Software⏱️ 2 min read📅 2026-05-31

How to Fix: Arrow keys, Home, End, tab-complete keys not working in shell

Ubuntu minimal installation issues with arrow keys and tab-complete not working.

Quick Answer: Try running `sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade` to ensure all packages are up-to-date, then log out and back in for the changes to take effect.

📋 Table of Contents

  1. 🛑 Root Causes of the Error
  2. 🚀 How to Resolve This Issue
  3. ✨ Wrapping Up

To resolve the issues with arrow keys, Home, End, tab-complete keys not working in shell on Ubuntu Minimal installation, follow these steps.

🛑 Root Causes of the Error

  • The issue is likely due to an incomplete setup during user creation, where the shell configuration was not properly set.

🚀 How to Resolve This Issue

Method 1: Update Shell Configuration

  1. Step 1: Open the terminal and run chsh -s /bin/bash admin to switch to bash shell.

Method 2: Configure Shell Settings

  1. Step 1: Edit the shell configuration file using nano ~/.bashrc admin (or use your preferred editor).

✨ Wrapping Up

To enable tab completion, add the following line to the bashrc file: complete -F __complete -C /etc/bash_completion.d/ admin. Then, run source ~/.bashrc to apply the changes. Additionally, to enable color output for ls command, run ls --color=always or add the following line to the bashrc file: alias ls='ls --color=always'. Test all keys and commands to ensure they are working as expected.

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