Running Ripgrep on files

[limaceous-bushwhacker]

How can I configure a keybinding in fzf to run ripgrep over a selected array of files? I want to use fzf as a file picker to open the files in vim by default, but on pressing Ctrl+R, I want to run ripgrep over those files to search for a keyword.

Related(?): https://github.com/junegunn/fzf/blob/master/ADVANCED.md#using-fzf-as-interactive-ripgrep-launcher

[LangLangBart]

Two Ideas

A: Direct Approach

We attempt to map the capability of searching a specified number of files with ripgrep to a single
hotkey. This approach sacrifices readability, and one must navigate the complexities of escaping and
quoting.

RG_PREFIX=$'rg --with-filename --column --line-number --no-heading --color=always --smart-case ${FZF_QUERY:-\'""\'} -- $(while IFS= read -r line; do printf "%q " "$line"; done < /tmp/rg_files) || true'
fzf \
  --ansi \
  --multi \
  --delimiter : \
  --bind 'start:execute-silent(: >/tmp/rg_files)+unbind:change' \
  --bind "ctrl-r:rebind(change)+unbind(ctrl-r)+disable-search+clear-query+execute-silent(cp {+f} /tmp/rg_files)+change-preview(bat --color=always {1} --highlight-line {2})+change-preview-window(up,60%,border-bottom,+{2}+3/3,~3)+reload:eval $RG_PREFIX" \
  --bind "change:reload:sleep 0.1; eval $RG_PREFIX" \
  --bind "enter:transform:[[ {} == *:*:*:* ]] &&
    echo 'become:vim \{1} +\{2}' ||
    echo 'become:vim \{}'"

---

B: Script Approach

This idea calls a script from our normal usage. Two things are needed:

1. A modified version of the function from your link¹ that can take a file with listed filenames
   as input. Ensure it is executable chmod +x, and include the directory where this file is
   located in your $PATH. We'll name this file modified_rfv.

#!/usr/bin/env bash

# Original: https://github.com/junegunn/fzf/blob/master/ADVANCED.md#using-fzf-as-interactive-ripgrep-launcher
# Modified version

while getopts :f: cmd_arg; do
  case "$cmd_arg" in
    f) file_list=$(while IFS=$'\n' read -r line; do printf "%q " "$line"; done <"${OPTARG}") ;;
    *)
      exit 1
      ;;
  esac
done
shift "$((OPTIND - 1))"

RG_PREFIX="rg --with-filename --column --line-number --no-heading --color=always --smart-case "
INITIAL_QUERY="${*:-}"
: | fzf \
  --ansi --disabled --query "$INITIAL_QUERY" \
  --bind "start:reload:$RG_PREFIX {q} -- $file_list " \
  --bind "change:reload:sleep 0.1; $RG_PREFIX {q} -- $file_list || true" \
  --delimiter : \
  --preview 'bat --color=always {1} --highlight-line {2}' \
  --preview-window 'up,60%,border-bottom,+{2}+3/3,~3' \
  --bind 'enter:become:vim {1} +{2}'

2. We assign the ⌃ Control + R hotkey to invoke the modified_rfv script,
   taking a file as input. The {+f} represents all selected entries, which are stored in a temporary file.
   For more details, refer to man fzf | less --pattern 'with f flag'. One might want to use
   execute:modified_rfv -f {+f} to be able to return to the original list with ⎋ Escape.

fzf \
  --multi \
  --bind 'ctrl-r:become:modified_rfv -f {+f}' \
  --bind 'enter:become:vim {+}'

---

Note

The main challenge with any version was to ensure it also worked for filenames containing spaces.

Footnotes

1. https://github.com/junegunn/fzf/blob/master/ADVANCED.md#using-fzf-as-interactive-ripgrep-launcher ↩

[limaceous-bushwhacker]

Hey, thanks for getting back to me. It seems I might not have been clear in my question. What I'm looking for is to start with fzf as a file picker, so when I hit Enter, it opens the selected file in $EDITOR. Then, if I press Ctrl+R, I want to switch to ripgrep mode to search through those same files. Your solution seems to focus on running ripgrep over selected files, which is not exactly what I had in mind.