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    Elastic Compute Service:Workbench intelligent command completion

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    Elastic Compute Service:Workbench intelligent command completion

    Last Updated:Dec 01, 2025

    Workbench command completion is an intelligent accessibility feature built into the Workbench terminal of Alibaba Cloud Elastic Compute Service (ECS). As you type on the command line, it provides real-time predictions and displays a list of potential commands, parameters, or options based on the context.

    This feature has the following advantages:

    • Improves input accuracy: Selecting commands and parameters from the suggestion list helps prevent spelling errors that can occur during manual entry. This ensures accurate command execution.

    • Provides intelligent suggestions: It dynamically displays all valid subcommands and parameters based on your input. This makes it easier to remember complex commands.

    • Speeds up command entry: It simplifies command entry by reducing the process from typing the full command to entering a prefix and selecting from a list. This greatly reduces keystrokes and improves efficiency, especially for repetitive tasks.

    Scope

    To use this feature, Resource Access Management (RAM) users must have the permissions to connect to an ECS instance using Workbench.

    Procedure

    1. Log on to a Linux instance using Workbench

      Log on to the ECS console - Instances page. Find the target instance and click Connect in the Actions column. Next to Workbench, click Sign in now.

    2. Trigger command completion

      • In the Workbench terminal window, enter the prefix of a common command. For example, to manage the firewall service with the systemctl command, enter systemctl status fire.

      • When you type fire, a suggestion list that contains firewalld automatically appears.

        The suggestion list does not block your normal input. You can ignore it and continue typing. The options in the list are filtered and updated in real-time based on your input. To manually close the suggestion list, press the Esc key.

        image

    3. Select and complete the command

      Use the ↑ (Up arrow) and ↓ (Down arrow) keys to select the suggestion systemctl status firewalld. Then, press the Tab key to complete the command and press Enter to execute it.

    FAQ

    • Is there an extra charge for using Workbench intelligent command completion?

      There are no additional fees.

    • Why don't completion suggestions appear after I enter a command?

      This may be caused by network latency. You can wait for a moment, refresh the page, or reconnect to the terminal and try again.

    • Is command completion enabled by default? How can I disable it?

      This feature is enabled by default. To disable it, right-click to open the context menu and click Intelligent Command Completion.