MIKTEX-XETEX(1)

📦 version 25.12, in nixos 26.05, nixpkgs unstable

💜 miktex-xetex — the user-commands era 💜

okay bestie, buckle up — this is miktex-xetex(1), a User Commands page, and it's the whole entire Unicode-based TeX engine vibe. let's get into it ✨

🌸 NAME 🌸

miktex-xetex — the Unicode-based TeX engine 💅

🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

miktex-xetex [option...] [[file] | [\command...]]

✨ DESCRIPTION ✨

bestie, real talk: this man page is an adaption of the corresponding TeX Live man page. not me being transparent about my origins 💀

So what does it actually do? Run the XeTeX typesetter on file, usually creating file.pdf. If the file argument has no extension, .tex will be appended to it. And instead of a file name, you can hand it a set of XeTeX commands — the first of which must start with a backslash. periodt.

XeTeX has simple font installation, which is honestly iconic of it: it can use any installed fonts in the operating system without configuring TeX font metric. As a result — and this is the part where I'm obsessed — XeTeX can access font features such as special ligatures and variable font weights. the range. the versatility. 🎀

💅 OPTIONS 💅

  • --alias=name — pretend to be program name, i.e. set program (and memory dump) name to name. This may affect the search paths and other values used. Using this option is equivalent to copying the program file to name and invoking name. catfish behavior, but make it TeX 🐟
  • --aux-directory=dir — set dir as the directory to which auxiliary files are written. Also look for input files in dir first, before along the normal search path. she's organized 💖
  • --buf-size=n — set the maximum number of characters simultaneously present in current lines of open files and in control sequences between \csname and \endcsname. TeX uses the buffer to contain input lines, but macro expansion works by writing material into the buffer and reparsing the line. As a consequence, certain constructs require the buffer to be very large, even though most documents can be handled with a small value. ngl, some of y'all are gonna need a big one 😭
  • --c-style-errors — change the way error messages are printed. The alternate style looks like error messages from many compilers and is easier to parse for some editors. compiler-core errors, slay 🧚
  • --disable-8bit-chars — make only 7-bit characters printable. going vintage, no cap
  • --disable-installer — disable automatic installation of packages. Specifying this option overrules settings in the MiKTeX configuration data store. she said "I'll get it myself" 🫶
  • --disable-write18 — disable the \write18{command} construct. locked down, as she should be 🔒
  • --dont-parse-first-line — disable checking whether the first line of the main input file starts with %&. no peeking 🙈
  • --enable-8bit-chars — make all characters printable. everyone's invited to the party 🌈
  • --enable-etex — enable eTeX extensions.
  • --enable-installer — enable automatic installation of packages. Specifying this option overrules settings in the MiKTeX configuration data store. she's thriving on convenience 💅
  • --enable-mltex — enable MLTeX extensions such as \charsubdef.
  • --enable-write18 — fully enable the \write18{command} construct. It is only partially enabled by default to avoid security problems. When fully enabled, the command (which undergoes the usual TeX expansions) is passed to the command interpreter. The output of the command is not diverted anywhere, so it will not appear in the log file. The command execution either happens at \output time or right away, according to the absence or presence of the \immediate prefix.
⚠️ bestie this one is the spicy one — it's only partially enabled by default to avoid security problems. when you fully enable it, you're handing real commands to the command interpreter. know what you're doing, fr fr 💀
  • --error-line=n — set the width of context lines on terminal error messages.
  • --extra-mem-bot=n — set the extra size (in memory words) for large data structures like boxes, glue, breakpoints, et al. Relevant only after the memory dump file has been read.
  • --extra-mem-top=n — set the extra size (in memory words) for chars, tokens, et al. Relevant only after the memory dump file has been read.
  • --font-max=n — set the maximum internal font number. 🔢
  • --font-mem-size=n — set the size, in TeX memory words, of the font memory.
  • --half-error-line=n — set the width of first lines of contexts in terminal error messages.
  • --halt-on-error — quit after the first error. no second chances, main character energy 😤
  • --hash-extra=n — set the extra space for the hash table of control sequences (which allows 10K names as distributed).
  • --help — give help and exit. hi bestie 👋
  • --hhelp — this option is only available on Windows systems: show the manual page in an HTML Help window and exit when the window is closed. windows girlies only 🪟
  • --include-directory=dir — add the directory dir to the head of the list of directories to be searched for input files. front of the line, VIP treatment 👑
  • --initialize — become the INI variant of the program. glow-up era 🌟
  • --interaction=mode — set the interaction mode. Must be one of batchmode, scrollmode and errorstopmode. The meaning of these modes is the same as the corresponding commands.
  • --job-name=name — set the name of the job (\jobname). This has an affect on the output file names.
  • --job-time=file — set the time-stamp of all output files equal to
  • --main-memory=n — change the total size (in memory words) of the main memory array. Relevant only while creating memory dump files.
  • --max-in-open=n — set the maximum number of input files and error insertions that can be going on simultaneously. multitasking queen 🦋
  • --max-print-line=n — set the width of longest text lines output; should be at least 60.
  • --max-strings=n — set the maximum number of strings.
  • --nest-size=n — set the maximum number of semantic levels simultaneously active.
  • --no-c-style-errors — don't change the way error messages are printed. we're staying classic 💖
  • --no-pdf — generate XDV (extended DVI) output rather than PDF. plot twist!
  • --output-directory=dir — write output files in dir. instead of the current directory. Look up input files in dir first, then along the normal search path.
  • --output-driver=cmd — use cmd as the XDV-to-PDF driver instead of xdvipdfmx. custom chauffeur 🚗
  • --papersize=string — set PDF media size to string.
  • --param-size=n — set the maximum number of simultaneous macro parameters.
  • --parse-first-line — check whether the first line of the main input file starts with %&, and parse if it does. This can be used to specify extra command-line options.
  • --pool-free=n — set the minimum pool space left after loading the format.
  • --pool-size=n — set the maximum number of characters in strings, including all error messages and help texts, and the names of all fonts and control sequences.
  • --quiet — suppress all output, except errors. silent but deadly 🍓
  • --record-package-usages=file — record all package usages and write them into file.
  • --recorder — enable the file name recorder. This leaves a trace of the files opened for input and output in a file with the extension .fls. she's taking notes 📝
  • --restrict-write18 — partially enable the \write18{command} construct. the safe-ish middle ground 🫶
  • --save-size=n — set the amount of space for saving values outside of current group.
  • --src-specials — embed source file information (source specials) in the file.
  • --stack-size=n — set the maximum number of simultaneous input sources.
  • --string-vacancies=n — set the minimum number of characters that should be available for the user's control sequences and font names, after the compiler's own error messages are stored. Must be at least 25000 less than pool_size, but doesn't need to be nearly that large.
  • --synctex=n — generate SyncTeX data for previewers. If n is zero, no .synctex file is created. If n is negative, the .synctex file is a text file. If n is positive, the .synctex file is compressed with gzip and the .gz file name extension is added.

Furthermore, n is interpreted as a bit field — yes she's doing bit math, we stan a multihyphenate 🤓:

  • Bit 1 (n AND 2) — don't add the .gz file name extension.
  • Bit 2 (n AND 4) — activate form support.
  • Bit 3 (n AND 8) — activate better compression.
  • --time-statistics — show processing time statistics. the receipts! ⏱️
  • --trace[=tracestreams] — enable trace messages. The tracestreams argument, if specified, is a comma-separated list of trace stream names (Chapter 9, Trace Streams).
  • --trie-size=n — set the amount of space for hyphenation patterns.
  • --undump=name — use name as the name of the format to be used, instead of the name by which the program was called or a
%&

line.

  • --version — show version information and exit. 💐

🧚 ENVIRONMENT 🧚

  • MIKTEX_EDITOR — the editor to use when selecting e in the error prompt menu.

The value can contain these placesholder:

  • %f — the name of the file, which contains the erroneous line of TeX code.
  • %l — the line number.
  • MIKTEX_TRACE — comma-separated list of trace stream names (see Chapter 9, Trace Streams). If this variable is set, then MiKTeX programs will write trace messages into the configured log sink.
  • TEXINPUTS — extra paths to locate TeX \input and \openin files.
  • TFMFONTS — extra paths to locate TeX font metric files

okay that's the whole page, and yes I remembered all of it, iykyk 💖

sign-off era: brought to you by MiKTeX 25.12, dated December 29, 2025 — write that down, bestie, that's the version and the date, no cap 🎀✨🦋🔥

📦 where this page comes from