# man > luatex(1) [_LUATEX_(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/LUATEX/1/markdown) General Commands Manual [_LUATEX_(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/LUATEX/1/markdown) ## NAME luatex, dviluatex, luahbtex, luajittex, texlua, texluac - An extended version of TeX using Lua as an embedded scripting language ## SYNOPSIS **luatex **[**--lua=_**FILE_] [_OPTION_]... [_TEXNAME_[**.tex**]] [_COMMANDS_] **luatex **[**--lua=_**FILE_] [_OPTION_]... **\_**FIRST-LINE_ **luatex **[**--lua=_**FILE_] [_OPTION_]... **&_**FMT_ [_ARGS_] ## DESCRIPTION Run the luaTeX typesetter on _TEXNAME_, usually creating _TEXNAME_**.pdf**. Any remaining _COMMANDS_ are processed as luaTeX input, after _TEXNAME_ is read. Alternatively, if the first non-option argument begins with a backslash, interpret all non-option arguments as a line of luaTeX input. Alternatively, if the first non-option argument begins with a **&**, the next word is taken as the _FMT_ to read, overriding all else. Any remaining arguments are processed as above. If no arguments or options are specified, prompt for input. If called as **texlua **it acts as a Lua interpreter. If called as **texluac **it acts as a Lua bytecode compiler. LuaTeX began as an extended version of pdfTeX with Unicode and OpenType font support, embed‐ ded **Lua **scripting language, the **e-TeX **and **Omega **extensions, as well as an integrated MetaPost engine, that can create _PDF_ files as well as _DVI_ files. For more information about luatex, see ; and you can read the LuaTeX manual using the texdoc utility (**tex‐** **doc luatex**). All LuaTeX text input and output is considered to be Unicode text, although various filters make it possible to support any encoding. In _DVI_ mode, LuaTeX can be used as a complete replacement for the TeX engine. In _PDF_ mode, LuaTeX can natively handle the _PDF_, _JPG_, _JBIG2_, and _PNG_ graphics formats. Lua‐ TeX cannot include PostScript or Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) graphics files; first convert them to PDF using [**epstopdf**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/epstopdf/1/markdown). The luajittex variant includes the Lua just-in-time compiler. The luahbtex variant can use the HarfBuzz engine for glyph shaping, instead of LuaTeX's built-in shaper. ## OPTIONS When the LuaTeX executable starts, it looks for the **--lua **command-line option. If there is no **--lua **option, the command line is interpreted in a similar fashion as in traditional pdf‐ TeX and Aleph. But if the option is present, LuaTeX will enter an alternative mode of com‐ mand-line parsing in comparison to the standard web2c programs. The presence of **--lua **makes most of other options unreliable, because the lua initialization file can disable kpathsea and/or hook functions into various callbacks. **--lua=_**FILE_ The lua initialization file. The following two options alter the executable behaviour: ### --luaonly Start LuaTeX as a Lua interpreter. In this mode, it will set Lua's _arg[0]_ to the found script name, pushing preceding options in negative values and the rest of the command line in the positive values, just like the Lua interpreter. LuaTeX will exit immediately after executing the specified Lua script. ### --luaconly Start LuaTeX as a Lua byte compiler. In this mode, LuaTeX is exactly like **luac **from the standalone Lua distribution, except that it does not have the **-l **switch, and that it accepts (but ignores) the **--luaconly **switch. Then the regular web2c options: ### --debug-format Debug format loading. ### --draftmode Sets \pdfdraftmode so luaTeX doesn't write a PDF and doesn't read any included images, thus speeding up execution. ### --enable-write18 Synonym for **--shell-escape**. ### --disable-write18 Synonym for **--no-shell-escape**. ### --shell-escape Enable the **\write18{_**command_**} **construct, and Lua functions **os.execute()**, **os.exec()**, **os.spawn()**, and **io.popen()**. The _command_ can be any shell command. This construct is normally disallowed for security reasons. ### --no-shell-escape Disable the **\write18{_**command_**} **construct and the other Lua functions, even if it is en‐ abled in the _texmf.cnf_ file. ### --shell-restricted Enable restricted version of **\write18**, **os.execute()**, **os.exec()**, **os.spawn()**, and **io.popen()**, only commands listed in _texmf.cnf_ file are allowed. ### --file-line-error Print error messages in the form _file:line:error_ which is similar to the way many com‐ pilers format them. ### --no-file-line-error Disable printing error messages in the _file:line:error_ style. **--fmt=_**FORMAT_ Use _FORMAT_ as the name of the format to be used, instead of the name by which luaTeX was called or a _%&_ line. **--help **Print help message and exit. **--ini **Start in _INI_ mode, which is used to dump formats. The _INI_ mode can be used for type‐ setting, but no format is preloaded, and basic initializations like setting catcodes may be required. **--interaction=_**MODE_ Sets the interaction mode. The _MODE_ can be either _batchmode_, _nonstopmode_, _scrollmode_, and _errorstopmode_. The meaning of these modes is the same as that of the correspond‐ ing \commands. **--jobname=_**NAME_ Use _NAME_ for the job name, instead of deriving it from the name of the input file. **--kpathsea-debug=_**BITMASK_ Sets path searching debugging flags according to the _BITMASK_. See the _Kpathsea_ manual for details. **--mktex=_**FMT_ Enable mktex_FMT_ generation, where _FMT_ must be either _tex_ or _tfm_. ### --nosocket Disable the luasocket (network) library. **--output-comment=_**STRING_ In _DVI_ mode, use _STRING_ for the _DVI_ file comment instead of the date. This option is ignored in_PDF_ mode. **--output-directory=_**DIRECTORY_ Write output files in _DIRECTORY_ instead of the current directory. Look up input files in _DIRECTORY_ first, then along the normal search path. **--output-format=_**FORMAT_ Set the output format mode, where _FORMAT_ must be either _pdf_ or _dvi_. This also influ‐ ences the set of graphics formats understood by luaTeX. **--progname=_**NAME_ Pretend to be program _NAME_ (only for kpathsea). ### --recorder Enable the filename recorder. This leaves a trace of the files opened for input and output in a file with extension _.fls_. ### --safer Disable some Lua commands that can easily be abused by a malicious document. **--synctex=_**NUMBER_ Enable/disable SyncTeX extension. ### --version Print version information and exit. ### --credits Print credits and version details. The following options are ignored: **--8bit**, **--etex**, **--parse-first-line**, **--no-parse-first-line** These are always on. **--default-translate-file=_**TCXNAME_, **--translate-file=_**TCXNAME_ These are always off. ## SEE ALSO [**pdftex**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/pdftex/1/markdown), [**etex**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/etex/1/markdown), [**aleph**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/aleph/1/markdown), [**lua**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/lua/1/markdown). ## AUTHORS The primary authors of LuaTeX are Taco Hoekwater, Hartmut Henkel, Hans Hagen, and Luigi Scarso, with help from Martin Schröder, Karel Skoupy, and Han The Thanh. TeX was designed by Donald E. Knuth, who implemented it using his Web system for Pascal pro‐ grams. It was ported to Unix at Stanford by Howard Trickey, and at Cornell by Pavel Curtis. The version now offered with the Unix TeX distribution is that generated by the Web to C sys‐ tem (**web2c**), originally written by Tomas Rokicki and Tim Morgan. The LuaTeX home page is . Web2C 2023 17 November 2019 [_LUATEX_(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/LUATEX/1/markdown)