Is there any way to have N++ start in overwrite mode, instead of insert mode?

Mike Manion

Whenever I start N++, I always have to press “Insert” on my keyboard (or click where it says “INS” in the bottom right of the status bar) to toggle INS/OVR because I always want it to be in overwrite mode instead of insert mode.

Is there a setting that would make N++ automatically start in overwrite mode instead of insert mode? I think most text editors have such a setting, but I can’t find it in N++.

If not, is there any way to run a simple script at startup (I use Windows 10), that makes it automatically change from INS to OVR every time I launch it?

Thanks devs! I’m very happy with this software so far!

Scott Sumner

@Mike-Manion

As a fan of the Pythonscript plugin, I would do it in my startup.py script with this command:

editor.editToggleOvertype()

If you use the secondary view ever, you may want to do:

editor1.editToggleOvertype()
editor2.editToggleOvertype()

I’m sure there are other ways as well…

Mike Manion

@Scott-Sumner said:

editor.editToggleOvertype()

Thanks, it worked!

For anyone needing more detail, here are the steps:

Click Plugins -> Plugin Manager.
Check the box next to “Python Script”, then click the “Install” button to install it.
Click Plugins -> Python Script -> Configuration.
In the “Initialisation” dropdown, change it from LAZY to ATSTARTUP.
Add the suggested line to the end of C:\Program Files (x86)\Notepad++\plugins\PythonScript\scripts\startup.py

Oanh Schlesinger

I had this question too. Finding the answer was easy. I thought I was in for hours of searching. I looked at only one other place before coming to this one and to my surprise the question/answer was staring at me in the face. The entry outlining the steps was helpful indeed. Notepad++ transformed the way I do many things. I am just now learning and already understand it’s value. Keep up the good work. My performance is based on the knowledge of others. Thanks!