Command Line

Launch Zeal with queries and control behavior via command-line arguments

Zeal supports command-line arguments for automation, scripting, and integration with other tools.

Basic Usage

zeal [options] [url]

Options

General Options

--help · flag

Display help information and exit

--version · flag

Display version information and exit

--minimized · flag

Start minimized regardless of settings

Useful for starting Zeal in the background at system startup.

Windows-Specific Options

--attach-console · flag

Attach console for logging (Windows only)

Redirects output to the parent console window for debugging.

--register · flag

Register protocol handlers (Windows only)

Registers dash:// and dash-plugin:// URL schemes with the system.

zeal --register

--unregister · flag

Unregister protocol handlers (Windows only)

Removes dash:// and dash-plugin:// URL scheme registrations.

zeal --unregister

The --register and --unregister options cannot be used together.

Positional Arguments

URL Parameter

You can pass a search query or URL as a positional argument:

zeal "python:print"

Supported URL schemes:

• Plain text queries
• dash:// URLs
• dash-plugin:// URLs

See Protocol Handlers for details on URL schemes.

Examples

Search for Documentation

Search for “string” in Python documentation:

zeal "python:string"

Search across multiple docsets:

zeal "python,django:models"

Start Minimized

Launch Zeal minimized to system tray:

zeal --minimized

Use Protocol Handlers

Open documentation using the dash:// protocol:

zeal "dash://python:print"

Use dash-plugin:// with parameters:

zeal "dash-plugin://keys=python&query=print"

Windows Protocol Registration

Register URL handlers on Windows:

zeal.exe --register

This allows you to open Zeal URLs from browsers and other applications:

<a href="dash://python:pprint">Python pprint documentation</a>

Integration Examples

Shell Alias

Create a shell alias for quick documentation lookup:

# In .bashrc or .zshrc
alias zdoc='zeal'

# Usage
zdoc "javascript:array.map"

Desktop Launcher

Create a custom desktop launcher with a specific query:

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=Zeal Python Docs
Exec=zeal "python:"
Icon=zeal
Terminal=false

Script Integration

Use Zeal in scripts for documentation lookup:

#!/bin/bash
# Open documentation for a command

if [ -z "$1" ]; then
  echo "Usage: $0 <command>"
  exit 1
fi

zeal "bash:$1" &

Multiple Instances

Zeal enforces single-instance behavior. When you run Zeal while another instance is already running:

1. The command-line arguments are sent to the existing instance
2. The existing window is activated (unless prevent_activation=true is set in dash-plugin:// URLs)
3. The new process exits

This ensures a consistent user experience and prevents multiple windows from opening unnecessarily.

Exit Codes

• 0 - Success
• 1 - Failure (e.g., invalid arguments, failed to send message to primary instance)

Command-line arguments are processed before the GUI is shown, making Zeal suitable for automated workflows and IDE integration.