SETFONT(8)

NAME
setfont - load EGA/VGA console screen font

SYNOPSIS
setfont [-o font.orig] [-fontsize] [font.new] [-m cmap] [-om cmap.orig] [-u umap] [-ou umap.orig] [-v] [-V]

DESCRIPTION
The setfont command loads a font into the EGA/VGA character generator, and optionally outputs the previous font. This command reads an 8xH font from the file and loads it into the character generator memory. Usually the font size H will be clear from the file size, but if the input file has code page format, containing the three fonts 8x8, 8x14 and 8x16, the option -8 or -14 or -16 must be used to select one. If no args are given (or only the option -fontsize ), then a default font is loaded. With the -v option, setfont will be verbose. With the -V option, it prints its version. As currently there is no mode switching support in the Linux kernel, setfont has nothing to do with the current EGA/VGA mode. It's totally user's responsibility to choose a font matching the current video mode.

Font files are binary files of size 256*H bytes, containing bit images for each of 256 characters, one byte per scan line, and H bytes per character (0 < H <= 32). Also .psf files are accepted; these files have the same format but an additional 4 byte header. The ordering of the symbols in the font is described by a mapping table. Some fonts have a mapping table included in the font file, and setfont will load such a mapping table. If no explicit mapping table is included in the font, and no mapping table is provided using the -m option, the `trivial' mapping is assumed. In any case the mapping table just loaded is activated by outputting the string Esc ( K. Giving a -m none argument inhibits the loading and activation of a mapping table. The previous mapping table can be saved to a file using the -om file option. These options of setfont render mapscrn(8) obsolete. The correspondence between the glyphs in the font and Unicode values is described by a Unicode mapping table. Some fonts have a Unicode mapping table included in the font file, and an explicit table can be indicated using the -u option. Setfont will load such a Unicode mapping table, unless a -u none argument is given. The previous Unicode mapping table can be saved to a file using the -ou file option. One may add a Unicode mapping table to a psf font using psfaddtable(1).

FILES
/usr/lib/kbd/consolefonts is the default directory for fonts. /usr/lib/kbd/consoletrans is the default directory for mappings.

SEE ALSO
mapscrn(8)

AUTHORS
Eugene G. Crosser (crosser@pccross.msk.su)
Andries E. Brouwer (aeb@cwi.nl)