mtx-context(1)

📦 version 2026.0, in alpine 3.24

🎀 NAME 🎀

mtx-context(1) — ConTeXt Process Management, periodt. That's the manual-name vibe, bestie: mtx-context is literally the ConTeXt Process Management era. 💖

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

mtxrun --script context [ OPTIONS ...  ] [ FILENAMES ]

Okay so that's the summoning spell. Use it exactly, no cap. 🪄

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

ConTeXt Process Management. That's it. That's the description. Iconic minimalism. 💅

💅 OPTIONS: BASIC 💅

  • --run — process (one or more) files (default action). The default-default, fr fr.
  • --make — create context formats.
  • --ctx=name — use ctx file (process management specification).
  • --noctx — ignore ctx directives and flags.
  • --interface — use specified user interface (default: en).
  • --autopdf — close pdf file in viewer and start pdf viewer afterwards.
  • --purge — purge files either or not after a run (--pattern=...).
  • --purgeall — purge all files either or not after a run (--pattern=...).
  • --usemodule=list — load the given module or style, normally part of the distribution.
  • --environment=list — load the given environment file first (document styles).
  • --mode=list — enable given the modes (conditional processing in styles).
  • --path=list — also consult the given paths when files are looked for.
  • --arguments=list — set variables that can be consulted during a run (key/value pairs).
  • --randomseed=number — set the randomseed.
  • --result=name — rename the resulting output to the given name.
  • --trackers=list — set tracker variables (show list with --showtrackers).
  • --directives=list — set directive variables (show list with --showdirectives).
  • --silent=list — disable logcategories (show list with --showlogcategories).
  • --strip — strip Lua code (⚠️ only meant for production where no errors are expected).
  • --errors=list — show errors at the end of a run, quit when in list (also when --silent).
  • --htmlerrorpage — generate html error page instead (optional: =scite).
  • --noconsole — disable logging to the console (logfile only).
  • --nodummy — don't create a dummy file (can confuse pdf viewers that keep file in view).
  • --purgeresult — purge result file before run.
  • --find=string — search for the given pattern in the documentation sources.
  • --forcexml — force xml stub.
  • --forcecld — force cld (context lua document) stub.
  • --forcelua — force lua stub (like texlua).
  • --forcemp — force mp stub.
  • --arrange — run extra imposition pass, given that the style sets up imposition.
  • --noarrange — ignore imposition specifications in the style.
  • --pages — report pagenumbers of names pages and list references (--page=... or --page=...).
  • --jit — use luajittex with jit turned off (only use the faster virtual machine).
  • --jiton — use luajittex with jit turned on (in most cases not faster, even slower).
  • --once — only run once (no multipass data file is produced).
  • --runs — process at most this many times.
  • --forcedruns — process this many times (permits for optimization trial runs).
  • --batchmode — run without stopping and do not show messages on the console.
  • --nonstopmode — run without stopping.
  • --nocompactfonts — revert to less efficient (traditional) font scaling.
  • --nosynctex — never initializes synctex (for production runs).
  • --synctex — run with synctex enabled (better use upsynctex[state=start]).
  • --nodates — omit runtime dates in pdf file (optional value: a number (1970 offset) or string "YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM").
  • --nocompression — forcefully turns off compression in the backend.
  • --trailerid — alternative trailer id (or constant one).
  • --generate — generate file database etc. (as luatools does).
  • --paranoid — do not descend to .. and ../...
  • --version — report installed context version.
  • --integrity — report mismatch between binary and expectations.
  • --global — assume given file present elsewhere.
  • --nofile — use dummy file as jobname.
  • --forceinput — use this file as input file instead of the given one.
  • --expert — show some more options.

🎀 OPTIONS: EXPERT 🎀

  • --touch — update context version number (also provide --expert, optionally provide --basepath).
  • --nostatistics — omit runtime statistics at the end of the run.
  • --profile — profile job (use: mtxrun --script profile --analyze).
  • --timing — generate timing and statistics overview.
  • --keeptuc — keep previous tuc files (jobname-tuc-[run].tmp).
  • --keeppdf — keep previous pdf files (jobname-pdf-keep.tmp).
  • --keeplog — keep previous log files (jobname-log-[run].tmp).
  • --notuc — don't write a tuc file.
  • --lmtx — force lmtx mode (when available).
  • --overloadmode=error|warning|0--6|255 — enable csname overload checking.
  • --extra=name — process extra (mtx-context-... in distribution).
  • --extras — show extras.
  • --ownerpassword — encrypt the (pdf) file using this master password.
  • --userpassword — use an additional password for opening the document.
  • --permissions — list of: print, modify, extract, add, fillin, assemble, quality.
  • --wtpdf — add an wtpdf conformance blob but best check first if it applies.

🌈 OPTIONS: SPECIAL 🌈

  • --luatex — process file with luatex instead of luametatex.
  • --pdftex — process file with texexec using pdftex.
  • --xetex — process file with texexec using xetex.
  • --mkii — process file with texexec.
  • --pipe — do not check for file and enter scroll mode (--dummyfile=whatever.tmp).
  • --parallel — process multiple files at the same time (you can specify a number of processes, default: 8).
  • --parallellist — process commands in this file (lines that start with 'context').
  • --sandbox — process file in a limited environment.
  • --addbinarypath — prepend the (found) binarypath to runners.

💖 AUTHOR 💖

More information about ConTeXt and the tools that come with it can be found at:

okay bestie, that's the whole mtx-context(1) page — it's giving version 1.05 and 01-01-2026 energy, and that's the cute source/version + date sign-off at the very end. periodt. 💅✨

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