Ubuntu – Copy and paste doesn’t work in the terminal

command linecopypastessh

Before you go marking this as a dupe, I know about Ctrl+Shift+C and Ctrl+Shift+V

I try to use them, and it doesn't work. On one particular Ubuntu computer, normal copy paste commands do not work: They do not work locally, and they do not work via remote session.

My guess was that perhaps logging into a computer where these functions where acting normally, and logging in via ssh would bypass the issue. This was not the case. I still cannot gain this functionally, even though the Ubuntu PC I am using has functional copy and paste from the terminal.

So I am out of guesses.

How do I enable this? The affected computer runs Ubuntu MATE 16.04. The terminal is mate-terminal, except when I login via ssh, in which case it's Bash. Caja is the window manager.

Best Answer

There are different ways to mark/copy and paste in linux. One of them works in all terminal emulators that I know, including xterm.

1. The linux mark and paste method - 'middle clicking'

  • Mark the text, that you want to paste by pressing the left mouse button and move the mouse. (You can left click twice to mark a word or three times to mark a line.)

  • Move the mouse cursor to where you want to paste the text.

  • Press the middle button or scrolling wheel (like it were a button). If no middle button, press the left and right buttons at the same time.

    In a terminal window, the text will be pasted at the cursor position. This works in the same terminal window, in another terminal window as well as in other programs, for example Firefox and gedit.

2. A method that works in many but not all terminal windows

2.1 Via menus

  • Mark the text, that you want to paste by pressing the left mouse button and move the mouse.

  • Use a pull-down or right-click menu and select 'Copy' (to clipboard).

  • Move the mouse cursor to where you want to copy the text.

  • Use a pull-down or right-click menu and select 'Paste'

2.2 hotkey combination with ctrl

  • Mark the text, that you want to paste by pressing the left mouse button and move the mouse.

  • Press shift + ctrl + c to 'Copy' (to clipboard).

  • Press shift + ctrl + v to 'Paste' into another terminal window.

  • Press ctrl + v to 'Paste' into a normal GUI application program, for example Firefox or Gedit.

Related Question