1BINMAIL(1)                  General Commands Manual                 BINMAIL(1)
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NAME

6       binmail - send or receive mail among users
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SYNOPSIS

9       /bin/mail [ + ] [ -i ] [ person ] ...
10       /bin/mail [ + ] [ -i ] -f file
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DESCRIPTION

13       Note:  This is the old version 7 UNIX system mail program.  The default
14       mail command is described in Mail(1), and its binary is in  the  direc‐
15       tory /usr/ucb.
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17       mail  with  no  argument  prints  a user's mail, message-by-message, in
18       last-in, first-out order; the optional argument  +  displays  the  mail
19       messages  in  first-in,  first-out order.  For each message, it reads a
20       line from the standard input to direct disposition of the message.
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22       newline
23              Go on to next message.
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25       d      Delete message and go on to the next.
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27       p      Print message again.
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29       -      Go back to previous message.
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31       s [ file ] ...
32              Save the message in the named files (`mbox' default).
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34       w [ file ] ...
35              Save the message, without a header, in the named  files  (`mbox'
36              default).
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38       m [ person ] ...
39              Mail the message to the named persons (yourself is default).
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41       EOT (control-D)
42              Put unexamined mail back in the mailbox and stop.
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44       q      Same as EOT.
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46       !command
47              Escape to the Shell to do command.
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49       *      Print a command summary.
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51       An  interrupt  normally  terminates  the mail command; the mail file is
52       unchanged.  The optional argument  −i  tells  mail  to  continue  after
53       interrupts.
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55       When  persons are named, mail takes the standard input up to an end-of-
56       file (or a line with just `.')  and adds it  to  each  person's  `mail'
57       file.   The  message  is  preceded by the sender's name and a postmark.
58       Lines that look like postmarks are prepended with  `>'.   A  person  is
59       usually a user name recognized by login(1).  To denote a recipient on a
60       remote system, prefix person by the system name  and  exclamation  mark
61       (see uucp(1C)).
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63       The -f option causes the named file, for example, `mbox', to be printed
64       as if it were the mail file.
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66       When a user logs in he is informed of the presence of mail.
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FILES

69       /etc/passwd            to identify sender and locate persons
70       /usr/spool/mail/*      incoming mail for user *
71       mbox                   saved mail
72       /tmp/ma*               temp file
73       /usr/spool/mail/*.lock lock for mail directory
74       dead.letter            unmailable text
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SEE ALSO

77       Mail(1), write(1), uucp(1C), uux(1C), xsend(1), sendmail(8)
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BUGS

80       Race conditions sometimes result in a failure to remove a lock file.
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82       Normally anybody can read your mail, unless it is sent by xsend(1).  An
83       installation  can  overcome  this  by making mail a set-user-id command
84       that owns the mail directory.
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887th Edition                     April 29, 1985                      BINMAIL(1)
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