Save file with a generated name from vim command mode

Question

I am trying to save file with a generated name from vim command mode. I am using the command:

:w !tee"/tmp/vim/$(date +'%s').tmp"

But it throws me an error that filename cannot be empty. Am I missing something here?

Answer 1

Use:

:w !tee "/tmp/`date +'\%s'`.tmp"

Explanations:

• '%' is expanded by vim into the filename, this is why it complains about it being empty. You need to escape it.
• The bash style $(...) commands seem not to work in vim system calls.