# Tasks

Zed supports ways to spawn (and rerun) commands using its integrated terminal to output the results. These commands can read a limited subset of Zed state (such as a path to the file currently being edited or selected text).

```json
[
  {
    "label": "Example task",
    "command": "for i in {1..5}; do echo \"Hello $i/5\"; sleep 1; done",
    //"args": [],
    // Env overrides for the command, will be appended to the terminal's environment from the settings.
    "env": { "foo": "bar" },
    // Current working directory to spawn the command into, defaults to current project root.
    //"cwd": "/path/to/working/directory",
    // Whether to use a new terminal tab or reuse the existing one to spawn the process, defaults to `false`.
    "use_new_terminal": false,
    // Whether to allow multiple instances of the same task to be run, or rather wait for the existing ones to finish, defaults to `false`.
    "allow_concurrent_runs": false,
    // What to do with the terminal pane and tab, after the command was started:
    // * `always` — always show the task's pane, and focus the corresponding tab in it (default)
    // * `no_focus` — always show the task's pane, add the task's tab in it, but don't focus it
    // * `never` — do not alter focus, but still add/reuse the task's tab in its pane
    "reveal": "always",
    // What to do with the terminal pane and tab, after the command has finished:
    // * `never` — Do nothing when the command finishes (default)
    // * `always` — always hide the terminal tab, hide the pane also if it was the last tab in it
    // * `on_success` — hide the terminal tab on task success only, otherwise behaves similar to `always`
    "hide": "never",
    // Which shell to use when running a task inside the terminal.
    // May take 3 values:
    // 1. (default) Use the system's default terminal configuration in /etc/passwd
    //      "shell": "system"
    // 2. A program:
    //      "shell": {
    //        "program": "sh"
    //      }
    // 3. A program with arguments:
    //     "shell": {
    //         "with_arguments": {
    //           "program": "/bin/bash",
    //           "args": ["--login"]
    //         }
    //     }
    "shell": "system",
    // Whether to show the task line in the output of the spawned task, defaults to `true`.
    "show_summary": true,
    // Whether to show the command line in the output of the spawned task, defaults to `true`.
    "show_output": true,
    // Represents the tags for inline runnable indicators, or spawning multiple tasks at once.
    "tags": []
  }
]
```

There are two actions that drive the workflow of using tasks: `task: spawn` and `task: rerun`.
`task: spawn` opens a modal with all available tasks in the current file.
`task: rerun` reruns the most recently spawned task. You can also rerun tasks from the task modal.

By default, rerunning tasks reuses the same terminal (due to the `"use_new_terminal": false` default) but waits for the previous task to finish before starting (due to the `"allow_concurrent_runs": false` default).

Keep `"use_new_terminal": false` and set `"allow_concurrent_runs": true` to allow cancelling previous tasks on rerun.

## Task templates

Tasks can be defined:

- in the global `tasks.json` file; such tasks are available in all Zed projects you work on. This file is usually located in `~/.config/zed/tasks.json`. You can edit them by using the `zed: open tasks` action.
- in the worktree-specific (local) `.zed/tasks.json` file; such tasks are available only when working on a project with that worktree included. You can edit worktree-specific tasks by using the `zed: open project tasks` action.
- on the fly with [oneshot tasks](#oneshot-tasks). These tasks are project-specific and do not persist across sessions.
- by language extension.

## Variables

Zed tasks act just like your shell; that also means that you can reference environmental variables via sh-esque `$VAR_NAME` syntax. A couple of additional environmental variables are set for your convenience.