taskwarrior/doc/man/task.1.in

.TH task 1 2016-02-24 "${PACKAGE_STRING}" "User Manuals"

.SH NAME
task \- A command line todo manager.

.SH SYNOPSIS
.B task <filter> <command> [ <mods> | <args> ]
.br
.B task --version

.SH DESCRIPTION
Taskwarrior is a command line todo list manager. It maintains a list of tasks
that you want to do, allowing you to add/remove, and otherwise manipulate them.
Taskwarrior has a rich set of subcommands that allow you to do various things
with it.

At the core, Taskwarrior is a list processing program. You add text and
additional related parameters and redisplay the information in a nice way.  It
turns into a todo list program when you add due dates and recurrence. It turns
into an organized todo list program when you add priorities, tags (one word
descriptors), project groups, etc.

.SH FILTER
The <filter> consists of zero or more search criteria that select tasks.  For
example, to list all pending tasks belonging to the 'Home' project:

.nf
  task project:Home list
.fi

You can specify multiple filter terms, each of which further restricts the
result:

.nf
  task project:Home +weekend garden list
.fi

This example applies three filters: the 'Home' project, the 'weekend' tag, and
the description or annotations must contain the character sequence 'garden'.
In this example, 'garden' is translated internally to:

.nf
  description.contains:garden
.fi

as a convenient shortcut.  The 'contains' here is an attribute modifier, which
is used to exert more control over the filter than simply absence or presence.
See the section 'ATTRIBUTE MODIFIERS' below for a complete list of modifiers.

Note that a filter may have zero terms, which means that all tasks apply to the
command.  This can be dangerous, and this special case is confirmed, and
cannot be overridden.  For example, this command:

.nf
  task modify +work
  This command has no filter, and will modify all tasks.  Are you sure? (yes/no)
.fi

will add the 'work' tag to all tasks, but only after confirmation.

More filter examples:

.nf
  task                                      <command> <mods>
  task 28                                   <command> <mods>
  task +weekend                             <command> <mods>
  task +bills due.by:eom                    <command> <mods>
  task project:Home due.before:today        <command> <mods>
  task ebeeab00-ccf8-464b-8b58-f7f2d606edfb <command> <mods>
.fi

By default filter elements are combined with an implicit 'and' operator,
but 'or' and 'xor' may also be used, provided parentheses are included:

.nf
  task '( /[Cc]at|[Dd]og/ or /[0-9]+/ )'      <command> <mods>
.fi

The parentheses isolate the logical term from any default command filter or
implicit report filter which would be combined with an implicit 'and'.

A filter may target specific tasks using ID or UUID numbers.  To specify
multiple tasks use one of these forms (space-separated list of ID numbers,
UUID numbers or ID ranges):

.nf
  task 1 2 3                                    delete
  task 1-3                                      info
  task 1 2-5 19                                 modify pri:H
  task 4-7 ebeeab00-ccf8-464b-8b58-f7f2d606edfb info
.fi

Note that it may be necessary to properly escape special characters as well as
quotes in order to avoid their special meanings in the shell. See also the
section 'SPECIFYING DESCRIPTIONS' for more information.

.SH MODIFICATIONS

The <mods> consist of zero or more changes to apply to the selected tasks, such
as:

.nf
  task <filter> <command> project:Home
  task <filter> <command> +weekend +garden due:tomorrow
  task <filter> <command> Description/annotation text
  task <filter> <command> /from/to/     <- replace first match
  task <filter> <command> /from/to/g    <- replace all matches
.fi

.SH SUBCOMMANDS

Taskwarrior supports different kinds of commands.  There are read commands,
write commands, miscellaneous commands and script helper commands.  Read
commands do not allow modification of tasks.  Write commands can alter almost
any aspect of a task.  Script helper commands are provided to help you write
add-on scripts, for example, shell completion (only minimal output is
generated, as with verbose=nothing). Those commands which are explicitly affected
by the
.I context
are denoted as such.

.SH READ SUBCOMMANDS

Reports are read subcommands. There are several reports currently predefined in
Taskwarrior. The output and sort behavior of these reports can be configured in
the configuration file. See also the man page taskrc(5).  There are also other
read subcommands that are not reports.

.TP
.B task --version
This is the only conventional command line argument that Taskwarrior supports,
and is intended for add-on scripts to verify the version number of an installed
Taskwarrior without invoking the mechanisms that create default files.

.TP
.B task <filter>
With no command specified, the default command is run, and the filter applied.

.TP
.B task <filter> active
Shows all tasks matching the filter that are started but not completed.

.TP
.B task <filter> all
Shows all tasks matching the filter, including parents of recurring tasks.

.TP
.B task <filter> blocked
Shows all tasks matching the filter, that are currently blocked by other tasks.

.TP
.B task <filter> blocking
Shows all tasks matching the filter, that block other tasks.

.TP
.B task <filter> burndown.daily
Shows a graphical burndown chart, by day. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> burndown.weekly
Shows a graphical burndown chart, by week.  Note that 'burndown' is an alias to
the 'burndown.weekly' report. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> burndown.monthly
Shows a graphical burndown chart, by month. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task calendar [due|<month> <year>|<year>] [y]
Shows a monthly calendar with due tasks marked.  Shows one horizontal line of
months.  If the 'y' argument is provided, will show at least one complete year.
If a year is provided, such as '2015', then that full year is shown.  If both
a month and a year are specified ('6 2015') then the months displayed begin at
the specified month and year.  If the 'due' argument is provided, will show
the starting month of the earliest due task.

.TP
.B task colors [<sample> | legend]
Displays all possible colors, a named sample, or a legend containing all
currently defined colors.

.TP
.B task columns [<substring>]
Displays all supported columns and formatting styles.  Useful when creating
custom reports.  If a substring is provided, only matching column names are
shown.

.TP
.B task commands
Shows all the supported commands, with some details of each.

.TP
.B task <filter> completed
Shows all tasks matching the filter that are completed.

.TP
.B task <filter> count
Displays only a count of tasks matching the filter. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> export
Exports all tasks in the JSON format.  Redirect the output to a file, if you
wish to save it, or pipe it to another command or script to convert it to
another format. You'll find these example scripts online at
<https://taskwarrior.org/tools/>:

.nf
  export-csv.pl
  export-sql.py
  export-xml.py
  export-yaml.pl
  export-html.pl
  export-tsv.pl
  export-xml.rb
  export-ical.pl
  export-xml.pl
  export-yad.pl
.fi

.TP
.B task <filter> ghistory.annual
Shows a graphical report of task status by year.

.TP
.B task <filter> ghistory.monthly
Shows a graphical report of task status by month.  Note that 'ghistory' is
an alias to 'ghistory.monthly'.

.TP
.B task <filter> ghistory.weekly
Shows a graphical report of task status by week.

.TP
.B task <filter> ghistory.daily
Shows a graphical report of task status by day.

.TP
.B task help
Shows the long usage text.

.TP
.B task <filter> history.annual
Shows a report of task history by year. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> history.monthly
Shows a report of task history by month.  Note that 'history' is
an alias to 'history.monthly'. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> history.weekly
Shows a report of task history by week. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> history.daily
Shows a report of task history by day. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> ids
Applies the filter then extracts only the task IDs and presents them as
a space-separated list.  This is useful as input to a task command, to achieve
this:

.nf
  task $(task project:Home ids) modify priority:H
.fi

This example first gets the IDs for the project:Home filter, then sets
the priority to H for each of those tasks.  This can also be achieved directly:

.nf
  task project:Home modify priority:H
.fi

This command is mainly of use to external scripts.

.TP
.B task <filter> uuids
Applies the filter on all tasks (even deleted and completed tasks)
then extracts only the task UUIDs and presents them as a space-separated list.
This is useful as input to a task command, to achieve this:

.nf
  task $(task project:Home status:completed uuids) modify status:pending
.fi

This example first gets the UUIDs for the project:Home and status:completed
filters, then makes each of those tasks pending again.

This command is mainly of use to external scripts.

.TP
.B task udas
Shows a list of UDAs that are defined, including their name, type, label and
allowed values.  Also shows UDA usage and any orphan UDAs.

.TP
.B task <filter> information
Shows all data and metadata for the specified tasks.  This is the only means of
displaying all aspects of a given task, including the change history.

.TP
.B task <filter> list
Provides a standard listing of tasks matching the filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> long
Provides the most detailed listing of tasks matching the filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> ls
Provides a short listing of tasks matching the filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> minimal
Provides a minimal listing of tasks matching the filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> newest
Shows the newest tasks matching the filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> next
Shows a page of the most urgent tasks, sorted by urgency, which is a calculated
value.

.TP
.B task <filter> ready
Shows a page of the most urgent ready tasks, sorted by urgency with started
tasks first. A ready task is one that is either unscheduled, or has a scheduled
date that is past and is not waiting.

.TP
.B task <filter> oldest
Shows the oldest tasks matching the filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> overdue
Shows all incomplete tasks matching the filter that are beyond their due date.

.TP
.B task <filter> projects
Lists all project names that are currently used by pending tasks, and the
number of tasks for each. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> recurring
Shows all recurring tasks matching the filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> unblocked
Shows all tasks that are not currently blocked by other tasks, matching the
filter.

.TP
.B task <filter> waiting
Shows all waiting tasks matching the filter.

.SH WRITE SUBCOMMANDS

.TP
.B task add <mods>
Adds a new pending task to the task list. It is affected by the currently set
context.

.TP
.B task <filter> annotate <mods>
Adds an annotation to an existing task.

.TP
.B task <filter> append <mods>
Appends description text to an existing task.

.TP
.B task <filter> delete <mods>
Deletes the specified task from task list. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> denotate <mods>
Deletes an annotation for the specified task. If the provided description
matches an annotation exactly, the corresponding annotation is deleted. If the
provided description matches annotations partly, the first partly matched
annotation is deleted. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> done <mods>
Marks the specified task as done. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> duplicate <mods>
Duplicates the specified task and allows modifications. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> edit
Launches a text editor to let you modify all aspects of a task directly.
In general, this is not the recommended method of modifying tasks, but is
provided for exceptional circumstances.  Use carefully. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task import [<file> ...]
Imports tasks in the JSON format.  Can be used to add new tasks, or update
existing ones.  Tasks are identified by their UUID.

If no file or "-" is specified, import tasks from STDIN.

Setting rc.recurrence.confirmation to an appropriate level is recommended
if import is to be used in automated workflows.  See taskrc(5).

For importing other file formats, the standard task release comes with a
few example scripts, such as:

.nf
  import-todo.sh.pl
  import-yaml.pl
.fi

.TP
.B task import-v2
Imports tasks from the Taskwarrior v2.x format. This is used when upgrading from
version 2.x to version 3.x.

.TP
.B task log <mods>
Adds a new task that is already completed, to the task list. It is affected by
the currently set context.

.TP
.B task <filter> modify <mods>
Modifies the existing task with provided information.

.TP
.B task <filter> prepend <mods>
Prepends description text to an existing task. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> purge
Permanently removes the specified tasks from the data files. Only
tasks that are already deleted can be purged. This command has a
local-only effect and changes introduced by it are not synced.
Is affected by the context.

Warning: causes permanent, non-revertible loss of data.

.TP
.B task <filter> start <mods>
Marks the specified tasks as started. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> stop <mods>
Removes the
.I start
time from the specified task. Is affected by the context.

.SH MISCELLANEOUS SUBCOMMANDS

Miscellaneous subcommands either accept no command line arguments, or accept
non-standard arguments.

.TP
.B task calc <expression>
Evaluates an algebraic expression. Can be used to test how Taskwarrior
parses and evaluates the expression given on the command line.

Examples:

.nf
    task calc 1 + 1
    2
.fi

.nf
    task calc now + 8d
    2015-03-26T18:06:57
.fi

.nf
    task calc eom
    2015-03-31T23:59:59
.fi

.TP
.B task config [<name> [<value> | '']]
Add, modify and remove settings directly in the Taskwarrior configuration.
This command either modifies the 'name' setting with a new value of 'value',
or adds a new entry that is equivalent to 'name=value':

.nf
    task config name value
.fi

This command sets a blank value.  This has the effect of suppressing any
default value:

.nf
    task config name ''
.fi

Finally, this command removes any 'name=...' entry from the .taskrc file:

.nf
    task config name
.fi

.TP
.B task context <name>
Sets the currently active context. See the CONTEXT section.

Example:

.nf
    task context work
.fi

.TP
.B task context delete <name>
Deletes the context with the name <name>. If the context being deleted is currently
set as active, it will be unset.

Example:

.nf
    task context delete work
.fi

.TP
.B task context define <name> <filter>
Defines a new context with name <name> and definition <filter>. This command
does not affect the currently set context, just adds a new context definition.

Examples:

.nf
    task context define work project:Work
    task context define home project:Home or +home
    task context define superurgent due:today and +urgent
.fi

.TP
.B task context list
Outputs a list of available contexts along with their definitions.

.TP
.B task context none
Clears the currently active context, if any was set.

.TP
.B task context show
Shows the currently active context, along with its definition.

.TP
.B task diagnostics
Shows diagnostic information, of the kind needed when reporting a problem.
When you report a bug, it is likely that the platform, version, and environment
are important.  Running this command generates a summary of similar information
that should accompany a bug report.

It includes compiler, library and software information.  It does not include
any personal information, other than the location of your task data.

This command also performs a diagnostic scan of your data looking for common
problems, such as duplicate UUIDs.

.TP
.B task execute <external command>
Executes the specified command.  Not useful by itself, but when used in
conjunction with aliases and extensions can provide seamless integration.

.TP
.B task logo
Displays the Taskwarrior logo.

.TP
.B task news
Guides the user through important release notes anytime a new version of
Taskwarrior is installed. It provides personalized feedback, deprecation
warnings and usage advice, where applicable.

.TP
.B task reports
Lists all supported reports.  This includes the built-in reports, and any custom
reports you have defined.

.TP
.B task show [all | <substring>]
Shows all the current settings.  If a
substring is specified just the settings containing that substring will be
displayed.

.TP
.B task <filter> stats
Shows statistics of the tasks defined by the filter. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task <filter> summary
Shows a report of aggregated task status by project. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task sync
The sync command synchronizes data with the Taskserver, if configured.

Note: If you use multiple sync clients, make sure this setting (which is the default)
is on your primary client:

.nf
  recurrence=on
.fi

and on all other clients (this is not the default):

.nf
  recurrence=off
.fi

This is a workaround to avoid a recurrence bug that duplicates recurring tasks.

.TP
.B task <filter> tags
Show a list of all tags used. Any special tags used are highlighted. Note that
virtual tags are not listed - they don't really exist, and are just a convenient
notation for other task metadata. It is an error to attempt to add or remove a
virtual tag. Is affected by the context.

.TP
.B task timesheet [<weeks>]
Shows a weekly report of tasks completed and started.

.TP
.B task undo
Reverts the most recent action.  Obeys the confirmation setting.

.TP
.B task version
Shows the Taskwarrior version number.

.SH HELPER SUBCOMMANDS

.TP
.B task _aliases
Generates a list of all aliases, for autocompletion purposes.

.TP
.B task _columns
Displays only a list of supported columns.

.TP
.B task _commands
Generates a list of all commands, for autocompletion purposes.

.TP
.B task _config
Lists all supported configuration variables, for completion purposes.

.TP
.B task _context
Lists all available context variables, for completion purposes.

.TP
.B task <filter> _ids
Shows only the IDs of matching tasks, in the form of a list.
Deprecated in favor of _unique.

.TP
.B task _show
Shows the combined defaults and overrides of the configuration settings, for use
by third-party applications.

.TP
.B task <filter> _unique <attribute>
Reports a unique set of attribute values. For example, to see all the active
projects:

.nf
  task +PENDING _unique project
.fi

.TP
.B task <filter> _uuids
Shows only the UUIDs of matching tasks among all tasks (even deleted and
completed tasks), in the form of a list.
Deprecated in favor of _unique.

.TP
.B task _udas
Shows only defined UDA names, in the form of a list.

.TP
.B task <filter> _projects
Shows only a list of all project names used.
Deprecated in favor of _unique.

.TP
.B task <filter> _tags
Shows only a list of all tags used, for autocompletion purposes.
Deprecated in favor of _unique.

.TP
.B task <filter> _urgency
Displays the urgency measure of a task.

.TP
.B task _version
Shows only the Taskwarrior version number.

.TP
.B task _zshcommands
Generates a list of all commands, for zsh autocompletion purposes.

.TP
.B task <filter> _zshids
Shows the IDs and descriptions of matching tasks.

.TP
.B task <filter> _zshuuids
Shows the UUIDs and descriptions of matching tasks.

.TP
.B task _get <DOM> [<DOM> ...]
Accesses and displays the DOM reference(s).  Used to extract individual values
from tasks, or the system.  Supported DOM references are:

.nf
  rc.<name>
  tw.syncneeded
  tw.program
  tw.args
  tw.width
  tw.height
  tw.version
  context.program    (Deprecated in 2.6.0)
  context.args       (Deprecated in 2.6.0)
  context.width      (Deprecated in 2.6.0)
  context.height     (Deprecated in 2.6.0)
  system.version
  system.os
  <id>.<attribute>
  <uuid>.<attribute>
.fi

Note that the 'rc.<name>' reference may need to be escaped using '--' to prevent
the reference from being interpreted as an override.

Note that if the DOM reference is not valid, or the reference evaluates to a
missing value, the command exits with 1.

Additionally, some components of the attributes of particular types may be
extracted by DOM references.

.nf
  $ task _get 2.due.year
  2015
.fi

For a full list of supported attribute-specific DOM references, consult
the online documentation at:
<https://taskwarrior.org/docs/dom.html>

.SH ATTRIBUTES AND METADATA

.TP
.B ID
Tasks can be specified uniquely by IDs, which are the indexes of the "working
set" of tasks (mostly pending and recurrent tasks).  The ID of a task may
therefore change, but only when a report that displays IDs is run.  When
modifying tasks, it is safe to rely on the last displayed ID.  Always run a
report to check you have the right ID for a task. IDs can be given to task as a
sequence, for example:

.nf
task 1,4-10,19 delete
.fi

.TP
.B +tag|-tag
Tags are arbitrary words associated with a task. Use + to add a tag and - to
remove a tag from a task. A task can have any quantity of tags.

Certain tags (called 'special tags'), can be used to affect the way tasks are
treated.  For example, if a task has the special tag 'nocolor', then it is
exempt from all color rules.  The supported special tags are:

.nf
    +nocolor     Disable color rules processing for this task
    +nonag       Completion of this task suppresses all nag messages
    +nocal       This task will not appear on the calendar
    +next        Elevates task so it appears on 'next' report
.fi

There are also virtual tags, which represent task metadata in tag form.  These
tags do not exist, but can be used to filter tasks.  The supported virtual tags
are:

.nf
    ACTIVE       Matches if the task is started
    ANNOTATED    Matches if the task has annotations
    BLOCKED      Matches if the task is blocked
    BLOCKING     Matches if the task is blocking
    CHILD        Matches if the task has a parent (deprecated in 2.6.0)
    COMPLETED    Matches if the task has completed status
    DELETED      Matches if the task has deleted status
    DUE          Matches if the task is due within the next 7 days (See rc.due)
    INSTANCE     Matches if the task is a recurrent instance
    LATEST       Matches if the task is the newest added task
    MONTH        Matches if the task is due this month
    ORPHAN       Matches if the task has any orphaned UDA values
    OVERDUE      Matches if the task is overdue
    PARENT       Matches if the task is a parent (deprecated in 2.6.0)
    PENDING      Matches if the task has pending status
    PRIORITY     Matches if the task has a priority
    PROJECT      Matches if the task has a project
    QUARTER      Matches if the task is due this quarter
    READY        Matches if the task is actionable
    SCHEDULED    Matches if the task is scheduled
    TAGGED       Matches if the task has tags
    TEMPLATE     Matches if the task is a recurrence template
    TODAY        Matches if the task is due today
    TOMORROW     Matches if the task is due sometime tomorrow
    UDA          Matches if the task has any UDA values
    UNBLOCKED    Matches if the task is not blocked
    UNTIL        Matches if the task expires
    WAITING      Matches if the task is waiting
    WEEK         Matches if the task is due this week
    YEAR         Matches if the task is due this year
    YESTERDAY    Matches if the task was due sometime yesterday
.fi

.\" If you update the above list, update src/commands/CmdInfo.cpp and src/commands/CmdTags.cpp as well.

You can use +BLOCKED to filter blocked tasks, or -BLOCKED for unblocked tasks.
Similarly, -BLOCKED is equivalent to +UNBLOCKED. It is an error to attempt to
add or remove a virtual tag.

.TP
.B project:<project-name>
Specifies the project to which a task is related to.

.TP
.B status:pending|deleted|completed|waiting|recurring
Specifies the state of the task.

.TP
.B priority:H|M|L or priority:
Specifies High, Medium, Low and no priority for a task.

.TP
.B due:<due-date>
Specifies the due-date of a task.

.TP
.B recur:<frequency>
Specifies the frequency of a recurrence of a task.

.TP
.B scheduled:<ready-date>
Specifies the date after which a task can be accomplished.

.TP
.B until:<expiration date of task>
Specifies the expiration date of a task, after which it will be deleted.

.TP
.B limit:<number-of-rows>
Specifies the desired number of tasks a report should show, if a positive
integer is given.  The value 'page' may also be used, and will limit the
report output to as many lines of text as will fit on screen.  This defaults
to 25 lines.

.TP
.B wait:<wait-date>
When a task is given a wait date, it is hidden from most built-in reports, which
exclude +WAITING.  When the date is in the past, the task is not considered +WAITING,
and again becomes visible.  Note that, for compatibilty, such tasks are shown as
having status "waiting", but this will change in a future release.

.TP
.B depends:<id1,id2 ...>
Declares this task to be dependent on id1 and id2.  This means that the tasks
id1 and id2 should be completed before this task.  Consequently, this task will
then show up on the 'blocked' report.  It accepts a comma-separated list of ID
numbers, UUID numbers and ID ranges.  When prefixing any element of this list
by '-', the specified tasks are removed from the dependency list.

.TP
.B entry:<entry-date>
For report purposes, specifies the date that a task was created.

.TP
.B modified:<modified-date>
Specifies the most recent modification date.

.SH ATTRIBUTE MODIFIERS
Attribute modifiers improve filters.  Supported modifiers are:

.RS
.B  before     (synonyms under, below)
.br
.B  after      (synonyms over, above)
.br
.B  by
.br
.B  none
.br
.B  any
.br
.B  is         (synonym equals)
.br
.B  isnt       (synonym not)
.br
.B  has        (synonym contains)
.br
.B  hasnt
.br
.B  startswith (synonym left)
.br
.B  endswith   (synonym right)
.br
.B  word
.br
.B  noword
.RE

They can be applied to all regular attributes (see above) and the following
calculated attributes:

.RS
\fBurgency\fR (or short \fBurg\fR)
.RE

For example:

.nf
    task due.before:eom priority.not:L list
.fi

The
.I before
modifier is used to compare values, preserving semantics, so project.before:B
list all projects that begin with 'A'.  Priority 'L' is before 'M', and
due:2011-01-01 is before due:2011-01-02.  The synonyms 'under' and 'below' are
included to allow filters that read more naturally.

The
.I after
modifier is the inverse of the
.I before
modifier.

The
.I by
modifier is the same as 'before', except it also includes the moment in
question.  For example:

.nf
    task add test due:eoy
.fi

will be found when using the inclusive filter 'by':

.nf
    task due.by:eoy
.fi

but not when the non-inclusive filter 'before' is used:

.nf
    task due.before:eoy
.fi

this applies equally to other named dates such as 'eom', 'eod', etc; the
modifier compares using '<=' rather than '<' like 'before' does.

The
.I none
modifier requires that the attribute does not have a value.  For example:

.nf
    task priority:      list
    task priority.none: list
.fi

are equivalent, and list tasks that do not have a priority.

The
.I any
modifier requires that the attribute has a value, but any value will suffice.

The
.I is
modifier requires an exact match with the value.

The
.I isnt
modifier is the inverse of the
.I is
modifier.

The
.I has
modifier is used to search for a substring, such as:

.nf
    task description.has:foo list
    task foo                 list
.fi

These are equivalent and will return any task that has 'foo' in the description
or annotations.

The
.I hasnt
modifier is the inverse of the
.I has
modifier.

The
.I startswith
modifier matches against the left, or beginning of an attribute, such that:

.nf
    task project.startswith:H list
    task project:H            list
.fi

are equivalent and will match any project starting with 'H'.  Matching all
projects not starting with 'H' is done with:

.nf
    task project.not:H         list
.fi

The
.I endswith
modifier matches against the right, or end of an attribute.

The
.I word
modifier requires that the attribute contain the whole word specified, such
that this:

.nf
    task description.word:foo list
.fi

Will match the description 'foo bar baz' but does not match 'dog food'.

The
.I noword
modifier is the inverse of the
.I word
modifier.

.SH EXPRESSIONS AND OPERATORS

You can use the following operators in filter expressions:

.nf
  and  or  xor  !               Logical operators
  <  <=  =  ==  !=  !==  >=  >  Relational operators
  (  )                          Precedence
.fi

For example:

.nf
  task due.before:eom priority.not:L list
  task '( due < eom or priority != L )' list
  task '! ( project:Home or project:Garden )' list
.fi

The
.I =
operator tests for approximate equality.  Dates compare
equal if they are on the same day (hour and minutes are ignored).
Strings compare equal if the left operand starts with the right operand.
The
.I ==
operator tests for exact equality.  The
.I !=
and
.I !==
operators are the negation of
.I =
and
.I ==
respectively.  The negation operator is
.IR ! .

Note that the parentheses are required when using a logical operator other than
the 'and' operator.  The reason is that some reports contain filters that must
be combined with the command line.  Consider this example:

.nf
  task project:Home or project:Garden list
.fi

While this looks correct, it is not.  The 'list' report contains a filter of:

.nf
  task show report.list.filter

  Config Variable    Value
  -----------------  --------------
  report.list.filter status:pending
.fi

Which means the example is really:

.nf
  task status:pending project:Home or project:Garden list
.fi

The implied 'and' operator makes it:

.nf
  task status:pending and project:Home or project:Garden list
.fi

This is a precedence error - the 'and' and 'or' need to be grouped using
parentheses, like this:

.nf
  task status:pending and ( project:Home or project:Garden ) list
.fi

The original example therefore must be entered as:

.nf
  task '( project:Home or project:Garden )' list
.fi

This includes quotes to escape the parentheses, so that the shell doesn't
interpret them and hide them from Taskwarrior.

There is redundancy between operators, attribute modifiers and other syntactic
sugar.  For example, the following are all equivalent:

.nf
  task foo                      list
  task /foo/                    list
  task description.contains:foo list
  task description.has:foo      list
  task 'description ~ foo'      list
.fi

.SH SPECIFYING DATES AND FREQUENCIES

.SS DATES
Taskwarrior reads dates from the command line and displays dates in the
reports.  The expected and desired date format is determined by the
configuration variable
.I dateformat
.

.RS
.TP
Exact specification
.nf
  task ... due:7/14/2008
.fi

.TP
ISO-8601
.nf
  task ... due:2013-03-14T22:30:00Z
.fi

.TP
Relative wording
.nf
  task ... due:now
  task ... due:today
  task ... due:yesterday
  task ... due:tomorrow
.fi

.TP
Day number with ordinal
.nf
  task ... due:23rd
  task ... due:3wks
  task ... due:1day
  task ... due:9hrs
.fi

.TP
Start of next (work) week (Monday), calendar week (Sunday or Monday), month, quarter and year
.nf
  task ... due:sow
  task ... due:soww
  task ... due:socw
  task ... due:som
  task ... due:soq
  task ... due:soy
.fi

.TP
End of current (work) week (Friday), calendar week (Saturday or Sunday), month, quarter and year
.nf
  task ... due:eow
  task ... due:eoww
  task ... due:eocw
  task ... due:eom
  task ... due:eoq
  task ... due:eoy
.fi

.TP
At some point or later
.nf
  task ... wait:later
  task ... wait:someday
.fi

This sets the wait date to 12/30/9999.

.TP
Next occurring weekday
.nf
  task ... due:fri
.fi

.TP
Predictable holidays
.nf
  task ... due:goodfriday
  task ... due:easter
  task ... due:eastermonday
  task ... due:ascension
  task ... due:pentecost
  task ... due:midsommar
  task ... due:midsommarafton
  task ... due:juhannus
.fi
.RE

.SS FREQUENCIES
Recurrence periods. Taskwarrior supports several ways of specifying the
.I frequency
of recurring tasks. Note that frequencies can be abbreviated.

.RS
.TP
daily, day, 1day, 1days, 2day, 2days, 1da, 2da, ...
Every day or a number of days.

.TP
weekdays
Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and skipping weekend days.

.TP
weekly, 1wk, 2wks, ...
Every week or a number of weeks.

.TP
biweekly, fortnight
Every two weeks.

.TP
monthly, month, 1mo, 2mo, ...
Every month.

.TP
quarterly, 1qtr, 2qtrs, ...
Every three months, a quarter, or a number of quarters.

.TP
semiannual
Every six months.

.TP
annual, yearly, 1yr, 2yrs, ...
Every year or a number of years.

.TP
biannual, biyearly, 2yr
Every two years.
.RE

.SH CONTEXT
Context is a user-defined query, which is automatically applied to all commands
that filter the task list and to commands that create new tasks (add, log). For
example, any report command will have its result affected by the current
active context.  Here is a list of the commands that are affected:

.nf
    add
    burndown
    count
    delete
    denotate
    done
    duplicate
    edit
    history
    log
    prepend
    projects
    purge
    start
    stats
    stop
    summary
    tags
.fi

All other commands are NOT affected by the context.

.nf
    $ task list
    ID Age Project  Description        Urg
    1  2d  Sport    Run 5 miles        1.42
    2  1d  Home     Clean the dishes   1.14
.fi

.nf
    $ task context home
    Context 'home' set. Use 'task context none' to remove.
.fi

.nf
    $ task list
    ID Age Project  Description        Urg
    2  1d  Home     Clean the dishes   1.14
    Context 'home' set. Use 'task context none' to remove.
.fi

Task list got automatically filtered for project:Home.

.nf
    $ task add Vaccuum the carpet
    Created task 3.
    Context 'home' set. Use 'task context none' to remove.
.fi

.nf
    $ task list
    ID Age Project  Description         Urg
    2  1d  Home     Clean the dishes    1.14
    3  5s  Home     Vaccuum the carpet  1.14
    Context 'home' set. Use 'task context none' to remove.
.fi

Note that the newly added task "Vaccuum the carpet" has "project:Home" set
automatically.

As seen in the example above, context is applied by specifying its name to the
"context" command. To change the currently applied context, just pass the
new context's name to the 'context' command.

To unset any context, use the 'none' subcommand.

.nf
    $ task context none
    Context unset.
.fi

.nf
    $ task list
    ID Age Project  Description         Urg
    1  2d  Sport    Run 5 miles         1.42
    2  1d  Home     Clean the dishes    1.14
    3  7s  Home     Vaccuum the carpet  1.14
.fi

Context can be defined using the 'define' subcommand, specifying both the name
of the new context, and it's assigned filter.

.nf
    $ task context define home project:Home
    Are you sure you want to add 'context.home.read' with a value of 'project:Home'? (yes/no) yes
    Are you sure you want to add 'context.home.write' with a value of 'project:Home'? (yes/no) yes
    Context 'home' successfully defined.
.fi

Note that you were separately prompted to set the 'read' and 'write' context.
This allows you to specify contexts that only work for reporting commands or
only for commands that create tasks.

To remove the definition, use the 'delete' subcommand.

.nf
    $ task context delete home
    Are you sure you want to remove 'context.home.read'? (yes/no) yes
    Are you sure you want to remove 'context.home.write'? (yes/no) yes
    Context 'home' deleted.
.fi

To check what is the currently active context, use the 'show' subcommand.

.nf
    $ task context show
    Context 'home' with

    * read filter: '+home'
    * write filter: '+home'

    is currently applied.
.fi

Contexts can store arbitrarily complex filters.

.nf
    $ task context define family project:Family or +paul or +nancy
    Are you sure you want to add 'context.family.read' with a value of 'project:Family or +paul or +nancy'? (yes/no) yes
    Are you sure you want to add 'context.family.write' with a value of 'project:Family or +paul or +nancy'? (yes/no) no
    Context 'family' successfully defined.
.fi

Contexts are permanent, and the currently set context name is stored in the
"context" configuration variable. The context definition is stored in the
"context.<name>.read" configuration variable (for reporting commands) and
"context.<name>.write" configuration variable (for task additions, i.e. task
add/log).

Note that in the example above, the user decided not to define the complex
filter as writeable context. The reason for this decision is that the complex
filter in the example does not directly translate to a modification. In fact,
if such a context is used as a writeable context, the following happens:

.nf
    $ task add Call Paul
    Created task 4.
    Context 'family' set. Use 'task context none' to remove.
.fi

.nf
    $ task 4 list
    ID Age  Project Tags       Description      Urg
     4 9min Family  nancy paul or or Call Paul    0
.fi


There is no clear mapping between the complex filter used and the modifications
(should only the project be set? only the tags? both?). Additionally note the 'or'
operators being present in the description. Taskwarrior does not try to guess
the user intention here, and instead, the user is expected to set the
"context.<name>.write" variable to make their intention explicit, for example:

.nf
    $ task config context.family.write project:Family
    Are you sure you want to change the value of 'context.family.write' from 'project:Family or +paul or +nancy' to 'project:Family'? (yes/no) yes
    Config file /home/tbabej/.config/task/taskrc modified.
.fi

.nf
    $ task context
    Name   Type  Definition                        Active
    family read  project:Family or +paul or +nancy yes
           write project:Family                    yes
    home   read  +home                             no
           write +home                             no
.fi

Note how read and write contexts differ for context "family", while for context
"home" they stay the same.

In addition, every configuration parameter can be overridden for the current
context, by specifying context.<name>.rc.<parameter>. For example, if the default
command for the family context should be displaying the family_report:

.nf
    $ task config context.family.rc.default.command family_report
.fi

.SH COMMAND ABBREVIATION
All Taskwarrior commands may be abbreviated as long as a unique prefix is used,
for example:

.nf
  $ task li
.fi

is an unambiguous abbreviation for

.nf
  $ task list
.fi

but

.nf
  $ task l
.fi

could be list, ls or long.

Note that you can restrict the minimum abbreviation size using the configuration
setting:

.nf
  abbreviation.minimum=3
.fi

.SH SPECIFYING DESCRIPTIONS
Some task descriptions need to be escaped because of the shell and the special
meaning of some characters to the shell. This can be done either by adding
quotes to the description or escaping the special character:

.nf
  $ task add "quoted ' quote"
  $ task add escaped \\' quote
.fi

The argument \-\- (a double dash) tells Taskwarrior to treat all other args
as description:

.nf
  $ task add -- project:Home needs scheduling
.fi

In other situations, the shell sees spaces and breaks up arguments.  For
example, this command:

.nf
  $ task 123 modify /from this/to that/
.fi

is broken up into several arguments, which is corrected with quotes:

.nf
  $ task 123 modify "/from this/to that/"
.fi

It is sometimes necessary to force the shell to pass quotes to Taskwarrior
intact, so you can use:

.nf
  $ task add project:\\'Three Word Project\\' description
.fi

Taskwarrior supports Unicode using only the UTF8 encoding.

.SH CONFIGURATION FILE AND OVERRIDE OPTIONS
Taskwarrior stores its configuration in a file in the user's home directory:
~/.taskrc. The default configuration file can be overridden with:

.TP
.B task rc:<path-to-alternate-file> ...
Specifies an alternate configuration file with highest priority.

.TP
.B TASKRC=<path-to-alternate-file> task ..
The environment variable specifies an alternate configuration file to use.

.TP
.B XDG_CONFIG_HOME=<path-to-alternate-config-home> task ..
The environment variable specifies an alternate configuration file to use.

.TP
.B task rc.<name>:<value> ...
.B task rc.<name>=<value> ...
Specifies individual configuration file overrides.

.TP
.B TASKDATA=/tmp/.task task ...
The environment variable overrides the default, and the 'data.location'
configuration setting of the task data directory.

.SH MORE EXAMPLES

For examples please see the online documentation starting at

.RS
<https://taskwarrior.org/docs>
.RE

Note that the online documentation can be more detailed and more current than
this man page.

.SH FILES

.TP
~/.taskrc
User configuration file - see also taskrc(5).  Note that this can be
overridden on the command line or by the TASKRC environment variable. Also, if
.I ~/.taskrc
doesn't exist and XDG_CONFIG_HOME environment variable is defined, taskwarrior
will check if $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/task/taskrc exists and attempt to read it

.TP
~/.task
The default directory where task stores its data. The location can be
configured in the configuration variable 'data.location', or overridden with
the TASKDATA environment variable.

.TP
~/.task/taskchampion.sqlite3
The database file.

.SH "CREDITS & COPYRIGHTS"
Copyright (C) 2006 \- 2021 T. Babej, P. Beckingham, F. Hernandez.

Taskwarrior is distributed under the MIT license. See
https://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php for more information.

.SH SEE ALSO
.BR taskrc(5),
.BR task-color(5),
.BR task-sync(5)

For more information regarding Taskwarrior, see the following:

.TP
The official site at
<https://taskwarrior.org>

.TP
The official code repository at
<https://github.com/GothenburgBitFactory/taskwarrior>

.TP
You can contact the project by emailing
<support@GothenburgBitFactory.org>

.SH REPORTING BUGS
.TP
Bugs in Taskwarrior may be reported to the issue-tracker at
<https://github.com/GothenburgBitFactory/taskwarrior/issues>