lspconfig")
        local on_attach = function(_, bufnr)
            local map = function(keys, func, desc)
                vim.keymap.set("n", keys, func, { buffer = bufnr, desc = desc })
            end
            map("gd", vim.lsp.buf.definition, "Go to definition")
            map("gr", vim.lsp.buf.references, "References")
            map("K", vim.lsp.buf.hover, "Hover")
            map("<leader>rn", vim.lsp.buf.rename, "Rename")
            map("<leader>ca", vim.lsp.buf.code_action, "Code action")
        end

        local servers = { "lua_ls", "pyright", "rust_analyzer", "ts_ls" }
        for _, server in ipairs(servers) do
            lspconfig[server].setup({ on_attach = on_attach })
        end
    end,
}

Completion (nvim-cmp)¶

-- lua/plugins/cmp.lua
return {
    "hrsh7th/nvim-cmp",
    dependencies = {
        "hrsh7th/cmp-nvim-lsp",
        "hrsh7th/cmp-buffer",
        "hrsh7th/cmp-path",
        "L3MON4D3/LuaSnip",
        "saadparwaiz1/cmp_luasnip",
    },
    config = function()
        local cmp = require("cmp")
        local luasnip = require("luasnip")

        cmp.setup({
            snippet = {
                expand = function(args) luasnip.lsp_expand(args.body) end,
            },
            mapping = cmp.mapping.preset.insert({
                ["<C-Space>"] = cmp.mapping.complete(),
                ["<CR>"] = cmp.mapping.confirm({ select = true }),
                ["<Tab>"] = cmp.mapping.select_next_item(),
                ["<S-Tab>"] = cmp.mapping.select_prev_item(),
            }),
            sources = cmp.config.sources({
                { name = "nvim_lsp" },
                { name = "luasnip" },
                { name = "buffer" },
                { name = "path" },
            }),
        })
    end,
}

Neovim-Specific Features¶

Feature	Vim	Neovim
Configuration	VimScript	Lua (first-class)
LSP	Plugin required	Built-in client
Tree-sitter	No	Built-in
Async	Limited	Full async/coroutine
Terminal	Basic `:terminal`	Better terminal with floating windows
Remote plugins	No	Via RPC (any language)
UI	Fixed	Decoupled (external UIs possible)
Startup	Moderate	Fast (lazy loading)

Popular Distributions¶

Distribution	Focus	Setup
LazyVim	Full IDE, batteries-included	`git clone` + open nvim
NvChad	Beautiful UI, fast	Template-based
AstroNvim	Community plugins	Modular layers
LunarVim	Opinionated IDE	Installer script
kickstart.nvim	Minimal, educational	Single-file starting point