1muttrc(5)                        User Manuals                        muttrc(5)
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NAME

6       muttrc - Configuration file for the Mutt Mail User Agent
7

DESCRIPTION

9       A  mutt  configuration  file  consists of a series of “commands”.  Each
10       line of the file may contain one or more commands.  When multiple  com‐
11       mands are used, they must be separated by a semicolon (“;”).
12
13       The  hash  mark, or pound sign (“#”), is used as a “comment” character.
14       You can use it to annotate your initialization file. All text after the
15       comment character to the end of the line is ignored.
16
17       Single  quotes  (“'”)  and  double  quotes  (“"”)  can be used to quote
18       strings which contain spaces or other special characters.  The  differ‐
19       ence between the two types of quotes is similar to that of many popular
20       shell programs, namely that a single quote is used to specify a literal
21       string (one that is not interpreted for shell variables or quoting with
22       a backslash [see next  paragraph]),  while  double  quotes  indicate  a
23       string which should be evaluated.  For example, backticks are evaluated
24       inside of double quotes, but not single quotes.
25
26       \ quotes the next character, just as in shells such as  bash  and  zsh.
27       For  example,  if  want to put quotes (“"”) inside of a string, you can
28       use “\” to force the next character to be a literal instead  of  inter‐
29       preted character.
30
31\\”  means  to insert a literal “\” into the line.  “\n” and “\r” have
32       their usual C meanings of linefeed and carriage-return, respectively.
33
34       A “\” at the end of a line can be used to split commands over  multiple
35       lines,  provided  that  the  split points don't appear in the middle of
36       command names.
37
38       It is also possible to substitute the output of a Unix  command  in  an
39       initialization  file.  This is accomplished by enclosing the command in
40       backticks (`command`).
41
42       UNIX environment variables can be accessed like the way it is  done  in
43       shells  like  sh and bash: Prepend the name of the variable by a dollar
44       (“$”) sign.
45

COMMANDS

47       alias [-group name [...]] key address [, address [ ... ]]
48       unalias [ *  | key ]
49
50              alias defines an alias key for the given addresses. Each address
51              will be resolved into either an email address (user@example.com)
52              or a named email address (User Name <user@example.com>). The ad‐
53              dress  may  be  specified  in  either  format,  or in the format
54              “user@example.com (User Name)”.  unalias removes the alias  cor‐
55              responding  to  the given key or all aliases when “*” is used as
56              an argument. The optional -group argument to  alias  causes  the
57              aliased address(es) to be added to the named group.
58
59       group [-group name] [-rx EXPR [ ... ]] [-addr address [ ... ]]
60       ungroup [-group name ] [ * | [[-rx EXPR [ ... ]] [-addr address [ ... ]]]
61
62              group  is  used  to directly add either addresses or regular ex‐
63              pressions to the specified group or groups. The different  cate‐
64              gories  of  arguments  to the group command can be in any order.
65              The flags -rx and -addr specify what the following strings (that
66              cannot  begin  with a hyphen) should be interpreted as: either a
67              regular expression or an email address,  respectively.   ungroup
68              is  used  to  remove  addresses  or regular expressions from the
69              specified group or groups. The syntax is similar  to  the  group
70              command,  however the special character * can be used to empty a
71              group of all of its contents.
72
73              These address groups can  also  be  created  implicitly  by  the
74              alias,  lists,  subscribe  and alternates commands by specifying
75              the optional -group option.
76
77              Once defined, these address groups can be used  in  patterns  to
78              search for and limit the display to messages matching a group.
79
80       alternates [-group name] regexp [ regexp [ ... ]]
81       unalternates [ *  | regexp [ regexp [ ... ]] ]
82
83              alternates  is  used  to  inform  mutt about alternate addresses
84              where you receive mail; you can use regular expressions to spec‐
85              ify  alternate  addresses.   This affects mutt's idea about mes‐
86              sages from you, and messages addressed to you.  unalternates re‐
87              moves  a  regular  expression from the list of known alternates.
88              The -group flag causes all of the subsequent regular expressions
89              to be added to the named group.
90
91       alternative_order type[/subtype] [ ... ]
92       unalternative_order [ *  | type/subtype] [...]
93
94              alternative_order  command  permits  you  to  define an order of
95              preference which is used by mutt to determine which  part  of  a
96              multipart/alternative body to display.  A subtype of “*” matches
97              any subtype, as does an empty subtype.   unalternative_order re‐
98              moves  entries  from the ordered list or deletes the entire list
99              when “*” is used as an argument.
100
101       attachments [ + | - ]disposition mime-type
102       unattachments [ + | - ]disposition mime-type
103       attachments ?
104       unattachments *
105
106              attachments specifies what kinds of  attachments  are  used  for
107              Mutt's attachment counting and searching support.
108
109              disposition  is  the attachment's Content-Disposition type - ei‐
110              ther inline or attachment. You can abbreviate this to I or A.
111
112              The first part of a message or multipart group,  if  inline,  is
113              counted  separately  than  other inline parts. Specify root or R
114              for disposition to count these as  attachments.  If  this  first
115              part  is  of type multipart/alternative, note that its top-level
116              inline  parts  are  also  counted  via  root   disposition   (if
117              $count_alternatives is set).
118
119              disposition  is  prefixed by either a + symbol or a - symbol. If
120              it's a +, you're saying that you want to allow this  disposition
121              and  MIME  type to qualify. If it's a -, you're saying that this
122              disposition and MIME type is an exception to previous + rules.
123
124              mime-type is the MIME type of the attachment you want  the  com‐
125              mand to affect. A MIME type is always of the format major/minor,
126              where major describes the  broad  category  of  document  you're
127              looking  at,  and  minor describes the specific type within that
128              category. The major part of mime-type must be literal  text  (or
129              the  special  token  *), but the minor part may be a regular ex‐
130              pression. (Therefore, */.* matches any MIME type.)
131
132              The MIME types you give to the attachments directive are a  kind
133              of pattern. When you use the attachments directive, the patterns
134              you specify are added to a list. When you use unattachments, the
135              pattern  is removed from the list. The patterns are not expanded
136              and matched to specific MIME types at this time -  they're  just
137              text  in a list. They're only matched when actually evaluating a
138              message.
139
140       auto_view type[/subtype] [ ... ]
141       unauto_view type[/subtype] [ ... ]
142
143              This commands permits you to specify that mutt should  automati‐
144              cally convert the given MIME types to text/plain when displaying
145              messages.  For this to work, there must be  a  mailcap(5)  entry
146              for the given MIME type with the copiousoutput flag set.  A sub‐
147              type of “*” matches any subtype, as does an empty subtype.
148
149       mime_lookup type[/subtype] [ ... ]
150       unmime_lookup type[/subtype] [ ... ]
151
152              This command permits you to define a list of "data" MIME content
153              types  for which mutt will try to determine the actual file type
154              from the file name, and not use a mailcap(5) entry given for the
155              original  MIME  type.   For  instance,  you may add the applica‐
156              tion/octet-stream MIME type to this list.
157
158       bind map1,map2,... key function
159              This command binds the given key for the given map  or  maps  to
160              the given function. Multiple maps may be specified by separating
161              them with commas (no whitespace is allowed).
162
163              Valid maps are: generic, alias, attach, browser, editor,  index,
164              compose, pager, pgp, postpone, mix.
165
166              For  more  information on keys and functions, please consult the
167              Mutt Manual. Note that the function  name  is  to  be  specified
168              without angle brackets.
169
170       account-hook [!]regexp command
171              This hook is executed whenever you access a remote mailbox. Use‐
172              ful to adjust configuration settings to different  IMAP  or  POP
173              servers.
174
175       charset-hook alias charset
176              This command defines an alias for a character set.  This is use‐
177              ful to properly display messages which are tagged with a charac‐
178              ter set name not known to mutt.
179
180       iconv-hook charset local-charset
181              This command defines a system-specific name for a character set.
182              This is useful when your system's iconv(3)  implementation  does
183              not  understand  MIME  character set names (such as iso-8859-1),
184              but instead insists on being  fed  with  implementation-specific
185              character  set  names  (such as 8859-1).  In this specific case,
186              you'd put this into your configuration file:
187
188              iconv-hook iso-8859-1 8859-1
189
190       message-hook [!]pattern command
191              Before mutt displays (or formats for replying or  forwarding)  a
192              message which matches the given pattern (or, when it is preceded
193              by an exclamation mark, does not match the pattern),  the  given
194              command  is  executed.   When multiple message-hooks match, they
195              are  executed  in  the order in which they occur in the configu‐
196              ration file.
197
198       folder-hook [!]regexp command
199              When  mutt enters a folder which matches regexp (or, when regexp
200              is preceded by an exclamation mark, does not match regexp),  the
201              given command is executed.
202
203              When  several  folder-hooks  match a given mail folder, they are
204              executed in the order given in the configuration file.
205
206       macro map key sequence [ description ]
207              This command binds the given sequence of keys to the  given  key
208              in  the given map or maps.  For valid maps, see bind. To specify
209              multiple maps, put only a comma between the maps.
210
211       color object [ attribute ... ] foreground background [ regexp ]
212       color index [ attribute ... ] foreground background [ pattern ]
213       color compose composeobject [ attribute ... ] foreground background
214       uncolor index pattern [ pattern ... ]
215
216              If your terminal supports color, these commands can be  used  to
217              assign  foreground/background  combinations  to certain objects.
218              Valid objects are: attachment, body, bold, error, header, hdrde‐
219              fault,  index,  indicator,  markers,  message,  normal,  prompt,
220              quoted, quotedN, search, signature, status, tilde, tree,  under‐
221              line.   If the sidebar is enabled the following objects are also
222              valid:  sidebar_divider,   sidebar_flagged,   sidebar_highlight,
223              sidebar_indicator, sidebar_new, sidebar_spoolfile.  The body and
224              header objects allow you to restrict the colorization to a regu‐
225              lar  expression.  The index object permits you to select colored
226              messages by pattern.
227
228              Valid composeobjects  include  header,  security_encrypt,  secu‐
229              rity_sign, security_both, security_none.
230
231              Valid  colors include: white, black, green, magenta, blue, cyan,
232              yellow, red, default, colorN.
233
234              Valid attributes include: none, bold,  underline,  reverse,  and
235              standout.
236
237       mono object attribute [ regexp ]
238       mono index attribute [ pattern ]
239
240              For  terminals  which  don't support color, you can still assign
241              attributes to objects.
242
243       [un]ignore pattern [ pattern ... ]
244              The ignore command permits you to specify  header  fields  which
245              you  usually  don't wish to see.  Any header field whose tag be‐
246              gins with an “ignored” pattern will be ignored.
247
248              The unignore command permits you to define exceptions  from  the
249              above mentioned list of ignored headers.
250
251       lists [-group name] regexp [ regexp ... ]
252       unlists regexp [ regexp ... ]
253       subscribe [-group name] regexp [ regexp ... ]
254       unsubscribe regexp [ regexp ... ]
255
256              Mutt  maintains  two  lists  of mailing list address patterns, a
257              list of subscribed mailing lists, and a list  of  known  mailing
258              lists.   All  subscribed  mailing lists are known.  Patterns use
259              regular expressions.
260
261              The lists command adds a mailing list address  to  the  list  of
262              known mailing lists.  The unlists command removes a mailing list
263              from the lists of known and subscribed mailing lists.  The  sub‐
264              scribe  command  adds  a  mailing list to the lists of known and
265              subscribed mailing lists.  The unsubscribe  command  removes  it
266              from  the list of subscribed mailing lists. The -group flag adds
267              all of the subsequent regular expressions to the named group.
268
269       mbox-hook [!]regexp mailbox
270              When mutt changes to a mail folder which matches regexp, mailbox
271              will  be  used as the “mbox” folder, i.e., read messages will be
272              moved to that folder when the mail folder is left.
273
274              The first matching mbox-hook applies.
275
276       mailboxes [[-notify | -nonotify]
277                  [-poll | -nopoll]
278                  [[-label label] | -nolabel]
279                  filename] [ ... ]
280       unmailboxes [ * | filename ... ]
281
282              The mailboxes specifies folders which can receive mail and which
283              will be checked for new messages.  When changing folders, press‐
284              ing space will cycle through folders with new mail.  The unmail‐
285              boxes  command  is  used  to remove a file name from the list of
286              folders which can receive mail.  If "*" is specified as the file
287              name, the list is emptied.
288
289       my_hdr string
290       unmy_hdr field
291
292              Using  my_hdr, you can define headers which will be added to the
293              messages you compose.  unmy_hdr will remove the  given  user-de‐
294              fined headers.
295
296       hdr_order header1 header2 [ ... ]
297              With  this  command, you can specify an order in which mutt will
298              attempt to present headers to you when viewing messages.
299
300       save-hook [!]pattern filename
301              When a message matches pattern, the default file name when  sav‐
302              ing it will be the given filename.
303
304       fcc-hook [!]pattern filename
305              When  an outgoing message matches pattern, the default file name
306              for storing a copy (fcc) will be the given filename.
307
308       fcc-save-hook [!]pattern filename
309              This command is an abbreviation for identical fcc-hook and save-
310              hook commands.
311
312       send-hook [!]pattern command
313              When  composing a message matching pattern, command is executed.
314              When multiple send-hooks match, they are executed in  the  order
315              in which they occur in the configuration file.
316
317       send2-hook [!]pattern command
318              Whenever  a message matching pattern is changed (either by edit‐
319              ing it or by using the compose menu), command is executed.  When
320              multiple  send2-hooks  match,  they are executed in the order in
321              which they occur in the configuration file.   Possible  applica‐
322              tions  include  setting  the $sendmail variable when a message's
323              from header is changed.
324
325              send2-hook execution is not triggered by  use  of  enter-command
326              from the compose menu.
327
328       reply-hook [!]pattern command
329              When  replying  to  a  message matching pattern, command is exe‐
330              cuted.  When multiple reply-hooks match, they  are  executed  in
331              the order in which they occur in the configuration file, but all
332              reply-hooks are matched and executed before send-hooks,  regard‐
333              less of their order in the configuration file.
334
335       crypt-hook regexp key-id
336              The  crypt-hook command provides a method by which you can spec‐
337              ify the ID of the public key to be used when encrypting messages
338              to  a certain recipient.  The meaning of "key ID" is to be taken
339              broadly: This can be a different e-mail address, a numerical key
340              ID, or even just an arbitrary search string.  You may use multi‐
341              ple crypt-hooks with the same regexp; multiple  matching  crypt-
342              hooks result in the use of multiple key-ids for a recipient.
343
344       index-format-hook name [!]pattern format-string
345              This  command  is used to inject format strings dynamically into
346              $index_format based on pattern matching against the current mes‐
347              sage.
348
349              The  $index_format  expando  %@name@ specifies a placeholder for
350              the injection. Index-format-hooks with the same name are matched
351              using  pattern  against the current message. Matching is done in
352              the order specified in the .muttrc, with the first  match  being
353              used.  The  hook's  format-string is then substituted and evalu‐
354              ated.
355
356       open-hook regexp "command"
357       close-hook regexp "command"
358       append-hook regexp "command"
359
360              These commands provide a way to handle compressed  folders.  The
361              given  regexp  specifies  which  folders are taken as compressed
362              (e.g.  "\\.gz$"). The commands tell Mutt  how  to  uncompress  a
363              folder  (open-hook),  compress a folder (close-hook) or append a
364              compressed mail to a compressed folder (append-hook).  The  com‐
365              mand  string  is the printf(3) like format string, and it should
366              accept two parameters: %f, which  is  replaced  with  the  (com‐
367              pressed)  folder name, and %t which is replaced with the name of
368              the temporary folder to which to write.
369
370       push string
371       exec function [ ... ]
372
373              push adds the named string to the keyboard buffer.  “exec  func‐
374              tion” is equivalent to “push <function>”.
375
376       run MuttLisp
377
378              The  run  command evaluates the MuttLisp argument. The output of
379              the MuttLisp is then executed as a Mutt command, as if  it  were
380              typed in the muttrc instead.
381
382       score pattern value
383       unscore [ * | pattern ... ]
384
385              The  score  commands  adds value to a message's score if pattern
386              matches it.  The unscore command removes score entries from  the
387              list.
388
389       set [no|inv|&|?]variable[=value] [ ... ]
390       toggle variable [ ... ]
391       unset variable [ ... ]
392       reset variable [ ... ]
393
394              These  commands  are  used  to  set and manipulate configuration
395              variables.
396
397              Mutt knows four  basic  types  of  variables:  boolean,  number,
398              string and quadoption.  Boolean variables can be set (true), un‐
399              set (false), or toggled. Number variables can be assigned a pos‐
400              itive integer value.
401
402              String  variables consist of any number of printable characters.
403              Strings must be enclosed in quotes if  they  contain  spaces  or
404              tabs.   You  may also use the “C” escape sequences \n and \t for
405              newline and tab, respectively.
406
407              Quadoption variables are used to control whether or  not  to  be
408              prompted for certain actions, or to specify a default action.  A
409              value of yes will cause the action to be carried  out  automati‐
410              cally  as if you had answered yes to the question.  Similarly, a
411              value of no will cause the action to be carried out  as  if  you
412              had answered “no.” A value of ask-yes will cause a prompt with a
413              default answer of “yes” and ask-no will provide a default answer
414              of “no.”
415
416              The reset command resets all given variables to the compile time
417              defaults.  If you reset the special variable all, all  variables
418              will reset to their compile time defaults.
419
420       setenv [?]variable [ value ]
421       unsetenv variable
422
423              These  alter  the  environment  that Mutt passes on to its child
424              processes.  You can also query  current  environment  values  by
425              prefixing a “?” character.
426
427       sidebar_whitelist mailbox [ mailbox ...]
428       unsidebar_whitelist [ * | mailbox ... ]
429
430              sidebar_whitelist  specifies  mailboxes that will always be dis‐
431              played in the sidebar, even if $sidebar_new_mail_only is set and
432              the mailbox does not contain new mail.
433
434              unsidebar_whitelist is used to remove a mailbox from the list of
435              whitelisted mailboxes. Use unsidebar_whitelist * to  remove  all
436              mailboxes.
437
438       source filename
439              The given file will be evaluated as a configuration file.
440
441       spam pattern format
442       nospam pattern
443
444              These commands define spam-detection patterns from external spam
445              filters, so that mutt can sort,  limit,  and  search  on  ``spam
446              tags'' or ``spam attributes'', or display them in the index. See
447              the Mutt manual for details.
448
449       subjectrx pattern replacement
450       unsubjectrx [ * | pattern ]
451
452              subjectrx specifies a regular expression pattern which,  if  de‐
453              tected  in  a message subject, causes the subject to be replaced
454              with the replacement value. The replacement is subject  to  sub‐
455              stitutions  in  the same way as for the spam command: %L for the
456              text to the left of the match, %R for text to the right  of  the
457              match,  and %1 for the first subgroup in the match (etc). If you
458              simply want to erase the match, set it to “%L%R”. Any number  of
459              subjectrx commands may coexist.
460
461              Note  this  well: the replacement value replaces the entire sub‐
462              ject, not just the match!
463
464              unsubjectrx removes a  given  subjectrx  from  the  substitution
465              list. If * is used as the pattern, all substitutions will be re‐
466              moved.
467
468       unhook [ *  | hook-type ]
469              This command will remove all hooks of a given type, or all hooks
470              when  “*”  is  used as an argument.  hook-type can be any of the
471              -hook commands documented above.
472
473       mailto_allow header-field [ ... ]
474       unmailto_allow [ * | header-field ... ]
475
476              These commands allow the user to  modify  the  list  of  allowed
477              header fields in a mailto: URL that Mutt will include in the the
478              generated message.  By default the list  contains  only  subject
479              and body, as specified by RFC2368.
480
481       echo message
482              Prints  message  to  the message window. After printing the mes‐
483              sage, echo will pause for the number  of  seconds  specified  by
484              $sleep_time.
485
486       cd directory
487              Changes the current working directory.
488

PATTERNS

490       In various places with mutt, including some of the above mentioned hook
491       commands, you can specify patterns to match messages.
492
493   Constructing Patterns
494       A simple pattern consists of a modifier of the form “~character”,  pos‐
495       sibly  followed  by a parameter against which mutt is supposed to match
496       the object specified by this modifier.  For some characters, the ~  may
497       be  replaced  by  another character to alter the behavior of the match.
498       These are described in the list of modifiers, below.
499
500       With some of these modifiers, the object to be matched consists of sev‐
501       eral  e-mail  addresses.   In  these cases, the object is matched if at
502       least one of these e-mail addresses matches.  You  can  prepend  a  hat
503       (“^”)  character  to such a pattern to indicate that all addresses must
504       match in order to match the object.
505
506       You can construct complex patterns by combining  simple  patterns  with
507       logical  operators.   Logical  AND is specified by simply concatenating
508       two simple patterns, for instance “~C mutt-dev ~s bug”.  Logical OR  is
509       specified  by  inserting a vertical bar (“|”) between two patterns, for
510       instance “~C mutt-dev | ~s bug”.  Additionally, you can negate  a  pat‐
511       tern  by  prepending a bang (“!”) character.  For logical grouping, use
512       braces (“()”). Example: “!(~t mutt|~c mutt) ~f elkins”.
513
514   Simple Patterns
515       Mutt understands the following simple patterns:
516
517       ~A          all messages
518       ~b EXPR     messages which contain EXPR in the message body.
519       =b STRING   If IMAP is enabled, like ~b but searches for STRING on  the
520                   server,  rather than downloading each message and searching
521                   it locally.
522       ~B EXPR     messages which contain EXPR in the whole message.
523       =B STRING   If IMAP is enabled, like ~B but searches for STRING on  the
524                   server,  rather than downloading each message and searching
525                   it locally.
526       ~c EXPR     messages carbon-copied to EXPR
527       %c GROUP    messages carbon-copied to any member of GROUP
528       ~C EXPR     messages either to: or cc: EXPR
529       %C GROUP    messages either to: or cc: to any member of GROUP
530       ~d MIN-MAX  messages with “date-sent” in a Date range
531       ~D          deleted messages
532       ~e EXPR     messages which contain EXPR in the “Sender” field
533       %e GROUP    messages which contain a member of GROUP  in  the  “Sender”
534                   field
535       ~E          expired messages
536       ~f EXPR     messages originating from EXPR
537       %f GROUP    messages originating from any member of GROUP
538       ~F          flagged messages
539       ~g          PGP signed messages
540       ~G          PGP encrypted messages
541       ~h EXPR     messages which contain EXPR in the message header
542       =h STRING   If  IMAP is enabled, like ~h but searches for STRING on the
543                   server, rather than downloading each message and  searching
544                   it locally.  STRING must be of the form “header: substring”
545       ~H EXPR     messages with spam tags matching EXPR
546       ~i EXPR     messages which match EXPR in the “Message-ID” field
547       ~k          messages containing PGP key material
548       ~l          messages  addressed to a known mailing list (defined by ei‐
549                   ther subscribe or list)
550       ~L EXPR     messages either originated or received by EXPR
551       %L GROUP    messages either originated or received  by  any  member  of
552                   GROUP
553       ~m MIN-MAX  message in the range MIN to MAX
554       ~M EXPR     messages which contain a mime Content-Type matching EXPR
555       ~n MIN-MAX  messages with a score in the range MIN to MAX
556       ~N          new messages
557       ~O          old messages
558       ~p          messages  addressed to you (consults $from, alternates, and
559                   local account/hostname information)
560       ~P          messages from you (consults $from,  alternates,  and  local
561                   account/hostname information)
562       ~Q          messages which have been replied to
563       ~r MIN-MAX  messages with “date-received” in a Date range
564       ~R          read messages
565       ~s EXPR     messages having EXPR in the “Subject” field.
566       ~S          superseded messages
567       ~t EXPR     messages addressed to EXPR
568       ~T          tagged messages
569       ~u          messages addressed to a subscribed mailing list (defined by
570                   subscribe commands)
571       ~U          unread messages
572       ~v          message is part of a collapsed thread.
573       ~V          cryptographically verified messages
574       ~x EXPR     messages which contain EXPR in the “References” or  “In-Re‐
575                   ply-To” field
576       ~X MIN-MAX  messages with MIN - MAX attachments
577       ~y EXPR     messages which contain EXPR in the “X-Label” field
578       ~z MIN-MAX  messages with a size in the range MIN to MAX
579       ~=          duplicated messages (see $duplicate_threads)
580       ~$          unreferenced message (requires threaded view)
581       ~(PATTERN)  messages  in threads containing messages matching a certain
582                   pattern, e.g. all threads  containing  messages  from  you:
583                   ~(~P)
584       ~<(PATTERN) messages  whose  immediate  parent  matches  PATTERN,  e.g.
585                   replies to your messages: ~<(~P)
586       ~>(PATTERN) messages having an immediate child matching  PATTERN,  e.g.
587                   messages you replied to: ~>(~P)
588
589       In the above, EXPR is a regular expression.
590
591       With  the  ~d,  ~m,  ~n, ~r, ~X, and ~z modifiers, you can also specify
592       ranges in the forms <MAX, >MIN, MIN-, and -MAX.
593
594       With the ~z modifier, the suffixes “K” and “M” are allowed  to  specify
595       kilobyte and megabyte respectively.
596
597       The  ~b,  ~B, ~h, ~M, and ~X modifiers require reading each message in,
598       which can be much slower.
599
600       You can force Mutt to treat EXPR as a simple string instead of a  regu‐
601       lar expression by using = instead of ~ in the pattern name.
602
603   Matching dates
604       The ~d and ~r modifiers are used to match date ranges, which are inter‐
605       preted to be given in your local time zone.
606
607       A date is of the form DD[/MM[/[cc]YY]], that is, a two-digit date,  op‐
608       tionally  followed  by a two-digit month, optionally followed by a year
609       specifications.  Omitted fields default to the current month and year.
610
611       Mutt understands either two or four digit  year  specifications.   When
612       given  a two-digit year, mutt will interpret values less than 70 as ly‐
613       ing in the 21st century (i.e., “38” means 2038 and not 1938,  and  “00”
614       is  interpreted as 2000), and values greater than or equal to 70 as ly‐
615       ing in the 20th century.
616
617       Note that this behavior is Y2K compliant, but that  mutt  does  have  a
618       Y2.07K problem.
619
620       Alternatively, you may use YYYYMMDD to specify a date.
621
622       If  a  date  range  consists of a single date, the modifier in question
623       will match that precise date.  If the date range  consists  of  a  dash
624       (“-”), followed by a date, this range will match any date before and up
625       to the date given.  Similarly, a date followed by a  dash  matches  the
626       date  given  and  any  later  point of time.  Two dates, separated by a
627       dash, match any date which lies in the given range of time.
628
629       You can also modify any absolute date by giving an error range.  An er‐
630       ror range consists of one of the characters +, -, *, followed by a pos‐
631       itive number, followed by one of the unit characters y,  m,  w,  or  d,
632       specifying  a  unit  of years, months, weeks, or days.  + increases the
633       maximum date matched by the given interval of  time,  -  decreases  the
634       minimum date matched by the given interval of time, and * increases the
635       maximum date and decreases the minimum date matched by the given inter‐
636       val  of time.  It is possible to give multiple error margins, which cu‐
637       mulate.  Example: 1/1/2001-1w+2w*3d
638
639       You can also specify offsets relative to the current date.   An  offset
640       is  specified  as one of the characters <, >, =, followed by a positive
641       number, followed by one of the unit characters y, m, w, d, H, M, or  S.
642       >  matches  dates which are older than the specified amount of time, an
643       offset which begins with the character < matches dates which  are  more
644       recent  than  the  specified amount of time, and an offset which begins
645       with the character = matches points of time  which  are  precisely  the
646       given amount of time ago.
647

CONFIGURATION VARIABLES

649       abort_noattach
650              Type: quadoption
651              Default: no
652
653              When  the body of the message matches $abort_noattach_regexp and
654              there are no attachments, this quadoption  controls  whether  to
655              abort sending the message.
656
657
658
659       abort_noattach_regexp
660              Type: regular expression
661              Default: “attach”
662
663              Specifies  a regular expression to match against the body of the
664              message, to determine if an attachment was mentioned but mistak‐
665              enly  forgotten.   If  it  matches, $abort_noattach will be con‐
666              sulted to determine if message sending will be aborted.
667
668              Like other regular expressions in Mutt, the search is case  sen‐
669              sitive  if  the pattern contains at least one upper case letter,
670              and case insensitive otherwise.
671
672
673
674       abort_nosubject
675              Type: quadoption
676              Default: ask-yes
677
678              If set to yes, when composing messages and no subject  is  given
679              at  the  subject prompt, composition will be aborted.  If set to
680              no, composing messages with no  subject  given  at  the  subject
681              prompt will never be aborted.
682
683
684
685       abort_unmodified
686              Type: quadoption
687              Default: yes
688
689              If  set to yes, composition will automatically abort after edit‐
690              ing the message body if no changes are made to  the  file  (this
691              check  only happens after the first edit of the file).  When set
692              to no, composition will never be aborted.
693
694
695
696       alias_file
697              Type: path
698              Default: “~/.muttrc”
699
700              The default file in which to save aliases created by  the  <cre‐
701              ate-alias>  function.  Entries added to this file are encoded in
702              the character set specified by $config_charset if it is  set  or
703              the current character set otherwise.
704
705              Note: Mutt will not automatically source this file; you must ex‐
706              plicitly use the “source” command for it to be executed in  case
707              this option points to a dedicated alias file.
708
709              The  default  for this option is the currently used muttrc file,
710              or “~/.muttrc” if no user muttrc was found.
711
712
713
714       alias_format
715              Type: string
716              Default: “%4n %2f %t %-10a   %r”
717
718              Specifies the format of the data displayed for the “alias” menu.
719              The following printf(3)-style sequences are available:
720              %a     alias name
721              %f     flags - currently, a “d” for an alias marked for deletion
722              %n     index number
723              %r     address which alias expands to
724              %t     character  which indicates if the alias is tagged for in‐
725                     clusion
726
727
728       allow_8bit
729              Type: boolean
730              Default: yes
731
732              Controls whether 8-bit data is converted to 7-bit  using  either
733              Quoted- Printable or Base64 encoding when sending mail.
734
735
736
737       allow_ansi
738              Type: boolean
739              Default: no
740
741              Controls whether ANSI color codes in messages (and color tags in
742              rich text messages) are to be interpreted.  Messages  containing
743              these codes are rare, but if this option is set, their text will
744              be colored accordingly. Note that this may override  your  color
745              choices,  and  even  present a security problem, since a message
746              could include a line like
747
748
749              [-- PGP output follows ...
750
751
752              and give it the same color as your attachment  color  (see  also
753              $crypt_timestamp).
754
755
756
757       arrow_cursor
758              Type: boolean
759              Default: no
760
761              When  set,  an arrow (“->”) will be used to indicate the current
762              entry in menus instead of highlighting the whole line.  On  slow
763              network  or  modem  links this will make response faster because
764              there is less that has to be redrawn on the screen  when  moving
765              to the next or previous entries in the menu.
766
767
768
769       ascii_chars
770              Type: boolean
771              Default: no
772
773              If  set,  Mutt  will  use plain ASCII characters when displaying
774              thread and attachment trees, instead of the default ACS  charac‐
775              ters.
776
777
778
779       askbcc
780              Type: boolean
781              Default: no
782
783              If set, Mutt will prompt you for blind-carbon-copy (Bcc) recipi‐
784              ents before editing an outgoing message.
785
786
787
788       askcc
789              Type: boolean
790              Default: no
791
792              If set, Mutt will prompt you for carbon-copy (Cc) recipients be‐
793              fore editing the body of an outgoing message.
794
795
796
797       assumed_charset
798              Type: string
799              Default: “”
800
801              This  variable  is  a colon-separated list of character encoding
802              schemes for  messages  without  character  encoding  indication.
803              Header  field  values and message body content without character
804              encoding indication would be assumed that they  are  written  in
805              one of this list.  By default, all the header fields and message
806              body without  any  charset  indication  are  assumed  to  be  in
807              “us-ascii”.
808
809              For example, Japanese users might prefer this:
810
811
812              set assumed_charset=”iso-2022-jp:euc-jp:shift_jis:utf-8”
813
814
815              However, only the first content is valid for the message body.
816
817
818
819       attach_charset
820              Type: string
821              Default: “”
822
823              This  variable  is  a colon-separated list of character encoding
824              schemes for text file attachments. Mutt  uses  this  setting  to
825              guess which encoding files being attached are encoded in to con‐
826              vert them to a proper character set given in $send_charset.
827
828              If unset, the value of $charset will be used instead.  For exam‐
829              ple,  the  following  configuration would work for Japanese text
830              handling:
831
832
833              set attach_charset=”iso-2022-jp:euc-jp:shift_jis:utf-8”
834
835
836              Note: for Japanese users, “iso-2022-*” must be put at  the  head
837              of the value as shown above if included.
838
839
840
841       attach_format
842              Type: string
843              Default: “%u%D%I %t%4n %T%.40d%> [%.7m/%.10M, %.6e%?C?, %C?, %s] ”
844
845              This  variable  describes  the  format of the “attachment” menu.
846              The following printf(3)-style sequences are understood:
847              %C     charset
848              %c     requires charset conversion (“n” or “c”)
849              %D     deleted flag
850              %d     description (if none, falls back to %F)
851              %e     MIME content-transfer-encoding
852              %F     filename in content-disposition header  (if  none,  falls
853                     back to %f)
854              %f     filename
855              %I     disposition (“I” for inline, “A” for attachment)
856              %m     major MIME type
857              %M     MIME subtype
858              %n     attachment number
859              %Q     “Q”, if MIME part qualifies for attachment counting
860              %s     size (see formatstrings-size)
861              %t     tagged flag
862              %T     graphic tree characters
863              %u     unlink (=to delete) flag
864              %X     number  of  qualifying  MIME  parts  in this part and its
865                     children (please see the “attachments” section for possi‐
866                     ble speed effects)
867              %>X    right justify the rest of the string and pad with charac‐
868                     ter “X”
869              %|X    pad to the end of the line with character “X”
870              %*X    soft-fill with character “X” as pad
871
872              For an explanation of “soft-fill”, see the  $index_format  docu‐
873              mentation.
874
875
876
877       attach_save_charset_convert
878              Type: quadoption
879              Default: ask-yes
880
881              When  saving  received  text-type  attachments,  this quadoption
882              prompts to convert the character set if the encoding of the  at‐
883              tachment (or $assumed_charset if none is specified) differs from
884              charset.
885
886
887
888       attach_save_dir
889              Type: path
890              Default: “”
891
892              The default directory to save attachments from the  “attachment”
893              menu.   If  it doesn't exist, Mutt will prompt to create the di‐
894              rectory before saving.
895
896              If the path is invalid (e.g.  not  a  directory,  or  cannot  be
897              chdir'ed  to),  Mutt  will fall back to using the current direc‐
898              tory.
899
900
901
902       attach_sep
903              Type: string
904              Default: “\n”
905
906              The separator to add between attachments when operating (saving,
907              printing, piping, etc) on a list of tagged attachments.
908
909
910
911       attach_split
912              Type: boolean
913              Default: yes
914
915              If  this  variable  is  unset, when operating (saving, printing,
916              piping, etc) on a list of tagged attachments, Mutt will concate‐
917              nate  the  attachments  and will operate on them as a single at‐
918              tachment. The $attach_sep separator is added after each  attach‐
919              ment. When set, Mutt will operate on the attachments one by one.
920
921
922
923       attribution
924              Type: string (localized)
925              Default: “On %d, %n wrote:”
926
927              This  is  the  string that will precede a message which has been
928              included  in  a  reply.   For  a   full   listing   of   defined
929              printf(3)-like sequences see the section on $index_format.
930
931
932
933       attribution_locale
934              Type: string
935              Default: “”
936
937              The  locale  used by strftime(3) to format dates in the attribu‐
938              tion string.  Legal values are the strings your  system  accepts
939              for the locale environment variable $LC_TIME.
940
941              This variable is to allow the attribution date format to be cus‐
942              tomized by recipient or folder using hooks.   By  default,  Mutt
943              will  use  your  locale  environment, so there is no need to set
944              this except to override that default.
945
946
947
948       auto_subscribe
949              Type: boolean
950              Default: no
951
952              When set, Mutt assumes the presence of a List-Post header  means
953              the  recipient  is  subscribed  to the list.  Unless the mailing
954              list is in the “unsubscribe” or “unlist” lists, it will be added
955              to  the  “subscribe”  list.   Parsing  and checking these things
956              slows header reading down, so this option  is  disabled  by  de‐
957              fault.
958
959
960
961       auto_tag
962              Type: boolean
963              Default: no
964
965              When  set,  functions  in  the index menu which affect a message
966              will be applied to all tagged messages (if there are any).  When
967              unset,  you  must  first use the <tag-prefix> function (bound to
968              “;” by default) to make the next function apply  to  all  tagged
969              messages.
970
971
972
973       autocrypt
974              Type: boolean
975              Default: no
976
977              When  set,  enables autocrypt, which provides passive encryption
978              protection with keys exchanged via headers.  See  “autocryptdoc”
979              for more details.  (Autocrypt only)
980
981
982
983       autocrypt_acct_format
984              Type: string
985              Default: “%4n %-30a %20p %10s”
986
987              This  variable  describes  the format of the “autocrypt account”
988              menu.  The following printf(3)-style sequences are understood
989              %a     email address
990              %k     gpg keyid
991              %n     current entry number
992              %p     prefer-encrypt flag
993              %s     status flag (active/inactive)
994
995              (Autocrypt only)
996
997
998
999       autocrypt_dir
1000              Type: path
1001              Default: “~/.mutt/autocrypt”
1002
1003              This variable sets where autocrypt files are  stored,  including
1004              the  GPG  keyring  and  sqlite database.  See “autocryptdoc” for
1005              more details.  (Autocrypt only)
1006
1007
1008
1009       autocrypt_reply
1010              Type: boolean
1011              Default: yes
1012
1013              When set, replying to an autocrypt email  automatically  enables
1014              autocrypt  in  the  reply.  You may want to unset this if you're
1015              using the same key for autocrypt as normal web-of-trust, so that
1016              autocrypt isn't forced on for all encrypted replies.  (Autocrypt
1017              only)
1018
1019
1020
1021       autoedit
1022              Type: boolean
1023              Default: no
1024
1025              When set along with $edit_headers, Mutt will  skip  the  initial
1026              send-menu  (prompting  for subject and recipients) and allow you
1027              to immediately begin editing the  body  of  your  message.   The
1028              send-menu  may  still be accessed once you have finished editing
1029              the body of your message.
1030
1031              Note: when this option is set, you cannot  use  send-hooks  that
1032              depend  on  the recipients when composing a new (non-reply) mes‐
1033              sage, as the initial list of recipients is empty.
1034
1035              Also see $fast_reply.
1036
1037
1038
1039       background_edit
1040              Type: boolean
1041              Default: no
1042
1043              When set, Mutt will run $editor in the background during message
1044              composition.  A landing page will display, waiting for the $edi‐
1045              tor to exit.  The landing page may be exited,  allowing  perusal
1046              of  the  mailbox,  or  even  for  other messages to be composed.
1047              Backgrounded  sessions  may  be  returned  to  via  the   <back‐
1048              ground-compose-menu> function.
1049
1050              For  background editing to work properly, $editor must be set to
1051              an editor that does not try to use the Mutt terminal: for  exam‐
1052              ple  a graphical editor, or a script launching (and waiting for)
1053              the editor in another Gnu Screen window.
1054
1055              For more details, see “bgedit” (”Background Editing” in the man‐
1056              ual).
1057
1058
1059
1060       background_confirm_quit
1061              Type: boolean
1062              Default: yes
1063
1064              When set, if there are any background edit sessions, you will be
1065              prompted to confirm exiting  Mutt,  in  addition  to  the  $quit
1066              prompt.
1067
1068
1069
1070       background_format
1071              Type: string
1072              Default: “%10S %7p %s”
1073
1074              This  variable  describes the format of the “background compose”
1075              menu.  The following printf(3)-style sequences are understood:
1076              %i     parent message id (for replies and forwarded messages)
1077              %n     the running number on the menu
1078              %p     pid of the $editor process
1079              %r     comma separated list of “To:” recipients
1080              %R     comma separated list of “Cc:” recipients
1081              %s     subject of the message
1082              %S     status of the $editor process: running/finished
1083
1084
1085       beep
1086              Type: boolean
1087              Default: yes
1088
1089              When this variable is set, mutt will beep when an error occurs.
1090
1091
1092
1093       beep_new
1094              Type: boolean
1095              Default: no
1096
1097              When this variable is set, mutt will beep whenever it  prints  a
1098              message  notifying  you of new mail.  This is independent of the
1099              setting of the $beep variable.
1100
1101
1102
1103       bounce
1104              Type: quadoption
1105              Default: ask-yes
1106
1107              Controls whether you will be asked to confirm bouncing messages.
1108              If  set  to yes you don't get asked if you want to bounce a mes‐
1109              sage. Setting this variable to no is not generally  useful,  and
1110              thus not recommended, because you are unable to bounce messages.
1111
1112
1113
1114       bounce_delivered
1115              Type: boolean
1116              Default: yes
1117
1118              When  this variable is set, mutt will include Delivered-To head‐
1119              ers when bouncing messages.  Postfix users  may  wish  to  unset
1120              this variable.
1121
1122
1123
1124       braille_friendly
1125              Type: boolean
1126              Default: no
1127
1128              When this variable is set, mutt will place the cursor at the be‐
1129              ginning of the current line in menus, even when the  $arrow_cur‐
1130              sor  variable is unset, making it easier for blind persons using
1131              Braille displays to follow these menus.  The option is unset  by
1132              default  because  many  visual terminals don't permit making the
1133              cursor invisible.
1134
1135
1136
1137       browser_abbreviate_mailboxes
1138              Type: boolean
1139              Default: yes
1140
1141              When this variable is set, mutt will abbreviate mailbox names in
1142              the browser mailbox list, using '~' and '=' shortcuts.
1143
1144              The  default  ”alpha” setting of $sort_browser uses locale-based
1145              sorting (using  strcoll(3)),  which  ignores  some  punctuation.
1146              This  can  lead  to some situations where the order doesn't make
1147              intuitive sense.  In those cases, it may be desirable  to  unset
1148              this variable.
1149
1150
1151
1152       browser_sticky_cursor
1153              Type: boolean
1154              Default: yes
1155
1156              When  this variable is set, the browser will attempt to keep the
1157              cursor on the same mailbox when  performing  various  functions.
1158              These  include moving up a directory, toggling between mailboxes
1159              and directory listing,  creating/renaming  a  mailbox,  toggling
1160              subscribed mailboxes, and entering a new mask.
1161
1162
1163
1164       certificate_file
1165              Type: path
1166              Default: “~/.mutt_certificates”
1167
1168              This  variable  specifies  the  file  where the certificates you
1169              trust are saved. When an unknown certificate is encountered, you
1170              are  asked  if  you accept it or not. If you accept it, the cer‐
1171              tificate can also be saved in this file and further  connections
1172              are automatically accepted.
1173
1174              You  can  also  manually  add  CA certificates in this file. Any
1175              server certificate that is signed with one of these CA  certifi‐
1176              cates is also automatically accepted.
1177
1178              Example:
1179
1180
1181              set certificate_file=~/.mutt/certificates
1182
1183
1184              (OpenSSL and GnuTLS only)
1185
1186
1187
1188       change_folder_next
1189              Type: boolean
1190              Default: no
1191
1192              When  this variable is set, the <change-folder> function mailbox
1193              suggestion will start at the next  folder  in  your  “mailboxes”
1194              list, instead of starting at the first folder in the list.
1195
1196
1197
1198       charset
1199              Type: string
1200              Default: “”
1201
1202              Character  set  your  terminal uses to display and enter textual
1203              data.  It is also the fallback for $send_charset.
1204
1205              Upon startup Mutt tries to derive this  value  from  environment
1206              variables such as $LC_CTYPE or $LANG.
1207
1208              Note: It should only be set in case Mutt isn't able to determine
1209              the character set used correctly.
1210
1211
1212
1213       check_mbox_size
1214              Type: boolean
1215              Default: no
1216
1217              When this variable is set, mutt will use file size attribute in‐
1218              stead of access time when checking for new mail in mbox and mmdf
1219              folders.
1220
1221              This variable is unset by default and  should  only  be  enabled
1222              when  new mail detection for these folder types is unreliable or
1223              doesn't work.
1224
1225              Note that enabling this variable should happen before any “mail‐
1226              boxes” directives occur in configuration files regarding mbox or
1227              mmdf folders because mutt needs to  determine  the  initial  new
1228              mail  status of such a mailbox by performing a fast mailbox scan
1229              when it is defined.  Afterwards the new mail status  is  tracked
1230              by file size changes.
1231
1232
1233
1234       check_new
1235              Type: boolean
1236              Default: yes
1237
1238              Note: this option only affects maildir and MH style mailboxes.
1239
1240              When set, Mutt will check for new mail delivered while the mail‐
1241              box is open.  Especially with MH mailboxes, this  operation  can
1242              take  quite  some  time since it involves scanning the directory
1243              and checking each file to see if it has already been looked  at.
1244              If  this  variable  is unset, no check for new mail is performed
1245              while the mailbox is open.
1246
1247
1248
1249       collapse_unread
1250              Type: boolean
1251              Default: yes
1252
1253              When unset, Mutt will not collapse a thread if it  contains  any
1254              unread messages.
1255
1256
1257
1258       compose_confirm_detach_first
1259              Type: boolean
1260              Default: yes
1261
1262              When  set,  Mutt will prompt for confirmation when trying to use
1263              <detach-file> on the first entry in the compose menu.   This  is
1264              to  help prevent irreversible loss of the typed message by acci‐
1265              dentally hitting 'D' in the menu.
1266
1267              Note: Mutt only prompts for the first entry.   It  doesn't  keep
1268              track  of  which message is the typed message if the entries are
1269              reordered, or if the first entry was already deleted.
1270
1271
1272
1273       compose_format
1274              Type: string (localized)
1275              Default: “-- Mutt: Compose  [Approx. msg size: %l   Atts: %a]%>-”
1276
1277              Controls the format of the status line displayed  in  the  “com‐
1278              pose”  menu.   This string is similar to $status_format, but has
1279              its own set of printf(3)-like sequences:
1280              %a     total number of attachments
1281              %h     local hostname
1282              %l     approximate size (in bytes) of the current  message  (see
1283                     formatstrings-size)
1284              %v     Mutt version string
1285
1286              See  the  text describing the $status_format option for more in‐
1287              formation on how to set $compose_format.
1288
1289
1290
1291       config_charset
1292              Type: string
1293              Default: “”
1294
1295              When defined, Mutt will recode commands in rc  files  from  this
1296              encoding  to  the current character set as specified by $charset
1297              and aliases written to $alias_file from  the  current  character
1298              set.
1299
1300              Please note that if setting $charset it must be done before set‐
1301              ting $config_charset.
1302
1303              Recoding should be avoided as it may render unconvertable  char‐
1304              acters  as  question  marks which can lead to undesired side ef‐
1305              fects (for example in regular expressions).
1306
1307
1308
1309       confirmappend
1310              Type: boolean
1311              Default: yes
1312
1313              When set, Mutt will prompt for confirmation when appending  mes‐
1314              sages to an existing mailbox.
1315
1316
1317
1318       confirmcreate
1319              Type: boolean
1320              Default: yes
1321
1322              When set, Mutt will prompt for confirmation when saving messages
1323              to a mailbox which does not yet exist before creating it.
1324
1325
1326
1327       connect_timeout
1328              Type: number
1329              Default: 30
1330
1331              Causes Mutt to timeout a network connection (for  IMAP,  POP  or
1332              SMTP)  after  this many seconds if the connection is not able to
1333              be established.  A negative value causes Mutt  to  wait  indefi‐
1334              nitely for the connection attempt to succeed.
1335
1336
1337
1338       content_type
1339              Type: string
1340              Default: “text/plain”
1341
1342              Sets  the  default  Content-Type  for the body of newly composed
1343              messages.
1344
1345
1346
1347       copy
1348              Type: quadoption
1349              Default: yes
1350
1351              This variable controls whether or not copies  of  your  outgoing
1352              messages  will be saved for later references.  Also see $record,
1353              $save_name, $force_name and “fcc-hook”.
1354
1355
1356
1357       copy_decode_weed
1358              Type: boolean
1359              Default: no
1360
1361              Controls whether Mutt will weed headers when invoking  the  <de‐
1362              code-copy> or <decode-save> functions.
1363
1364
1365
1366       count_alternatives
1367              Type: boolean
1368              Default: no
1369
1370              When  set, Mutt will recurse inside multipart/alternatives while
1371              performing attachment searching and counting (see attachments).
1372
1373              Traditionally, multipart/alternative parts  have  simply  repre‐
1374              sented  different  encodings  of  the main content of the email.
1375              Unfortunately, some mail clients have started to place email at‐
1376              tachments  inside  one of alternatives.  Setting this will allow
1377              Mutt to find and count matching attachments  hidden  there,  and
1378              include them in the index via %X or through ~X pattern matching.
1379
1380
1381
1382       cursor_overlay
1383              Type: boolean
1384              Default: no
1385
1386              When  set,  Mutt will overlay the indicator, tree, sidebar_high‐
1387              light, and sidebar_indicator colors onto the currently  selected
1388              line.  This will allow default colors in those to be overridden,
1389              and for attributes to be merged between the layers.
1390
1391
1392
1393       crypt_autoencrypt
1394              Type: boolean
1395              Default: no
1396
1397              Setting this variable will cause Mutt to always attempt  to  PGP
1398              encrypt outgoing messages.  This is probably only useful in con‐
1399              nection to the “send-hook” command.  It can be overridden by use
1400              of  the  pgp menu, when encryption is not required or signing is
1401              requested as well.  If $smime_is_default is set, then OpenSSL is
1402              used instead to create S/MIME messages and settings can be over‐
1403              ridden by use of the smime menu instead.  (Crypto only)
1404
1405
1406
1407       crypt_autopgp
1408              Type: boolean
1409              Default: yes
1410
1411              This variable controls whether or not mutt may automatically en‐
1412              able  PGP  encryption/signing for messages.  See also $crypt_au‐
1413              toencrypt,  $crypt_replyencrypt,   $crypt_autosign,   $crypt_re‐
1414              plysign and $smime_is_default.
1415
1416
1417
1418       crypt_autosign
1419              Type: boolean
1420              Default: no
1421
1422              Setting this variable will cause Mutt to always attempt to cryp‐
1423              tographically sign outgoing messages.  This can be overridden by
1424              use  of the pgp menu, when signing is not required or encryption
1425              is requested as well. If $smime_is_default is set, then  OpenSSL
1426              is  used  instead  to create S/MIME messages and settings can be
1427              overridden by use of the smime menu instead  of  the  pgp  menu.
1428              (Crypto only)
1429
1430
1431
1432       crypt_autosmime
1433              Type: boolean
1434              Default: yes
1435
1436              This variable controls whether or not mutt may automatically en‐
1437              able S/MIME encryption/signing for messages. See also $crypt_au‐
1438              toencrypt,   $crypt_replyencrypt,   $crypt_autosign,  $crypt_re‐
1439              plysign and $smime_is_default.
1440
1441
1442
1443       crypt_confirmhook
1444              Type: boolean
1445              Default: yes
1446
1447              If set, then you will be prompted for confirmation of keys  when
1448              using  the  crypt-hook  command.  If unset, no such confirmation
1449              prompt will be presented.  This is generally considered  unsafe,
1450              especially where typos are concerned.
1451
1452
1453
1454       crypt_opportunistic_encrypt
1455              Type: boolean
1456              Default: no
1457
1458              Setting  this  variable  will cause Mutt to automatically enable
1459              and disable encryption, based on whether all  message  recipient
1460              keys can be located by Mutt.
1461
1462              When this option is enabled, Mutt will enable/disable encryption
1463              each time the TO, CC, and BCC lists are edited.  If  $edit_head‐
1464              ers  is  set,  Mutt  will  also  do  so each time the message is
1465              edited.
1466
1467              While this is set, encryption  can't  be  manually  enabled/dis‐
1468              abled.   The pgp or smime menus provide a selection to temporar‐
1469              ily disable this option for the current message.
1470
1471              If $crypt_autoencrypt or $crypt_replyencrypt  enable  encryption
1472              for  a  message,  this option will be disabled for that message.
1473              It can be  manually  re-enabled  in  the  pgp  or  smime  menus.
1474              (Crypto only)
1475
1476
1477
1478       crypt_opportunistic_encrypt_strong_keys
1479              Type: boolean
1480              Default: no
1481
1482              When set, this modifies the behavior of $crypt_opportunistic_en‐
1483              crypt to only search for ”strong keys”, that is, keys with  full
1484              validity  according  to  the web-of-trust algorithm.  A key with
1485              marginal or no validity will not  enable  opportunistic  encryp‐
1486              tion.
1487
1488              For S/MIME, the behavior depends on the backend.  Classic S/MIME
1489              will filter for certificates with the 't' (trusted) flag in  the
1490              .index  file.   The  GPGME  backend will use the same filters as
1491              with OpenPGP, and depends on GPGME's  logic  for  assigning  the
1492              GPGME_VALIDITY_FULL and GPGME_VALIDITY_ULTIMATE validity flag.
1493
1494
1495
1496       crypt_protected_headers_read
1497              Type: boolean
1498              Default: yes
1499
1500              When  set, Mutt will display protected headers in the pager, and
1501              will update the index and header  cache  with  revised  headers.
1502              Protected headers are stored inside the encrypted or signed part
1503              of an an email, to prevent disclosure or  tampering.   For  more
1504              information  see https://github.com/autocrypt/protected-headers.
1505              Currently Mutt only supports the Subject header.
1506
1507              Encrypted messages using protected headers often substitute  the
1508              exposed  Subject  header  with  a  dummy  value (see $crypt_pro‐
1509              tected_headers_subject).  Mutt will update its  concept  of  the
1510              correct  subject after the message is opened, i.e. via the <dis‐
1511              play-message> function.  If you reply to a message before  open‐
1512              ing  it,  Mutt will end up using the dummy Subject header, so be
1513              sure to open such a message first.  (Crypto only)
1514
1515
1516
1517       crypt_protected_headers_save
1518              Type: boolean
1519              Default: no
1520
1521              When $crypt_protected_headers_read is set, and a message with  a
1522              protected  Subject is opened, Mutt will save the updated Subject
1523              into the header cache by default.  This allows  searching/limit‐
1524              ing  based  on  the  protected  Subject header if the mailbox is
1525              re-opened, without having to  re-open  the  message  each  time.
1526              However,  for mbox/mh mailbox types, or if header caching is not
1527              set up, you would need to re-open  the  message  each  time  the
1528              mailbox was reopened before you could see or search/limit on the
1529              protected subject again.
1530
1531              When this variable is set, Mutt additionally saves the protected
1532              Subject  back  in the clear-text message headers.  This provides
1533              better usability, but with the  tradeoff  of  reduced  security.
1534              The protected Subject header, which may have previously been en‐
1535              crypted, is now stored in clear-text  in  the  message  headers.
1536              Copying the message elsewhere, via Mutt or external tools, could
1537              expose this previously encrypted data.  Please make sure you un‐
1538              derstand  the  consequences of this before you enable this vari‐
1539              able.  (Crypto only)
1540
1541
1542
1543       crypt_protected_headers_subject
1544              Type: string
1545              Default: “...”
1546
1547              When $crypt_protected_headers_write is set, and the  message  is
1548              marked for encryption, this will be substituted into the Subject
1549              field in the message headers.  To prevent a subject  from  being
1550              substituted, unset this variable, or set it to the empty string.
1551              (Crypto only)
1552
1553
1554
1555       crypt_protected_headers_write
1556              Type: boolean
1557              Default: no
1558
1559              When set, Mutt will generate protected headers  for  signed  and
1560              encrypted  emails.   Protected headers are stored inside the en‐
1561              crypted or signed part of an an email, to prevent disclosure  or
1562              tampering.   For  more  information  see  https://github.com/au
1563              tocrypt/protected-headers.  Currently  Mutt  only  supports  the
1564              Subject header.  (Crypto only)
1565
1566
1567
1568       crypt_replyencrypt
1569              Type: boolean
1570              Default: yes
1571
1572              If set, automatically PGP or OpenSSL encrypt replies to messages
1573              which are encrypted.  (Crypto only)
1574
1575
1576
1577       crypt_replysign
1578              Type: boolean
1579              Default: no
1580
1581              If set, automatically PGP or OpenSSL sign  replies  to  messages
1582              which are signed.
1583
1584              Note:  this  does  not  work  on messages that are encrypted and
1585              signed!  (Crypto only)
1586
1587
1588
1589       crypt_replysignencrypted
1590              Type: boolean
1591              Default: no
1592
1593              If set, automatically PGP or OpenSSL sign  replies  to  messages
1594              which  are  encrypted.  This  makes  sense  in  combination with
1595              $crypt_replyencrypt, because it allows you to sign all  messages
1596              which  are automatically encrypted.  This works around the prob‐
1597              lem noted in $crypt_replysign, that mutt is not able to find out
1598              whether an encrypted message is also signed.  (Crypto only)
1599
1600
1601
1602       crypt_timestamp
1603              Type: boolean
1604              Default: yes
1605
1606              If  set, mutt will include a time stamp in the lines surrounding
1607              PGP or S/MIME output, so spoofing such lines is more  difficult.
1608              If  you are using colors to mark these lines, and rely on these,
1609              you may unset this setting.  (Crypto only)
1610
1611
1612
1613       crypt_use_gpgme
1614              Type: boolean
1615              Default: no
1616
1617              This variable controls the use of the GPGME-enabled crypto back‐
1618              ends.   If  it is set and Mutt was built with gpgme support, the
1619              gpgme code for S/MIME and PGP will be used instead of the  clas‐
1620              sic  code.  Note that you need to set this option in .muttrc; it
1621              won't have any effect when used interactively.
1622
1623              Note that the GPGME backend does not support creating  old-style
1624              inline  (traditional)  PGP  encrypted  or  signed  messages (see
1625              $pgp_autoinline).
1626
1627
1628
1629       crypt_use_pka
1630              Type: boolean
1631              Default: no
1632
1633              Controls      whether       mutt       uses       PKA       (see
1634              http://www.g10code.de/docs/pka-intro.de.pdf)   during  signature
1635              verification (only supported by the GPGME backend).
1636
1637
1638
1639       crypt_verify_sig
1640              Type: quadoption
1641              Default: yes
1642
1643              If “yes”, always attempt to verify PGP or S/MIME signatures.  If
1644              “ask-*”,  ask  whether or not to verify the signature.  If “no”,
1645              never attempt to verify cryptographic signatures.  (Crypto only)
1646
1647
1648
1649       date_format
1650              Type: string
1651              Default: “!%a, %b %d, %Y at %I:%M:%S%p %Z”
1652
1653              This variable controls the format of the  date  printed  by  the
1654              “%d”  sequence  in  $index_format.   This is passed to the strf‐
1655              time(3) function to process the date, see the man page  for  the
1656              proper syntax.
1657
1658              Unless  the  first  character in the string is a bang (“!”), the
1659              month and week day names are expanded according to  the  locale.
1660              If the first character in the string is a bang, the bang is dis‐
1661              carded, and the month and week day names  in  the  rest  of  the
1662              string are expanded in the C locale (that is in US English).
1663
1664
1665
1666       default_hook
1667              Type: string
1668              Default: “~f %s !~P | (~P ~C %s)”
1669
1670              This  variable controls how “message-hook”, “reply-hook”, “send-
1671              hook”, “send2-hook”, “save-hook”, and “fcc-hook” will be  inter‐
1672              preted  if they are specified with only a simple regexp, instead
1673              of a matching pattern.  The hooks are expanded when they are de‐
1674              clared,  so a hook will be interpreted according to the value of
1675              this variable at the time the hook is declared.
1676
1677              The default value matches if the message is either from  a  user
1678              matching  the regular expression given, or if it is from you (if
1679              the from address matches “alternates”) and is to or cc'ed  to  a
1680              user matching the given regular expression.
1681
1682
1683
1684       delete
1685              Type: quadoption
1686              Default: ask-yes
1687
1688              Controls whether or not messages are really deleted when closing
1689              or synchronizing a mailbox.  If set to yes, messages marked  for
1690              deleting will automatically be purged without prompting.  If set
1691              to no, messages marked for deletion will be kept in the mailbox.
1692
1693              This  option  is  ignored  for  maildir-style   mailboxes   when
1694              $maildir_trash is set.
1695
1696
1697
1698       delete_untag
1699              Type: boolean
1700              Default: yes
1701
1702              If  this  option  is  set, mutt will untag messages when marking
1703              them for deletion.  This  applies  when  you  either  explicitly
1704              delete a message, or when you save it to another folder.
1705
1706
1707
1708       digest_collapse
1709              Type: boolean
1710              Default: yes
1711
1712              If this option is set, mutt's received-attachments menu will not
1713              show the subparts of individual messages in a  multipart/digest.
1714              To see these subparts, press “v” on that menu.
1715
1716
1717
1718       display_filter
1719              Type: path
1720              Default: “”
1721
1722              When  set,  specifies a command used to filter messages.  When a
1723              message is viewed it  is  passed  as  standard  input  to  $dis‐
1724              play_filter,  and the filtered message is read from the standard
1725              output.
1726
1727
1728
1729       dotlock_program
1730              Type: path
1731              Default: “/usr/bin/mutt_dotlock”
1732
1733              Contains the path of the mutt_dotlock(1) binary to  be  used  by
1734              mutt.
1735
1736
1737
1738       dsn_notify
1739              Type: string
1740              Default: “”
1741
1742              This  variable  sets  the  request  for when notification is re‐
1743              turned.  The string consists of a comma separated list (no  spa‐
1744              ces!)  of  one or more of the following: never, to never request
1745              notification, failure, to request notification  on  transmission
1746              failure, delay, to be notified of message delays, success, to be
1747              notified of successful transmission.
1748
1749              Example:
1750
1751
1752              set dsn_notify=”failure,delay”
1753
1754
1755              Note: when using $sendmail for delivery, you should  not  enable
1756              this  unless you are either using Sendmail 8.8.x or greater or a
1757              MTA providing a sendmail(1)-compatible interface supporting  the
1758              -N  option  for  DSN. For SMTP delivery, DSN support is auto-de‐
1759              tected so that it depends on the server whether DSN will be used
1760              or not.
1761
1762
1763
1764       dsn_return
1765              Type: string
1766              Default: “”
1767
1768              This  variable  controls how much of your message is returned in
1769              DSN messages.  It may be set to either hdrs to return  just  the
1770              message header, or full to return the full message.
1771
1772              Example:
1773
1774
1775              set dsn_return=hdrs
1776
1777
1778              Note:  when  using $sendmail for delivery, you should not enable
1779              this unless you are either using Sendmail 8.8.x or greater or  a
1780              MTA  providing a sendmail(1)-compatible interface supporting the
1781              -R option for DSN. For SMTP delivery, DSN  support  is  auto-de‐
1782              tected so that it depends on the server whether DSN will be used
1783              or not.
1784
1785
1786
1787       duplicate_threads
1788              Type: boolean
1789              Default: yes
1790
1791              This variable controls  whether  mutt,  when  $sort  is  set  to
1792              threads, threads messages with the same Message-Id together.  If
1793              it is set, it will indicate that it thinks they  are  duplicates
1794              of each other with an equals sign in the thread tree.
1795
1796
1797
1798       edit_headers
1799              Type: boolean
1800              Default: no
1801
1802              This  option allows you to edit the header of your outgoing mes‐
1803              sages along with the body of your message.
1804
1805              Although the compose menu may have localized header labels,  the
1806              labels  passed to your editor will be standard RFC 2822 headers,
1807              (e.g. To:, Cc:, Subject:).  Headers added in  your  editor  must
1808              also be RFC 2822 headers, or one of the pseudo headers listed in
1809              “edit-header”.  Mutt will not understand  localized  header  la‐
1810              bels, just as it would not when parsing an actual email.
1811
1812              Note  that changes made to the References: and Date: headers are
1813              ignored for interoperability reasons.
1814
1815
1816
1817       editor
1818              Type: path
1819              Default: “”
1820
1821              This variable specifies which editor is used by  mutt.   It  de‐
1822              faults  to  the  value  of  the $VISUAL, or $EDITOR, environment
1823              variable, or to the string “vi” if neither of those are set.
1824
1825              The $editor string may contain a %s escape, which  will  be  re‐
1826              placed  by  the name of the file to be edited.  If the %s escape
1827              does not appear in $editor, a space and the name  to  be  edited
1828              are appended.
1829
1830              The resulting string is then executed by running
1831
1832
1833              sh -c 'string'
1834
1835
1836              where string is the expansion of $editor described above.
1837
1838
1839
1840       encode_from
1841              Type: boolean
1842              Default: no
1843
1844              When  set,  mutt will quoted-printable encode messages when they
1845              contain the string “From ” (note the trailing space) in the  be‐
1846              ginning  of  a line.  This is useful to avoid the tampering cer‐
1847              tain mail delivery and transport agents tend to do with messages
1848              (in  order  to  prevent tools from misinterpreting the line as a
1849              mbox message separator).
1850
1851
1852
1853       entropy_file
1854              Type: path
1855              Default: “”
1856
1857              The file which includes random data that is used  to  initialize
1858              SSL library functions. (OpenSSL only)
1859
1860
1861
1862       envelope_from_address
1863              Type: e-mail address
1864              Default: “”
1865
1866              Manually  sets  the envelope sender for outgoing messages.  This
1867              value is ignored if $use_envelope_from is unset.
1868
1869
1870
1871       error_history
1872              Type: number
1873              Default: 30
1874
1875              This variable controls the size (in  number  of  strings  remem‐
1876              bered)  of  the  error messages displayed by mutt.  These can be
1877              shown with the <error-history> function.  The history is cleared
1878              each time this variable is set.
1879
1880
1881
1882       escape
1883              Type: string
1884              Default: “~”
1885
1886              Escape character to use for functions in the built-in editor.
1887
1888
1889
1890       fast_reply
1891              Type: boolean
1892              Default: no
1893
1894              When  set,  the  initial  prompt  for recipients and subject are
1895              skipped when replying to messages, and the  initial  prompt  for
1896              subject is skipped when forwarding messages.
1897
1898              Note: this variable has no effect when the $autoedit variable is
1899              set.
1900
1901
1902
1903       fcc_attach
1904              Type: quadoption
1905              Default: yes
1906
1907              This variable controls whether or not  attachments  on  outgoing
1908              messages are saved along with the main body of your message.
1909
1910              Note: $fcc_before_send forces the default (set) behavior of this
1911              option.
1912
1913
1914
1915       fcc_before_send
1916              Type: boolean
1917              Default: no
1918
1919              When this variable is set, FCCs will occur  before  sending  the
1920              message.   Before sending, the message cannot be manipulated, so
1921              it will be stored  the  exact  same  as  sent:  $fcc_attach  and
1922              $fcc_clear will be ignored (using their default values).
1923
1924              When  unset,  the default, FCCs will occur after sending.  Vari‐
1925              ables $fcc_attach and $fcc_clear will be respected, allowing  it
1926              to  be  stored  without attachments or encryption/signing if de‐
1927              sired.
1928
1929
1930
1931       fcc_clear
1932              Type: boolean
1933              Default: no
1934
1935              When this variable is set, FCCs will be stored  unencrypted  and
1936              unsigned,  even  when  the  actual  message  is encrypted and/or
1937              signed.
1938
1939              Note: $fcc_before_send forces the default  (unset)  behavior  of
1940              this option.  (PGP only)
1941
1942              See also $pgp_self_encrypt, $smime_self_encrypt.
1943
1944
1945
1946       fcc_delimiter
1947              Type: string
1948              Default: “”
1949
1950              When  specified, this allows the ability to Fcc to more than one
1951              mailbox.  The fcc value will be split by this delimiter and Mutt
1952              will evaluate each part as a mailbox separately.
1953
1954              See $record, “fcc-hook”, and “fcc-save-hook”.
1955
1956
1957
1958       flag_safe
1959              Type: boolean
1960              Default: no
1961
1962              If set, flagged messages cannot be deleted.
1963
1964
1965
1966       folder
1967              Type: path
1968              Default: “~/Mail”
1969
1970              Specifies  the default location of your mailboxes.  A “+” or “=”
1971              at the beginning of a pathname will be expanded to the value  of
1972              this  variable.  Note that if you change this variable (from the
1973              default) value you need to make sure that the assignment  occurs
1974              before  you  use “+” or “=” for any other variables since expan‐
1975              sion takes place when handling the “mailboxes” command.
1976
1977
1978
1979       folder_format
1980              Type: string
1981              Default: “%2C %t %N %F %2l %-8.8u %-8.8g %8s %d %f”
1982
1983              This variable allows you to customize the file  browser  display
1984              to  your  personal taste.  This string is similar to $index_for‐
1985              mat, but has its own set of printf(3)-like sequences:
1986              %C     current file number
1987              %d     date/time folder was last modified
1988              %D     date/time folder was last modified using $date_format.
1989              %f     filename (“/” is appended to directory names, “@” to sym‐
1990                     bolic links and “*” to executable files)
1991              %F     file permissions
1992              %g     group name (or numeric gid, if missing)
1993              %l     number of hard links
1994              %m     number of messages in the mailbox *
1995              %n     number of unread messages in the mailbox *
1996              %N     N if mailbox has new mail, blank otherwise
1997              %s     size in bytes (see formatstrings-size)
1998              %t     “*” if the file is tagged, blank otherwise
1999              %u     owner name (or numeric uid, if missing)
2000              %>X    right justify the rest of the string and pad with charac‐
2001                     ter “X”
2002              %|X    pad to the end of the line with character “X”
2003              %*X    soft-fill with character “X” as pad
2004
2005              For an explanation of “soft-fill”, see the  $index_format  docu‐
2006              mentation.
2007
2008              * = can be optionally printed if nonzero
2009
2010              %m,  %n,  and %N only work for monitored mailboxes.  %m requires
2011              $mail_check_stats to be set.  %n requires  $mail_check_stats  to
2012              be set (except for IMAP mailboxes).
2013
2014
2015
2016       followup_to
2017              Type: boolean
2018              Default: yes
2019
2020              Controls  whether or not the “Mail-Followup-To:” header field is
2021              generated when sending mail.  When set, Mutt will generate  this
2022              field  when  you are replying to a known mailing list, specified
2023              with the “subscribe” or “lists” commands.
2024
2025              This field has two purposes.  First, preventing you from receiv‐
2026              ing  duplicate  copies  of replies to messages which you send to
2027              mailing lists, and second, ensuring that you do get a reply sep‐
2028              arately  for  any  messages sent to known lists to which you are
2029              not subscribed.
2030
2031              The header will contain only the list's address  for  subscribed
2032              lists,  and both the list address and your own email address for
2033              unsubscribed lists.  Without this header, a group reply to  your
2034              message  sent to a subscribed list will be sent to both the list
2035              and your address, resulting in two copies of the same email  for
2036              you.
2037
2038
2039
2040       force_name
2041              Type: boolean
2042              Default: no
2043
2044              This  variable  is  similar to $save_name, except that Mutt will
2045              store a copy of your outgoing message by the username of the ad‐
2046              dress you are sending to even if that mailbox does not exist.
2047
2048              Also see the $record variable.
2049
2050
2051
2052       forward_attachments
2053              Type: quadoption
2054              Default: ask-yes
2055
2056              When  forwarding  inline  (i.e.  $mime_forward unset or answered
2057              with “no” and $forward_decode set), attachments which cannot  be
2058              decoded  in  a  reasonable  manner will be attached to the newly
2059              composed message if this quadoption  is  set  or  answered  with
2060              “yes”.
2061
2062
2063
2064       forward_attribution_intro
2065              Type: string (localized)
2066              Default: “----- Forwarded message from %f -----”
2067
2068              This  is  the  string that will precede a message which has been
2069              forwarded in the main body of a message (when  $mime_forward  is
2070              unset).   For a full listing of defined printf(3)-like sequences
2071              see the section on $index_format.  See also $attribution_locale.
2072
2073
2074
2075       forward_attribution_trailer
2076              Type: string (localized)
2077              Default: “----- End forwarded message -----”
2078
2079              This is the string that will follow a  message  which  has  been
2080              forwarded  in  the main body of a message (when $mime_forward is
2081              unset).  For a full listing of defined printf(3)-like  sequences
2082              see the section on $index_format.  See also $attribution_locale.
2083
2084
2085
2086       forward_decode
2087              Type: boolean
2088              Default: yes
2089
2090              Controls  the  decoding of complex MIME messages into text/plain
2091              when forwarding a message.  The message header is  also  RFC2047
2092              decoded.  This variable is only used, if $mime_forward is unset,
2093              otherwise $mime_forward_decode is used instead.
2094
2095
2096
2097       forward_decrypt
2098              Type: quadoption
2099              Default: yes
2100
2101              This quadoption controls the handling of encrypted messages when
2102              forwarding  or  attaching  a  message.   When set to or answered
2103              “yes”, the outer layer of encryption is stripped off.
2104
2105              This variable is used if $mime_forward  is  set  and  $mime_for‐
2106              ward_decode  is unset.  It is also used when attaching a message
2107              via <attach-message> in the compose menu.  (PGP only)
2108
2109
2110
2111       forward_edit
2112              Type: quadoption
2113              Default: yes
2114
2115              This quadoption controls whether or not the  user  is  automati‐
2116              cally  placed in the editor when forwarding messages.  For those
2117              who always want to forward with no modification, use  a  setting
2118              of “no”.
2119
2120
2121
2122       forward_format
2123              Type: string
2124              Default: “[%a: %s]”
2125
2126              This  variable  controls  the  default subject when forwarding a
2127              message.  It uses the same format sequences as the $index_format
2128              variable.
2129
2130
2131
2132       forward_quote
2133              Type: boolean
2134              Default: no
2135
2136              When  set,  forwarded  messages included in the main body of the
2137              message (when $mime_forward is unset) will be quoted using  $in‐
2138              dent_string.
2139
2140
2141
2142       from
2143              Type: e-mail address
2144              Default: “”
2145
2146              When set, this variable contains a default from address.  It can
2147              be overridden using “my_hdr” (including from a “send-hook”)  and
2148              $reverse_name.  This variable is ignored if $use_from is unset.
2149
2150              This  setting  defaults to the contents of the environment vari‐
2151              able $EMAIL.
2152
2153
2154
2155       gecos_mask
2156              Type: regular expression
2157              Default: “^[^,]*”
2158
2159              A regular expression used by mutt to parse the GECOS field of  a
2160              password entry when expanding the alias.  The default value will
2161              return the string up to the first “,” encountered.  If the GECOS
2162              field  contains  a  string  like  “lastname, firstname” then you
2163              should set it to “.*”.
2164
2165              This can be useful if you see the following  behavior:  you  ad‐
2166              dress  an  e-mail  to user ID “stevef” whose full name is “Steve
2167              Franklin”.    If   mutt   expands   “stevef”   to    “”Franklin”
2168              stevef@foo.bar” then you should set the $gecos_mask to a regular
2169              expression that will match the whole name so  mutt  will  expand
2170              “Franklin” to “Franklin, Steve”.
2171
2172
2173
2174       hdrs
2175              Type: boolean
2176              Default: yes
2177
2178              When  unset,  the  header  fields normally added by the “my_hdr”
2179              command are not created.  This variable  must  be  unset  before
2180              composing a new message or replying in order to take effect.  If
2181              set, the user defined header fields are added to every new  mes‐
2182              sage.
2183
2184
2185
2186       header
2187              Type: boolean
2188              Default: no
2189
2190              When set, this variable causes Mutt to include the header of the
2191              message you are replying to into the  edit  buffer.   The  $weed
2192              setting applies.
2193
2194
2195
2196       header_cache
2197              Type: path
2198              Default: “”
2199
2200              This  variable points to the header cache database.  If pointing
2201              to a directory Mutt will contain a header  cache  database  file
2202              per  folder,  if  pointing  to a file that file will be a single
2203              global header cache. By default it is unset so no header caching
2204              will be used.  If pointing to a directory, it must be created in
2205              advance.
2206
2207              Header caching can greatly improve speed when opening POP,  IMAP
2208              MH or Maildir folders, see “caching” for details.
2209
2210
2211
2212       header_cache_compress
2213              Type: boolean
2214              Default: yes
2215
2216              When  mutt  is compiled with qdbm, tokyocabinet, or kyotocabinet
2217              as header cache backend,  this  option  determines  whether  the
2218              database  will  be  compressed.  Compression results in database
2219              files roughly being one fifth of the usual  diskspace,  but  the
2220              decompression can result in a slower opening of cached folder(s)
2221              which in general is still much faster than  opening  non  header
2222              cached folders.
2223
2224
2225
2226       header_cache_pagesize
2227              Type: number (long)
2228              Default: 16384
2229
2230              When  mutt  is  compiled  with either gdbm or bdb4 as the header
2231              cache backend, this option changes the database page size.   Too
2232              large  or too small values can waste space, memory, or CPU time.
2233              The default should be more or less optimal for most use cases.
2234
2235
2236
2237       header_color_partial
2238              Type: boolean
2239              Default: no
2240
2241              When set, color header regexps behave like color  body  regexps:
2242              color  is applied to the exact text matched by the regexp.  When
2243              unset, color is applied to the entire header.
2244
2245              One use of this option might be  to  apply  color  to  just  the
2246              header labels.
2247
2248              See “color” for more details.
2249
2250
2251
2252       help
2253              Type: boolean
2254              Default: yes
2255
2256              When set, help lines describing the bindings for the major func‐
2257              tions provided by each menu are displayed on the first  line  of
2258              the screen.
2259
2260              Note:  The  binding will not be displayed correctly if the func‐
2261              tion is bound to a sequence  rather  than  a  single  keystroke.
2262              Also,  the  help line may not be updated if a binding is changed
2263              while Mutt is running.  Since this variable is  primarily  aimed
2264              at new users, neither of these should present a major problem.
2265
2266
2267
2268       hidden_host
2269              Type: boolean
2270              Default: no
2271
2272              When  set,  mutt will skip the host name part of $hostname vari‐
2273              able when adding the domain part to  addresses.   This  variable
2274              does  not  affect the generation of Message-IDs, and it will not
2275              lead to the cut-off of first-level domains.
2276
2277
2278
2279       hide_limited
2280              Type: boolean
2281              Default: no
2282
2283              When set, mutt will not show the presence of messages  that  are
2284              hidden by limiting, in the thread tree.
2285
2286
2287
2288       hide_missing
2289              Type: boolean
2290              Default: yes
2291
2292              When set, mutt will not show the presence of missing messages in
2293              the thread tree.
2294
2295
2296
2297       hide_thread_subject
2298              Type: boolean
2299              Default: yes
2300
2301              When set, mutt will not show the  subject  of  messages  in  the
2302              thread  tree that have the same subject as their parent or clos‐
2303              est previously displayed sibling.
2304
2305
2306
2307       hide_top_limited
2308              Type: boolean
2309              Default: no
2310
2311              When set, mutt will not show the presence of messages  that  are
2312              hidden  by  limiting,  at the top of threads in the thread tree.
2313              Note that when $hide_limited is set, this option  will  have  no
2314              effect.
2315
2316
2317
2318       hide_top_missing
2319              Type: boolean
2320              Default: yes
2321
2322              When set, mutt will not show the presence of missing messages at
2323              the  top  of  threads  in  the  thread  tree.   Note  that  when
2324              $hide_missing is set, this option will have no effect.
2325
2326
2327
2328       history
2329              Type: number
2330              Default: 10
2331
2332              This  variable  controls  the  size (in number of strings remem‐
2333              bered) of the string history buffer per category. The buffer  is
2334              cleared each time the variable is set.
2335
2336
2337
2338       history_file
2339              Type: path
2340              Default: “~/.mutthistory”
2341
2342              The file in which Mutt will save its history.
2343
2344              Also see $save_history.
2345
2346
2347
2348       history_remove_dups
2349              Type: boolean
2350              Default: no
2351
2352              When  set,  all of the string history will be scanned for dupli‐
2353              cates when a new entry is added.  Duplicate entries in the $his‐
2354              tory_file  will  also  be  removed  when it is periodically com‐
2355              pacted.
2356
2357
2358
2359       honor_disposition
2360              Type: boolean
2361              Default: no
2362
2363              When set, Mutt will not display attachments with  a  disposition
2364              of “attachment” inline even if it could render the part to plain
2365              text. These MIME parts can only be viewed  from  the  attachment
2366              menu.
2367
2368              If unset, Mutt will render all MIME parts it can properly trans‐
2369              form to plain text.
2370
2371
2372
2373       honor_followup_to
2374              Type: quadoption
2375              Default: yes
2376
2377              This variable controls whether or not a Mail-Followup-To  header
2378              is honored when group-replying to a message.
2379
2380
2381
2382       hostname
2383              Type: string
2384              Default: “”
2385
2386              Specifies  the  fully-qualified  hostname  of the system mutt is
2387              running on containing the host's name and the DNS domain it  be‐
2388              longs  to.  It  is used as the domain part (after “@”) for local
2389              email addresses as well as Message-Id headers.
2390
2391              Its value is determined at startup as follows: the node's  host‐
2392              name  is  first determined by the uname(3) function.  The domain
2393              is then looked up using the  gethostname(2)  and  getaddrinfo(3)
2394              functions.   If  those calls are unable to determine the domain,
2395              the full value returned by uname is used.  Optionally, Mutt  can
2396              be  compiled  with  a fixed domain name in which case a detected
2397              one is not used.
2398
2399              Starting in Mutt 2.0, the operations described in  the  previous
2400              paragraph  are  performed after the muttrc is processed, instead
2401              of beforehand.  This way, if the DNS operations are creating de‐
2402              lays  at  startup,  you  can avoid those by manually setting the
2403              value in your muttrc.
2404
2405              Also see $use_domain and $hidden_host.
2406
2407
2408
2409       idn_decode
2410              Type: boolean
2411              Default: yes
2412
2413              When set, Mutt will show you international domain names decoded.
2414              Note:  You  can  use  IDNs  for addresses even if this is unset.
2415              This variable only affects decoding. (IDN only)
2416
2417
2418
2419       idn_encode
2420              Type: boolean
2421              Default: yes
2422
2423              When set, Mutt will encode international domain names using IDN.
2424              Unset this if your SMTP server can handle newer (RFC 6531) UTF-8
2425              encoded domains. (IDN only)
2426
2427
2428
2429       ignore_linear_white_space
2430              Type: boolean
2431              Default: no
2432
2433              This option replaces linear-white-space between encoded-word and
2434              text  to  a  single space to prevent the display of MIME-encoded
2435              “Subject:” field from being divided into multiple lines.
2436
2437
2438
2439       ignore_list_reply_to
2440              Type: boolean
2441              Default: no
2442
2443              Affects the behavior of the <reply> function  when  replying  to
2444              messages  from  mailing  lists (as defined by the “subscribe” or
2445              “lists” commands).  When set, if the “Reply-To:” field is set to
2446              the  same  value  as the “To:” field, Mutt assumes that the “Re‐
2447              ply-To:” field was set by the mailing list to automate responses
2448              to  the  list, and will ignore this field.  To direct a response
2449              to the mailing list when this option is set, use  the  <list-re‐
2450              ply>  function;  <group-reply> will reply to both the sender and
2451              the list.
2452
2453
2454
2455       imap_authenticators
2456              Type: string
2457              Default: “”
2458
2459              This is a colon-delimited list of  authentication  methods  mutt
2460              may  attempt  to  use  to log in to an IMAP server, in the order
2461              mutt should try them.  Authentication methods are either “login”
2462              or  the right side of an IMAP “AUTH=xxx” capability string, e.g.
2463              “digest-md5”, “gssapi” or “cram-md5”. This option is case-insen‐
2464              sitive.  If it's unset (the default) mutt will try all available
2465              methods, in order from most-secure to least-secure.
2466
2467              Example:
2468
2469
2470              set imap_authenticators=”gssapi:cram-md5:login”
2471
2472
2473              Note: Mutt will only fall back to other  authentication  methods
2474              if  the  previous methods are unavailable. If a method is avail‐
2475              able but authentication fails, mutt will not connect to the IMAP
2476              server.
2477
2478
2479
2480       imap_check_subscribed
2481              Type: boolean
2482              Default: no
2483
2484              When  set,  mutt  will  fetch the set of subscribed folders from
2485              your server on connection, and add them to the set of  mailboxes
2486              it  polls  for  new  mail  just  as if you had issued individual
2487              “mailboxes” commands.
2488
2489
2490
2491       imap_condstore
2492              Type: boolean
2493              Default: no
2494
2495              When set, mutt will use the CONDSTORE extension  (RFC  7162)  if
2496              advertised  by the server.  Mutt's current implementation is ba‐
2497              sic, used only for initial message fetching and flag updates.
2498
2499              For some IMAP servers, enabling  this  will  slightly  speed  up
2500              downloading  initial  messages.  Unfortunately, Gmail is not one
2501              those,  and  displays  worse  performance  when  enabled.   Your
2502              mileage may vary.
2503
2504
2505
2506       imap_deflate
2507              Type: boolean
2508              Default: no
2509
2510              When  set,  mutt  will  use  the COMPRESS=DEFLATE extension (RFC
2511              4978) if advertised by the server.
2512
2513              In general a good compression efficiency can be achieved,  which
2514              speeds  up  reading  large mailboxes also on fairly good connec‐
2515              tions.
2516
2517
2518
2519       imap_delim_chars
2520              Type: string
2521              Default: “/.”
2522
2523              This contains the list of characters which  you  would  like  to
2524              treat as folder separators for displaying IMAP paths. In partic‐
2525              ular it helps in using the “=” shortcut for  your  folder  vari‐
2526              able.
2527
2528
2529
2530       imap_fetch_chunk_size
2531              Type: number (long)
2532              Default: 0
2533
2534              When  set  to  a value greater than 0, new headers will be down‐
2535              loaded in groups of this many headers per request.  If you  have
2536              a  very  large mailbox, this might prevent a timeout and discon‐
2537              nect when opening the mailbox, by sending a  FETCH  per  set  of
2538              this  many  headers, instead of a single FETCH for all new head‐
2539              ers.
2540
2541
2542
2543       imap_headers
2544              Type: string
2545              Default: “”
2546
2547              Mutt requests these header fields in  addition  to  the  default
2548              headers  (“Date:”, “From:”, “Sender:”, “Subject:”, “To:”, “Cc:”,
2549              “Message-Id:”, “References:”, “Content-Type:”, “Content-Descrip‐
2550              tion:”,  “In-Reply-To:”,  “Reply-To:”,  “Lines:”,  “List-Post:”,
2551              “X-Label:”) from IMAP servers before displaying the index  menu.
2552              You may want to add more headers for spam detection.
2553
2554              Note:  This is a space separated list, items should be uppercase
2555              and not contain the colon, e.g. “X-BOGOSITY  X-SPAM-STATUS”  for
2556              the “X-Bogosity:” and “X-Spam-Status:” header fields.
2557
2558
2559
2560       imap_idle
2561              Type: boolean
2562              Default: no
2563
2564              When  set,  mutt  will attempt to use the IMAP IDLE extension to
2565              check for new mail in the current mailbox. Some servers (dovecot
2566              was  the  inspiration for this option) react badly to mutt's im‐
2567              plementation. If your connection seems  to  freeze  up  periodi‐
2568              cally, try unsetting this.
2569
2570
2571
2572       imap_keepalive
2573              Type: number
2574              Default: 300
2575
2576              This  variable  specifies  the maximum amount of time in seconds
2577              that mutt will wait before polling  open  IMAP  connections,  to
2578              prevent  the  server  from closing them before mutt has finished
2579              with them. The default is well within the RFC-specified  minimum
2580              amount  of  time  (30  minutes) before a server is allowed to do
2581              this, but in practice the RFC does get violated  every  now  and
2582              then.  Reduce  this  number if you find yourself getting discon‐
2583              nected from your IMAP server due to inactivity.
2584
2585
2586
2587       imap_list_subscribed
2588              Type: boolean
2589              Default: no
2590
2591              This variable configures whether IMAP folder browsing will  look
2592              for only subscribed folders or all folders.  This can be toggled
2593              in the IMAP browser with the <toggle-subscribed> function.
2594
2595
2596
2597       imap_login
2598              Type: string
2599              Default: “”
2600
2601              Your login name on the IMAP server.
2602
2603              This variable defaults to the value of $imap_user.
2604
2605
2606
2607       imap_oauth_refresh_command
2608              Type: string
2609              Default: “”
2610
2611              The command to run to generate an OAUTH refresh token for autho‐
2612              rizing  your  connection to your IMAP server.  This command will
2613              be run on every connection attempt that uses the OAUTHBEARER au‐
2614              thentication mechanism.  See “oauth” for details.
2615
2616
2617
2618       imap_pass
2619              Type: string
2620              Default: “”
2621
2622              Specifies  the  password  for your IMAP account.  If unset, Mutt
2623              will  prompt  you  for  your  password  when  you   invoke   the
2624              <imap-fetch-mail> function or try to open an IMAP folder.
2625
2626              Warning:  you  should  only  use  this  option when you are on a
2627              fairly secure machine, because the superuser can read your  mut‐
2628              trc even if you are the only one who can read the file.
2629
2630
2631
2632       imap_passive
2633              Type: boolean
2634              Default: yes
2635
2636              When  set,  mutt will not open new IMAP connections to check for
2637              new mail.  Mutt will only check for new mail over existing  IMAP
2638              connections.   This  is  useful if you don't want to be prompted
2639              for user/password pairs on mutt invocation, or  if  opening  the
2640              connection is slow.
2641
2642
2643
2644       imap_peek
2645              Type: boolean
2646              Default: yes
2647
2648              When  set,  mutt will avoid implicitly marking your mail as read
2649              whenever you fetch a message from the server. This is  generally
2650              a  good  thing,  but  can  make  closing an IMAP folder somewhat
2651              slower. This option exists to appease speed freaks.
2652
2653
2654
2655       imap_pipeline_depth
2656              Type: number
2657              Default: 15
2658
2659              Controls the number of IMAP commands that may be queued  up  be‐
2660              fore  they are sent to the server. A deeper pipeline reduces the
2661              amount of time mutt must wait for the server, and can make  IMAP
2662              servers feel much more responsive. But not all servers correctly
2663              handle pipelined commands, so if you  have  problems  you  might
2664              want to try setting this variable to 0.
2665
2666              Note:  Changes  to  this variable have no effect on open connec‐
2667              tions.
2668
2669
2670
2671       imap_poll_timeout
2672              Type: number
2673              Default: 15
2674
2675              This variable specifies the maximum amount of  time  in  seconds
2676              that mutt will wait for a response when polling IMAP connections
2677              for new mail, before timing out and closing the connection.  Set
2678              to 0 to disable timing out.
2679
2680
2681
2682       imap_qresync
2683              Type: boolean
2684              Default: no
2685
2686              When  set, mutt will use the QRESYNC extension (RFC 7162) if ad‐
2687              vertised by the server.  Mutt's current implementation is basic,
2688              used only for initial message fetching and flag updates.
2689
2690              Note: this feature is currently experimental.  If you experience
2691              strange behavior, such as duplicate or missing  messages  please
2692              file a bug report to let us know.
2693
2694
2695
2696       imap_servernoise
2697              Type: boolean
2698              Default: yes
2699
2700              When  set,  mutt  will  display  warning  messages from the IMAP
2701              server as error messages. Since these messages are  often  harm‐
2702              less,  or  generated due to configuration problems on the server
2703              which are out of the users' hands, you may wish to suppress them
2704              at some point.
2705
2706
2707
2708       imap_user
2709              Type: string
2710              Default: “”
2711
2712              The name of the user whose mail you intend to access on the IMAP
2713              server.
2714
2715              This variable defaults to your user name on the local machine.
2716
2717
2718
2719       implicit_autoview
2720              Type: boolean
2721              Default: no
2722
2723              If set to “yes”, mutt will look for a  mailcap  entry  with  the
2724copiousoutput”  flag  set  for every MIME attachment it doesn't
2725              have an internal viewer defined for.  If such an entry is found,
2726              mutt  will  use  the viewer defined in that entry to convert the
2727              body part to text form.
2728
2729
2730
2731       include
2732              Type: quadoption
2733              Default: ask-yes
2734
2735              Controls whether or not a copy of the message(s) you are  reply‐
2736              ing to is included in your reply.
2737
2738
2739
2740       include_encrypted
2741              Type: boolean
2742              Default: no
2743
2744              Controls  whether  or not Mutt includes separately encrypted at‐
2745              tachment contents when replying.
2746
2747              This variable was added to prevent accidental  exposure  of  en‐
2748              crypted  contents when replying to an attacker.  If a previously
2749              encrypted message were attached  by  the  attacker,  they  could
2750              trick an unwary recipient into decrypting and including the mes‐
2751              sage in their reply.
2752
2753
2754
2755       include_onlyfirst
2756              Type: boolean
2757              Default: no
2758
2759              Controls whether or not Mutt includes only the first  attachment
2760              of the message you are replying.
2761
2762
2763
2764       indent_string
2765              Type: string
2766              Default: “> ”
2767
2768              Specifies the string to prepend to each line of text quoted in a
2769              message to which you are replying.  You are strongly  encouraged
2770              not to change this value, as it tends to agitate the more fanat‐
2771              ical netizens.
2772
2773              The value of this option is ignored if $text_flowed is set,  be‐
2774              cause  the  quoting  mechanism  is  strictly  defined  for  for‐
2775              mat=flowed.
2776
2777              This option is a format string, please see  the  description  of
2778              $index_format for supported printf(3)-style sequences.
2779
2780
2781
2782       index_format
2783              Type: string
2784              Default: “%4C %Z %{%b %d} %-15.15L (%?l?%4l&%4c?) %s”
2785
2786              This  variable allows you to customize the message index display
2787              to your personal taste.
2788
2789              “Format strings” are similar to the strings used in the C  func‐
2790              tion  printf(3)  to format output (see the man page for more de‐
2791              tails).  For an explanation of the %? construct, see  the  $sta‐
2792              tus_format  description.  The following sequences are defined in
2793              Mutt:
2794              %a     address of the author
2795              %A     reply-to address (if present; otherwise: address  of  au‐
2796                     thor)
2797              %b     filename of the original message folder (think mailbox)
2798              %B     the list to which the letter was sent, or else the folder
2799                     name (%b).
2800              %c     number of characters (bytes) in the message (see  format‐
2801                     strings-size)
2802              %C     current message number
2803              %d     date  and  time of the message in the format specified by
2804                     $date_format converted to sender's time zone
2805              %D     date and time of the message in the format  specified  by
2806                     $date_format converted to the local time zone
2807              %e     current message number in thread
2808              %E     number of messages in current thread
2809              %f     sender  (address  +  real  name),  either  From:  or  Re‐
2810                     turn-Path:
2811              %F     author name, or recipient name if the message is from you
2812              %H     spam attribute(s) of this message
2813              %i     message-id of the current message
2814              %l     number of lines in the unprocessed message (may not  work
2815                     with maildir, mh, and IMAP folders)
2816              %L     If  an address in the “To:” or “Cc:” header field matches
2817                     an address defined by the users “subscribe” command, this
2818                     displays ”To <list-name>”, otherwise the same as %F.
2819              %m     total number of message in the mailbox
2820              %M     number of hidden messages if the thread is collapsed.
2821              %N     message score
2822              %n     author's real name (or address if missing)
2823              %O     original  save  folder  where  mutt  would  formerly have
2824                     stashed the message: list name or recipient name  if  not
2825                     sent to a list
2826              %P     progress  indicator  for  the built-in pager (how much of
2827                     the file has been displayed)
2828              %r     comma separated list of “To:” recipients
2829              %R     comma separated list of “Cc:” recipients
2830              %s     subject of the message
2831              %S     single    character     status     of     the     message
2832                     (“N”/“O”/“D”/“d”/“!”/“r”/“*”)
2833              %t     “To:” field (recipients)
2834              %T     the appropriate character from the $to_chars string
2835              %u     user (login) name of the author
2836              %v     first name of the author, or the recipient if the message
2837                     is from you
2838              %X     number of attachments (please see the “attachments”  sec‐
2839                     tion for possible speed effects)
2840              %y     “X-Label:” field, if present
2841              %Y     “X-Label:”  field,  if  present, and (1) not at part of a
2842                     thread tree, (2) at the top of a thread,  or  (3)  “X-La‐
2843                     bel:” is different from preceding message's “X-Label:”.
2844              %Z     a three character set of message status flags.  the first
2845                     character        is        new/read/replied         flags
2846                     (“n”/“o”/“r”/“O”/“N”).   the second is deleted or encryp‐
2847                     tion flags (“D”/“d”/“S”/“P”/“s”/“K”).  the third  is  ei‐
2848                     ther  tagged/flagged  (“*”/“!”), or one of the characters
2849                     listed in $to_chars.
2850              %@name@
2851                     insert and evaluate format-string from the matching  “in‐
2852                     dex-format-hook” command
2853              %{fmt} the date and time of the message is converted to sender's
2854                     time zone, and “fmt” is expanded by the library  function
2855                     strftime(3); a leading bang disables locales
2856              %[fmt] the  date and time of the message is converted to the lo‐
2857                     cal time zone, and “fmt” is expanded by the library func‐
2858                     tion strftime(3); a leading bang disables locales
2859              %(fmt) the  local  date  and time when the message was received.
2860                     “fmt” is expanded by the library function strftime(3);  a
2861                     leading bang disables locales
2862              %<fmt> the  current local time. “fmt” is expanded by the library
2863                     function strftime(3); a leading bang disables locales.
2864              %>X    right justify the rest of the string and pad with charac‐
2865                     ter “X”
2866              %|X    pad to the end of the line with character “X”
2867              %*X    soft-fill with character “X” as pad
2868
2869              Note  that  for  mbox/mmdf, “%l” applies to the unprocessed mes‐
2870              sage, and for maildir/mh, the  value  comes  from  the  “Lines:”
2871              header  field  when  present (the meaning is normally the same).
2872              Thus the value depends on the encodings used  in  the  different
2873              parts of the message and has little meaning in practice.
2874
2875              “Soft-fill”  deserves  some explanation: Normal right-justifica‐
2876              tion will print everything to the left of the  “%>”,  displaying
2877              padding  and whatever lies to the right only if there's room. By
2878              contrast, soft-fill gives priority to the right-hand side, guar‐
2879              anteeing space to display it and showing padding only if there's
2880              still room. If necessary, soft-fill will eat text  leftwards  to
2881              make room for rightward text.
2882
2883              Note  that  these  expandos  are supported in “save-hook”, “fcc-
2884              hook”, “fcc-save-hook”, and “index-format-hook”.
2885
2886              They are also supported in the configuration variables $attribu‐
2887              tion,  $forward_attribution_intro, $forward_attribution_trailer,
2888              $forward_format, $indent_string, $message_format, $pager_format,
2889              and $post_indent_string.
2890
2891
2892
2893       ispell
2894              Type: path
2895              Default: “/usr/bin/hunspell”
2896
2897              How to invoke ispell (GNU's spell-checking software).
2898
2899
2900
2901       keep_flagged
2902              Type: boolean
2903              Default: no
2904
2905              If  set,  read messages marked as flagged will not be moved from
2906              your spool mailbox to your $mbox mailbox, or as a  result  of  a
2907              “mbox-hook” command.
2908
2909
2910
2911       local_date_header
2912              Type: boolean
2913              Default: yes
2914
2915              If set, the date in the Date header of emails that you send will
2916              be in your local timezone. If unset a UTC date will be used  in‐
2917              stead to avoid leaking information about your current location.
2918
2919
2920
2921       mail_check
2922              Type: number
2923              Default: 5
2924
2925              This variable configures how often (in seconds) mutt should look
2926              for new mail. Also see the $timeout variable.
2927
2928
2929
2930       mail_check_recent
2931              Type: boolean
2932              Default: yes
2933
2934              When set, Mutt will only notify you about new mail that has been
2935              received  since  the last time you opened the mailbox.  When un‐
2936              set, Mutt will notify you if any new mail exists in the mailbox,
2937              regardless of whether you have visited it recently.
2938
2939              When  $mark_old  is  set,  Mutt does not consider the mailbox to
2940              contain new mail if only old messages exist.
2941
2942
2943
2944       mail_check_stats
2945              Type: boolean
2946              Default: no
2947
2948              When set, mutt will periodically calculate message statistics of
2949              a mailbox while polling for new mail.  It will check for unread,
2950              flagged, and total message counts.  (Note: IMAP  mailboxes  only
2951              support unread and total counts).
2952
2953              Because  this  operation  is  more performance intensive, it de‐
2954              faults    to    unset,    and    has    a    separate    option,
2955              $mail_check_stats_interval, to control how often to update these
2956              counts.
2957
2958              Message statistics can also be explicitly calculated by invoking
2959              the <check-stats> function.
2960
2961
2962
2963       mail_check_stats_interval
2964              Type: number
2965              Default: 60
2966
2967              When  $mail_check_stats is set, this variable configures how of‐
2968              ten (in seconds) mutt will update message counts.
2969
2970
2971
2972       mailcap_path
2973              Type: string
2974              Default: “”
2975
2976              This variable specifies which files to consult  when  attempting
2977              to  display MIME bodies not directly supported by Mutt.  The de‐
2978              fault value is generated during startup: see the “mailcap”  sec‐
2979              tion of the manual.
2980
2981
2982
2983       mailcap_sanitize
2984              Type: boolean
2985              Default: yes
2986
2987              If  set, mutt will restrict possible characters in mailcap % ex‐
2988              pandos to a well-defined set of safe characters.   This  is  the
2989              safe setting, but we are not sure it doesn't break some more ad‐
2990              vanced MIME stuff.
2991
2992              DON'T CHANGE THIS SETTING UNLESS YOU ARE REALLY  SURE  WHAT  YOU
2993              ARE DOING!
2994
2995
2996
2997       maildir_header_cache_verify
2998              Type: boolean
2999              Default: yes
3000
3001              Check  for Maildir unaware programs other than mutt having modi‐
3002              fied maildir files when the header cache is in use.  This incurs
3003              one  stat(2)  per message every time the folder is opened (which
3004              can be very slow for NFS folders).
3005
3006
3007
3008       maildir_trash
3009              Type: boolean
3010              Default: no
3011
3012              If set, messages marked  as  deleted  will  be  saved  with  the
3013              maildir  trashed  flag instead of unlinked.  Note: this only ap‐
3014              plies to maildir-style mailboxes.  Setting it will have  no  ef‐
3015              fect on other mailbox types.
3016
3017
3018
3019       maildir_check_cur
3020              Type: boolean
3021              Default: no
3022
3023              If  set,  mutt  will  poll both the new and cur directories of a
3024              maildir folder for new messages.  This might be useful if  other
3025              programs  interacting  with the folder (e.g. dovecot) are moving
3026              new messages to the cur directory.  Note that setting  this  op‐
3027              tion  may  slow  down polling for new messages in large folders,
3028              since mutt has to scan all cur messages.
3029
3030
3031
3032       mark_macro_prefix
3033              Type: string
3034              Default: “'”
3035
3036              Prefix for macros created using mark-message.  A new macro auto‐
3037              matically  generated  with <mark-message>a will be composed from
3038              this prefix and the letter a.
3039
3040
3041
3042       mark_old
3043              Type: boolean
3044              Default: yes
3045
3046              Controls whether or not mutt marks new unread messages as old if
3047              you  exit a mailbox without reading them.  With this option set,
3048              the next time you start mutt, the messages will show up with  an
3049              “O”  next  to  them  in the index menu, indicating that they are
3050              old.
3051
3052
3053
3054       markers
3055              Type: boolean
3056              Default: yes
3057
3058              Controls the display of wrapped lines in the internal pager.  If
3059              set,  a  “+”  marker  is  displayed  at the beginning of wrapped
3060              lines.
3061
3062              Also see the $smart_wrap variable.
3063
3064
3065
3066       mask
3067              Type: regular expression
3068              Default: “!^\.[^.]”
3069
3070              A regular expression used in the file browser,  optionally  pre‐
3071              ceded  by  the  not  operator “!”.  Only files whose names match
3072              this mask will be shown. The match is always case-sensitive.
3073
3074
3075
3076       mbox
3077              Type: path
3078              Default: “~/mbox”
3079
3080              This  specifies  the  folder  into  which  read  mail  in   your
3081              $spoolfile folder will be appended.
3082
3083              Also see the $move variable.
3084
3085
3086
3087       mbox_type
3088              Type: folder magic
3089              Default: mbox
3090
3091              The  default mailbox type used when creating new folders. May be
3092              any of “mbox”, “MMDF”, “MH” and “Maildir”. This is overridden by
3093              the -m command-line option.
3094
3095
3096
3097       menu_context
3098              Type: number
3099              Default: 0
3100
3101              This  variable  controls the number of lines of context that are
3102              given when scrolling through menus. (Similar to $pager_context.)
3103
3104
3105
3106       menu_move_off
3107              Type: boolean
3108              Default: yes
3109
3110              When unset, the bottom entry of menus will never scroll up  past
3111              the  bottom  of  the  screen, unless there are less entries than
3112              lines.  When set, the bottom entry may move off the bottom.
3113
3114
3115
3116       menu_scroll
3117              Type: boolean
3118              Default: no
3119
3120              When set, menus will be scrolled up or down one  line  when  you
3121              attempt  to move across a screen boundary.  If unset, the screen
3122              is cleared and the next or previous page of  the  menu  is  dis‐
3123              played (useful for slow links to avoid many redraws).
3124
3125
3126
3127       message_cache_clean
3128              Type: boolean
3129              Default: no
3130
3131              If  set,  mutt  will clean out obsolete entries from the message
3132              cache when the mailbox is synchronized. You probably  only  want
3133              to  set  it every once in a while, since it can be a little slow
3134              (especially for large folders).
3135
3136
3137
3138       message_cachedir
3139              Type: path
3140              Default: “”
3141
3142              Set this to a directory and mutt will cache copies  of  messages
3143              from  your IMAP and POP servers here. You are free to remove en‐
3144              tries at any time.
3145
3146              When setting this variable to a directory, mutt needs  to  fetch
3147              every  remote  message only once and can perform regular expres‐
3148              sion searches as fast as for local folders.
3149
3150              Also see the $message_cache_clean variable.
3151
3152
3153
3154       message_format
3155              Type: string
3156              Default: “%s”
3157
3158              This is the string displayed in the “attachment”  menu  for  at‐
3159              tachments of type message/rfc822.  For a full listing of defined
3160              printf(3)-like sequences see the section on $index_format.
3161
3162
3163
3164       message_id_format
3165              Type: string
3166              Default: “<%z@%f>”
3167
3168              This variable describes the format of the  Message-ID  generated
3169              when  sending messages.  Mutt 2.0 introduced a more compact for‐
3170              mat, but this variable allows the ability  to  choose  your  own
3171              format.   The value may end in “|” to invoke an external filter.
3172              See formatstrings-filters.
3173
3174              Please note that the Message-ID value follows a  strict  syntax,
3175              and  you  are responsible for ensuring correctness if you change
3176              this from the default.  In particular, the value must follow the
3177              syntax  in  RFC 5322: “”<” id-left ”@” id-right ”>””.  No spaces
3178              are allowed, and id-left should follow the dot-atom-text  syntax
3179              in the RFC.  The id-right should generally be left at %f.
3180
3181              The  old  Message-ID  format  can  be  used  by setting this to:
3182<%Y%02m%02d%02H%02M%02S.G%c%p@%f>
3183
3184              The following printf(3)-style sequences are understood:
3185              %c     step counter looping from “A” to “Z”
3186              %d     current day of the month (GMT)
3187              %f     $hostname
3188              %H     current hour using a 24-hour clock (GMT)
3189              %m     current month number (GMT)
3190              %M     current minute of the hour (GMT)
3191              %p     pid of the running mutt process
3192              %r     3 bytes of pseudorandom data encoded in Base64
3193              %S     current second of the minute (GMT)
3194              %x     1 byte of pseudorandom data hex encoded (example: '1b')
3195              %Y     current year using 4 digits (GMT)
3196              %z     4 byte timestamp + 8 bytes of pseudorandom  data  encoded
3197                     in Base64
3198
3199
3200       meta_key
3201              Type: boolean
3202              Default: no
3203
3204              If  set,  forces  Mutt to interpret keystrokes with the high bit
3205              (bit 8) set as if the user had pressed the Esc key and  whatever
3206              key  remains after having the high bit removed.  For example, if
3207              the key pressed has an ASCII value of 0xf8, then this is treated
3208              as  if  the  user had pressed Esc then “x”.  This is because the
3209              result of removing the high bit from 0xf8 is 0x78, which is  the
3210              ASCII character “x”.
3211
3212
3213
3214       metoo
3215              Type: boolean
3216              Default: no
3217
3218              If  unset,  Mutt  will remove your address (see the “alternates”
3219              command) from the list of recipients when replying to a message.
3220
3221
3222
3223       mh_purge
3224              Type: boolean
3225              Default: no
3226
3227              When unset, mutt will mimic mh's  behavior  and  rename  deleted
3228              messages  to  ,<old  file  name> in mh folders instead of really
3229              deleting them. This leaves the message on disk  but  makes  pro‐
3230              grams  reading the folder ignore it. If the variable is set, the
3231              message files will simply be deleted.
3232
3233              This option is similar to $maildir_trash for Maildir folders.
3234
3235
3236
3237       mh_seq_flagged
3238              Type: string
3239              Default: “flagged”
3240
3241              The name of the MH sequence used for flagged messages.
3242
3243
3244
3245       mh_seq_replied
3246              Type: string
3247              Default: “replied”
3248
3249              The name of the MH sequence used to tag replied messages.
3250
3251
3252
3253       mh_seq_unseen
3254              Type: string
3255              Default: “unseen”
3256
3257              The name of the MH sequence used for unseen messages.
3258
3259
3260
3261       mime_forward
3262              Type: quadoption
3263              Default: no
3264
3265              When set, the message you are forwarding will be attached  as  a
3266              separate  message/rfc822  MIME  part  instead of included in the
3267              main body of the message.  This is useful  for  forwarding  MIME
3268              messages so the receiver can properly view the message as it was
3269              delivered to you. If you like to switch  between  MIME  and  not
3270              MIME  from  mail  to  mail,  set  this  variable  to “ask-no” or
3271              “ask-yes”.
3272
3273              Also see $forward_decode and $mime_forward_decode.
3274
3275
3276
3277       mime_forward_decode
3278              Type: boolean
3279              Default: no
3280
3281              Controls the decoding of complex MIME messages  into  text/plain
3282              when  forwarding a message while $mime_forward is set. Otherwise
3283              $forward_decode is used instead.
3284
3285
3286
3287       mime_forward_rest
3288              Type: quadoption
3289              Default: yes
3290
3291              When forwarding multiple attachments of a MIME message from  the
3292              attachment  menu,  attachments which cannot be decoded in a rea‐
3293              sonable manner will be attached to the newly composed message if
3294              this option is set.
3295
3296
3297
3298       mime_type_query_command
3299              Type: string
3300              Default: “”
3301
3302              This specifies a command to run, to determine the mime type of a
3303              new   attachment   when    composing    a    message.     Unless
3304              $mime_type_query_first  is set, this will only be run if the at‐
3305              tachment's extension is not found in the mime.types file.
3306
3307              The string may contain a “%s”, which will  be  substituted  with
3308              the attachment filename.  Mutt will add quotes around the string
3309              substituted for “%s” automatically according  to  shell  quoting
3310              rules, so you should avoid adding your own.  If no “%s” is found
3311              in the string, Mutt will append the attachment filename  to  the
3312              end of the string.
3313
3314              The  command  should output a single line containing the attach‐
3315              ment's mime type.
3316
3317              Suggested values are “xdg-mime query filetype” or “file -bi”.
3318
3319
3320
3321       mime_type_query_first
3322              Type: boolean
3323              Default: no
3324
3325              When set, the $mime_type_query_command will be  run  before  the
3326              mime.types lookup.
3327
3328
3329
3330       mix_entry_format
3331              Type: string
3332              Default: “%4n %c %-16s %a”
3333
3334              This  variable  describes  the  format of a remailer line on the
3335              mixmaster chain selection screen.  The following  printf(3)-like
3336              sequences are supported:
3337              %n     The running number on the menu.
3338              %c     Remailer capabilities.
3339              %s     The remailer's short name.
3340              %a     The remailer's e-mail address.
3341
3342              (Mixmaster only)
3343
3344
3345
3346       mixmaster
3347              Type: path
3348              Default: “mixmaster”
3349
3350              This  variable contains the path to the Mixmaster binary on your
3351              system.  It is used with various sets of  parameters  to  gather
3352              the  list  of  known  remailers,  and  to finally send a message
3353              through the mixmaster chain. (Mixmaster only)
3354
3355
3356
3357       move
3358              Type: quadoption
3359              Default: no
3360
3361              Controls whether or not Mutt will move read messages  from  your
3362              spool  mailbox to your $mbox mailbox, or as a result of a “mbox-
3363              hook” command.
3364
3365
3366
3367       muttlisp_inline_eval
3368              Type: boolean
3369              Default: no
3370
3371              If set, Mutt will evaluate bare parenthesis  arguments  to  com‐
3372              mands as MuttLisp expressions.
3373
3374
3375
3376       narrow_tree
3377              Type: boolean
3378              Default: no
3379
3380              This  variable, when set, makes the thread tree narrower, allow‐
3381              ing deeper threads to fit on the screen.
3382
3383
3384
3385       net_inc
3386              Type: number
3387              Default: 10
3388
3389              Operations that expect to transfer a large amount of  data  over
3390              the network will update their progress every $net_inc kilobytes.
3391              If set to 0, no progress messages will be displayed.
3392
3393              See also $read_inc, $write_inc and $net_inc.
3394
3395
3396
3397       new_mail_command
3398              Type: path
3399              Default: “”
3400
3401              If set, Mutt will call this command after a new message  is  re‐
3402              ceived.   See  the  $status_format  documentation for the values
3403              that can be formatted into this command.
3404
3405
3406
3407       pager
3408              Type: path
3409              Default: “builtin”
3410
3411              This variable specifies which pager you would  like  to  use  to
3412              view  messages.  The  value  “builtin” means to use the built-in
3413              pager, otherwise this variable should specify  the  pathname  of
3414              the external pager you would like to use.
3415
3416              Using  an external pager may have some disadvantages: Additional
3417              keystrokes are necessary because you can't call  mutt  functions
3418              directly  from  the pager, and screen resizes cause lines longer
3419              than the screen width to be badly formatted in the help menu.
3420
3421              When using an external pager, also see $prompt_after  which  de‐
3422              faults set.
3423
3424
3425
3426       pager_context
3427              Type: number
3428              Default: 0
3429
3430              This  variable  controls the number of lines of context that are
3431              given when displaying the next or previous page in the  internal
3432              pager.   By  default,  Mutt will display the line after the last
3433              one on the screen at the top of the next page (0 lines  of  con‐
3434              text).
3435
3436              This  variable  also  specifies  the amount of context given for
3437              search results. If positive, this many lines will be  given  be‐
3438              fore a match, if 0, the match will be top-aligned.
3439
3440
3441
3442       pager_format
3443              Type: string
3444              Default: “-%Z- %C/%m: %-20.20n   %s%*  -- (%P)”
3445
3446              This  variable controls the format of the one-line message “sta‐
3447              tus” displayed before each message in either the internal or  an
3448              external  pager.   The  valid  sequences  are listed in the $in‐
3449              dex_format section.
3450
3451
3452
3453       pager_index_lines
3454              Type: number
3455              Default: 0
3456
3457              Determines the number of lines of a mini-index  which  is  shown
3458              when  in the pager.  The current message, unless near the top or
3459              bottom of the folder, will be roughly one third of the way  down
3460              this mini-index, giving the reader the context of a few messages
3461              before and after the message.  This is useful, for  example,  to
3462              determine  how  many  messages  remain to be read in the current
3463              thread.  One of the lines is reserved for the  status  bar  from
3464              the  index,  so a setting of 6 will only show 5 lines of the ac‐
3465              tual index.  A value of 0 results in no index being  shown.   If
3466              the  number  of  messages  in  the  current  folder is less than
3467              $pager_index_lines, then the index will only use as  many  lines
3468              as it needs.
3469
3470
3471
3472       pager_skip_quoted_context
3473              Type: number
3474              Default: 0
3475
3476              Determines the number of lines of context to show before the un‐
3477              quoted text when using <skip-quoted>. When  set  to  a  positive
3478              number  at  most  that many lines of the previous quote are dis‐
3479              played. If the previous quote is shorter the whole quote is dis‐
3480              played.
3481
3482
3483
3484       pager_stop
3485              Type: boolean
3486              Default: no
3487
3488              When  set,  the internal-pager will not move to the next message
3489              when you are at the end of a message and invoke the  <next-page>
3490              function.
3491
3492
3493
3494       pattern_format
3495              Type: string
3496              Default: “%2n %-15e  %d”
3497
3498              This  variable  describes the format of the “pattern completion”
3499              menu. The following printf(3)-style sequences are understood:
3500              %d     pattern description
3501              %e     pattern expression
3502              %n     index number
3503
3504       pgp_auto_decode
3505              Type: boolean
3506              Default: no
3507
3508              If set, mutt will automatically attempt to  decrypt  traditional
3509              PGP messages whenever the user performs an operation which ordi‐
3510              narily would result in the contents of the message  being  oper‐
3511              ated  on.   For  example, if the user displays a pgp-traditional
3512              message which has not been manually checked with the <check-tra‐
3513              ditional-pgp>  function,  mutt will automatically check the mes‐
3514              sage for traditional pgp.
3515
3516
3517
3518       pgp_autoinline
3519              Type: boolean
3520              Default: no
3521
3522              This option controls whether  Mutt  generates  old-style  inline
3523              (traditional)  PGP  encrypted  or  signed messages under certain
3524              circumstances.  This can be overridden by use of the  pgp  menu,
3525              when inline is not required.  The GPGME backend does not support
3526              this option.
3527
3528              Note that Mutt might automatically  use  PGP/MIME  for  messages
3529              which consist of more than a single MIME part.  Mutt can be con‐
3530              figured to ask before  sending  PGP/MIME  messages  when  inline
3531              (traditional) would not work.
3532
3533              Also see the $pgp_mime_auto variable.
3534
3535              Also  note  that  using  the  old-style  PGP  message  format is
3536              strongly deprecated.  (PGP only)
3537
3538
3539
3540       pgp_check_exit
3541              Type: boolean
3542              Default: yes
3543
3544              If set, mutt will check the exit code of the PGP subprocess when
3545              signing or encrypting.  A non-zero exit code means that the sub‐
3546              process failed.  (PGP only)
3547
3548
3549
3550       pgp_check_gpg_decrypt_status_fd
3551              Type: boolean
3552              Default: yes
3553
3554              If set, mutt will check the status  file  descriptor  output  of
3555              $pgp_decrypt_command  and  $pgp_decode_command  for GnuPG status
3556              codes indicating successful decryption.  This will check for the
3557              presence  of  DECRYPTION_OKAY, absence of DECRYPTION_FAILED, and
3558              that all  PLAINTEXT  occurs  between  the  BEGIN_DECRYPTION  and
3559              END_DECRYPTION status codes.
3560
3561              If  unset,  mutt will instead match the status fd output against
3562              $pgp_decryption_okay.  (PGP only)
3563
3564
3565
3566       pgp_clearsign_command
3567              Type: string
3568              Default: “”
3569
3570              This format is used to create  an  old-style  “clearsigned”  PGP
3571              message.   Note  that  the use of this format is strongly depre‐
3572              cated.
3573
3574              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3575              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3576
3577
3578
3579       pgp_decode_command
3580              Type: string
3581              Default: “”
3582
3583              This  format strings specifies a command which is used to decode
3584              application/pgp attachments.
3585
3586              The PGP command formats have their own set of printf(3)-like se‐
3587              quences:
3588              %p     Expands  to  PGPPASSFD=0 when a pass phrase is needed, to
3589                     an empty string otherwise. Note: This may be used with  a
3590                     %? construct.
3591              %f     Expands to the name of a file containing a message.
3592              %s     Expands  to  the  name of a file containing the signature
3593                     part
3594                                of a multipart/signed attachment when  verify‐
3595                     ing it.
3596              %a     The  value of $pgp_sign_as if set, otherwise the value of
3597                     $pgp_default_key.
3598              %r     One or more key IDs (or fingerprints if available).
3599
3600              For examples on how to configure these formats for  the  various
3601              versions  of  PGP which are floating around, see the pgp and gpg
3602              sample configuration files in the  samples/  subdirectory  which
3603              has  been  installed on your system alongside the documentation.
3604              (PGP only)
3605
3606
3607
3608       pgp_decrypt_command
3609              Type: string
3610              Default: “”
3611
3612              This command is used to decrypt a PGP encrypted message.
3613
3614              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3615              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3616
3617
3618
3619       pgp_decryption_okay
3620              Type: regular expression
3621              Default: “”
3622
3623              If  you assign text to this variable, then an encrypted PGP mes‐
3624              sage is only considered successfully  decrypted  if  the  output
3625              from  $pgp_decrypt_command  contains  the text.  This is used to
3626              protect against a spoofed encrypted message, with  multipart/en‐
3627              crypted  headers but containing a block that is not actually en‐
3628              crypted.  (e.g. simply signed and ascii armored text).
3629
3630              Note that if $pgp_check_gpg_decrypt_status_fd is set, this vari‐
3631              able is ignored.  (PGP only)
3632
3633
3634
3635       pgp_default_key
3636              Type: string
3637              Default: “”
3638
3639              This is the default key-pair to use for PGP operations.  It will
3640              be used for encryption (see $postpone_encrypt and  $pgp_self_en‐
3641              crypt).
3642
3643              It will also be used for signing unless $pgp_sign_as is set.
3644
3645              The  (now  deprecated)  pgp_self_encrypt_as is an alias for this
3646              variable, and should no longer be used.  (PGP only)
3647
3648
3649
3650       pgp_encrypt_only_command
3651              Type: string
3652              Default: “”
3653
3654              This command is used to encrypt a body part without signing it.
3655
3656              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3657              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3658
3659
3660
3661       pgp_encrypt_sign_command
3662              Type: string
3663              Default: “”
3664
3665              This command is used to both sign and encrypt a body part.
3666
3667              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3668              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3669
3670
3671
3672       pgp_entry_format
3673              Type: string
3674              Default: “%4n %t%f %4l/0x%k %-4a %2c %u”
3675
3676              This variable allows you to customize the PGP key selection menu
3677              to your personal taste. This string is similar to $index_format,
3678              but has its own set of printf(3)-like sequences:
3679              %n     number
3680              %k     key id
3681              %u     user id
3682              %a     algorithm
3683              %l     key length
3684              %f     flags
3685              %c     capabilities
3686              %t     trust/validity of the key-uid association
3687              %[<s>] date of the key where <s> is an strftime(3) expression
3688
3689              (PGP only)
3690
3691
3692
3693       pgp_export_command
3694              Type: string
3695              Default: “”
3696
3697              This command is used to export a public key from the user's  key
3698              ring.
3699
3700              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3701              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3702
3703
3704
3705       pgp_getkeys_command
3706              Type: string
3707              Default: “”
3708
3709              This command is invoked whenever Mutt needs to fetch the  public
3710              key  associated  with  an  email address.  Of the sequences sup‐
3711              ported by $pgp_decode_command, %r is the only printf(3)-like se‐
3712              quence  used  with  this format.  Note that in this case, %r ex‐
3713              pands to the email address, not the public key ID (the key ID is
3714              unknown,  which  is  why  Mutt  is invoking this command).  (PGP
3715              only)
3716
3717
3718
3719       pgp_good_sign
3720              Type: regular expression
3721              Default: “”
3722
3723              If you assign a text to this variable, then a PGP  signature  is
3724              only  considered verified if the output from $pgp_verify_command
3725              contains the text. Use this variable if the exit code  from  the
3726              command is 0 even for bad signatures.  (PGP only)
3727
3728
3729
3730       pgp_ignore_subkeys
3731              Type: boolean
3732              Default: yes
3733
3734              Setting this variable will cause Mutt to ignore OpenPGP subkeys.
3735              Instead, the principal key will inherit the  subkeys'  capabili‐
3736              ties.   Unset this if you want to play interesting key selection
3737              games.  (PGP only)
3738
3739
3740
3741       pgp_import_command
3742              Type: string
3743              Default: “”
3744
3745              This command is used to import a key from  a  message  into  the
3746              user's public key ring.
3747
3748              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3749              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3750
3751
3752
3753       pgp_list_pubring_command
3754              Type: string
3755              Default: “”
3756
3757              This command is used to list the  public  key  ring's  contents.
3758              The output format must be analogous to the one used by
3759
3760
3761              gpg --list-keys --with-colons --with-fingerprint
3762
3763
3764              This  format is also generated by the mutt_pgpring utility which
3765              comes with mutt.
3766
3767              Note: gpg's fixed-list-mode option should not be used.  It  pro‐
3768              duces  a  different date format which may result in mutt showing
3769              incorrect key generation dates.
3770
3771              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3772              possible  printf(3)-like  sequences.  Note that in this case, %r
3773              expands to the search string, which is a list  of  one  or  more
3774              quoted values such as email address, name, or keyid.  (PGP only)
3775
3776
3777
3778       pgp_list_secring_command
3779              Type: string
3780              Default: “”
3781
3782              This  command  is  used  to list the secret key ring's contents.
3783              The output format must be analogous to the one used by:
3784
3785
3786              gpg --list-keys --with-colons --with-fingerprint
3787
3788
3789              This format is also generated by the mutt_pgpring utility  which
3790              comes with mutt.
3791
3792              Note:  gpg's fixed-list-mode option should not be used.  It pro‐
3793              duces a different date format which may result in  mutt  showing
3794              incorrect key generation dates.
3795
3796              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3797              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  Note that in this  case,  %r
3798              expands  to  the  search  string, which is a list of one or more
3799              quoted values such as email address, name, or keyid.  (PGP only)
3800
3801
3802
3803       pgp_long_ids
3804              Type: boolean
3805              Default: yes
3806
3807              If set, use 64 bit PGP key IDs, if unset use the normal  32  bit
3808              key  IDs.  NOTE: Internally, Mutt has transitioned to using fin‐
3809              gerprints (or long key IDs as a fallback).  This option now only
3810              controls  the display of key IDs in the key selection menu and a
3811              few other places.  (PGP only)
3812
3813
3814
3815       pgp_mime_auto
3816              Type: quadoption
3817              Default: ask-yes
3818
3819              This option controls whether Mutt will prompt you for  automati‐
3820              cally  sending  a (signed/encrypted) message using PGP/MIME when
3821              inline (traditional) fails (for any reason).
3822
3823              Also note  that  using  the  old-style  PGP  message  format  is
3824              strongly deprecated.  (PGP only)
3825
3826
3827
3828       pgp_replyinline
3829              Type: boolean
3830              Default: no
3831
3832              Setting  this variable will cause Mutt to always attempt to cre‐
3833              ate an inline (traditional) message when replying to  a  message
3834              which is PGP encrypted/signed inline.  This can be overridden by
3835              use of the pgp menu, when inline is not required.   This  option
3836              does not automatically detect if the (replied-to) message is in‐
3837              line;  instead  it  relies  on  Mutt  internals  for  previously
3838              checked/flagged messages.
3839
3840              Note  that  Mutt  might  automatically use PGP/MIME for messages
3841              which consist of more than a single MIME part.  Mutt can be con‐
3842              figured  to  ask  before  sending  PGP/MIME messages when inline
3843              (traditional) would not work.
3844
3845              Also see the $pgp_mime_auto variable.
3846
3847              Also note  that  using  the  old-style  PGP  message  format  is
3848              strongly deprecated.  (PGP only)
3849
3850
3851
3852       pgp_retainable_sigs
3853              Type: boolean
3854              Default: no
3855
3856              If  set,  signed  and  encrypted messages will consist of nested
3857              multipart/signed and multipart/encrypted body parts.
3858
3859              This is useful for applications like encrypted and signed  mail‐
3860              ing  lists,  where  the outer layer (multipart/encrypted) can be
3861              easily removed, while the inner  multipart/signed  part  is  re‐
3862              tained.  (PGP only)
3863
3864
3865
3866       pgp_self_encrypt
3867              Type: boolean
3868              Default: yes
3869
3870              When  set,  PGP  encrypted messages will also be encrypted using
3871              the key in $pgp_default_key.  (PGP only)
3872
3873
3874
3875       pgp_show_unusable
3876              Type: boolean
3877              Default: yes
3878
3879              If set, mutt will display non-usable keys on the PGP key  selec‐
3880              tion menu.  This includes keys which have been revoked, have ex‐
3881              pired, or have been marked as  “disabled”  by  the  user.   (PGP
3882              only)
3883
3884
3885
3886       pgp_sign_as
3887              Type: string
3888              Default: “”
3889
3890              If  you have a different key pair to use for signing, you should
3891              set this to the signing key.  Most people will only need to  set
3892              $pgp_default_key.  It is recommended that you use the keyid form
3893              to specify your key (e.g. 0x00112233).  (PGP only)
3894
3895
3896
3897       pgp_sign_command
3898              Type: string
3899              Default: “”
3900
3901              This command is used to create the detached PGP signature for  a
3902              multipart/signed PGP/MIME body part.
3903
3904              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3905              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3906
3907
3908
3909       pgp_sort_keys
3910              Type: sort order
3911              Default: address
3912
3913              Specifies how the entries in the pgp menu are sorted.  The  fol‐
3914              lowing are legal values:
3915              address
3916                     sort alphabetically by user id
3917              keyid  sort alphabetically by key id
3918              date   sort by key creation date
3919              trust  sort by the trust of the key
3920
3921              If  you prefer reverse order of the above values, prefix it with
3922              “reverse-”.  (PGP only)
3923
3924
3925
3926       pgp_strict_enc
3927              Type: boolean
3928              Default: yes
3929
3930              If set, Mutt will automatically encode PGP/MIME signed  messages
3931              as  quoted-printable.   Please note that unsetting this variable
3932              may lead to problems with non-verifyable PGP signatures, so only
3933              change this if you know what you are doing.  (PGP only)
3934
3935
3936
3937       pgp_timeout
3938              Type: number (long)
3939              Default: 300
3940
3941              The  number  of seconds after which a cached passphrase will ex‐
3942              pire if not used.  (PGP only)
3943
3944
3945
3946       pgp_use_gpg_agent
3947              Type: boolean
3948              Default: no
3949
3950              If set, mutt expects a gpg-agent(1) process will handle  private
3951              key  passphrase  prompts.   If  unset,  mutt will prompt for the
3952              passphrase and pass it via stdin to the pgp command.
3953
3954              Note that as of version 2.1, GnuPG automatically spawns an agent
3955              and requires the agent be used for passphrase management.  Since
3956              that version is increasingly prevalent, this  variable  now  de‐
3957              faults set.
3958
3959              Mutt  works with a GUI or curses pinentry program.  A TTY pinen‐
3960              try should not be used.
3961
3962              If you are using an older version of GnuPG without an agent run‐
3963              ning,  or  another encryption program without an agent, you will
3964              need to unset this variable.  (PGP only)
3965
3966
3967
3968       pgp_verify_command
3969              Type: string
3970              Default: “”
3971
3972              This command is used to verify PGP signatures.
3973
3974              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3975              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3976
3977
3978
3979       pgp_verify_key_command
3980              Type: string
3981              Default: “”
3982
3983              This  command is used to verify key information from the key se‐
3984              lection menu.
3985
3986              This is a format string, see the $pgp_decode_command command for
3987              possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (PGP only)
3988
3989
3990
3991       pipe_decode
3992              Type: boolean
3993              Default: no
3994
3995              Used  in  connection with the <pipe-message> function.  When un‐
3996              set, Mutt will pipe the messages without any preprocessing. When
3997              set, Mutt will attempt to decode the messages first.
3998
3999              Also  see $pipe_decode_weed, which controls whether headers will
4000              be weeded when this is set.
4001
4002
4003
4004       pipe_decode_weed
4005              Type: boolean
4006              Default: yes
4007
4008              For <pipe-message>, when $pipe_decode is set, this further  con‐
4009              trols whether Mutt will weed headers.
4010
4011
4012
4013       pipe_sep
4014              Type: string
4015              Default: “\n”
4016
4017              The  separator  to  add  between  messages when piping a list of
4018              tagged messages to an external Unix command.
4019
4020
4021
4022       pipe_split
4023              Type: boolean
4024              Default: no
4025
4026              Used in connection with the  <pipe-message>  function  following
4027              <tag-prefix>.   If this variable is unset, when piping a list of
4028              tagged messages Mutt will concatenate the messages and will pipe
4029              them  all  concatenated.   When set, Mutt will pipe the messages
4030              one by one.  In both cases the messages are piped in the current
4031              sorted  order,  and  the $pipe_sep separator is added after each
4032              message.
4033
4034
4035
4036       pop_auth_try_all
4037              Type: boolean
4038              Default: yes
4039
4040              If set, Mutt will  try  all  available  authentication  methods.
4041              When  unset,  Mutt  will  only fall back to other authentication
4042              methods if the previous methods are unavailable. If a method  is
4043              available but authentication fails, Mutt will not connect to the
4044              POP server.
4045
4046
4047
4048       pop_authenticators
4049              Type: string
4050              Default: “”
4051
4052              This is a colon-delimited list of  authentication  methods  mutt
4053              may attempt to use to log in to an POP server, in the order mutt
4054              should try them.   Authentication  methods  are  either  “user”,
4055              “apop”  or  any  SASL  mechanism, e.g. “digest-md5”, “gssapi” or
4056              “cram-md5”.  This option is case-insensitive. If this option  is
4057              unset  (the default) mutt will try all available methods, in or‐
4058              der from most-secure to least-secure.
4059
4060              Example:
4061
4062
4063              set pop_authenticators=”digest-md5:apop:user”
4064
4065
4066
4067
4068       pop_checkinterval
4069              Type: number
4070              Default: 60
4071
4072              This variable configures how often (in seconds) mutt should look
4073              for  new  mail  in the currently selected mailbox if it is a POP
4074              mailbox.
4075
4076
4077
4078       pop_delete
4079              Type: quadoption
4080              Default: ask-no
4081
4082              If set, Mutt will delete successfully downloaded  messages  from
4083              the  POP  server when using the <fetch-mail> function.  When un‐
4084              set, Mutt will download messages but also leave them on the  POP
4085              server.
4086
4087
4088
4089       pop_host
4090              Type: string
4091              Default: “”
4092
4093              The  name of your POP server for the <fetch-mail> function.  You
4094              can also specify an alternative  port,  username  and  password,
4095              i.e.:
4096
4097
4098              [pop[s]://][username[:password]@]popserver[:port]
4099
4100
4101              where “[...]” denotes an optional part.
4102
4103
4104
4105       pop_last
4106              Type: boolean
4107              Default: no
4108
4109              If  this  variable  is  set, mutt will try to use the “LAST” POP
4110              command for retrieving only unread messages from the POP  server
4111              when using the <fetch-mail> function.
4112
4113
4114
4115       pop_oauth_refresh_command
4116              Type: string
4117              Default: “”
4118
4119              The command to run to generate an OAUTH refresh token for autho‐
4120              rizing your connection to your POP server.  This command will be
4121              run  on  every  connection attempt that uses the OAUTHBEARER au‐
4122              thentication mechanism.  See “oauth” for details.
4123
4124
4125
4126       pop_pass
4127              Type: string
4128              Default: “”
4129
4130              Specifies the password for your POP  account.   If  unset,  Mutt
4131              will prompt you for your password when you open a POP mailbox.
4132
4133              Warning:  you  should  only  use  this  option when you are on a
4134              fairly secure machine, because the superuser can read your  mut‐
4135              trc even if you are the only one who can read the file.
4136
4137
4138
4139       pop_reconnect
4140              Type: quadoption
4141              Default: ask-yes
4142
4143              Controls  whether  or  not Mutt will try to reconnect to the POP
4144              server if the connection is lost.
4145
4146
4147
4148       pop_user
4149              Type: string
4150              Default: “”
4151
4152              Your login name on the POP server.
4153
4154              This variable defaults to your user name on the local machine.
4155
4156
4157
4158       post_indent_string
4159              Type: string
4160              Default: “”
4161
4162              Similar to the $attribution  variable,  Mutt  will  append  this
4163              string  after  the inclusion of a message which is being replied
4164              to.  For a full listing of defined printf(3)-like sequences  see
4165              the section on $index_format.
4166
4167
4168
4169       postpone
4170              Type: quadoption
4171              Default: ask-yes
4172
4173              Controls  whether  or  not  messages are saved in the $postponed
4174              mailbox when you elect not to send immediately.
4175
4176              Also see the $recall variable.
4177
4178
4179
4180       postponed
4181              Type: path
4182              Default: “~/postponed”
4183
4184              Mutt allows you to indefinitely  “postpone  sending  a  message”
4185              which  you  are editing.  When you choose to postpone a message,
4186              Mutt saves it in the mailbox specified by this variable.
4187
4188              Also see the $postpone variable.
4189
4190
4191
4192       postpone_encrypt
4193              Type: boolean
4194              Default: no
4195
4196              When set, postponed messages that are marked for encryption will
4197              be  self-encrypted.   Mutt  will  first try to encrypt using the
4198              value specified in $pgp_default_key or  $smime_default_key.   If
4199              those  are  not  set,  it  will try the deprecated $postpone_en‐
4200              crypt_as.  (Crypto only)
4201
4202
4203
4204       postpone_encrypt_as
4205              Type: string
4206              Default: “”
4207
4208              This is a deprecated fall-back variable  for  $postpone_encrypt.
4209              Please  use  $pgp_default_key  or  $smime_default_key.   (Crypto
4210              only)
4211
4212
4213
4214       preconnect
4215              Type: string
4216              Default: “”
4217
4218              If set, a shell command to be executed if mutt fails  to  estab‐
4219              lish  a  connection to the server. This is useful for setting up
4220              secure connections, e.g. with ssh(1). If the command  returns  a
4221              nonzero status, mutt gives up opening the server. Example:
4222
4223
4224              set preconnect=”ssh -f -q -L 1234:mailhost.net:143 mailhost.net \
4225              sleep 20 < /dev/null > /dev/null”
4226
4227
4228              Mailbox  “foo”  on “mailhost.net” can now be reached as “{local‐
4229              host:1234}foo”.
4230
4231              Note: For this example to work, you must be able to  log  in  to
4232              the remote machine without having to enter a password.
4233
4234
4235
4236       print
4237              Type: quadoption
4238              Default: ask-no
4239
4240              Controls  whether  or  not Mutt really prints messages.  This is
4241              set to “ask-no” by default, because some people accidentally hit
4242              “p” often.
4243
4244
4245
4246       print_command
4247              Type: path
4248              Default: “lpr”
4249
4250              This  specifies  the  command  pipe that should be used to print
4251              messages.
4252
4253
4254
4255       print_decode
4256              Type: boolean
4257              Default: yes
4258
4259              Used in connection with the <print-message> function.   If  this
4260              option is set, the message is decoded before it is passed to the
4261              external command specified by $print_command.  If this option is
4262              unset,  no processing will be applied to the message when print‐
4263              ing it.  The latter setting may be useful if you are using  some
4264              advanced  printer filter which is able to properly format e-mail
4265              messages for printing.
4266
4267              Also see $print_decode_weed, which controls whether headers will
4268              be weeded when this is set.
4269
4270
4271
4272       print_decode_weed
4273              Type: boolean
4274              Default: yes
4275
4276              For  <print-message>,  when  $print_decode  is set, this further
4277              controls whether Mutt will weed headers.
4278
4279
4280
4281       print_split
4282              Type: boolean
4283              Default: no
4284
4285              Used in connection with the <print-message> function.   If  this
4286              option  is  set, the command specified by $print_command is exe‐
4287              cuted once for each message which is to be printed.  If this op‐
4288              tion  is  unset, the command specified by $print_command is exe‐
4289              cuted only once, and all the messages are concatenated,  with  a
4290              form feed as the message separator.
4291
4292              Those  who use the enscript(1) program's mail-printing mode will
4293              most likely want to set this option.
4294
4295
4296
4297       prompt_after
4298              Type: boolean
4299              Default: yes
4300
4301              If you use an external $pager, setting this variable will  cause
4302              Mutt  to  prompt  you  for a command when the pager exits rather
4303              than returning to the index menu.  If unset, Mutt will return to
4304              the index menu when the external pager exits.
4305
4306
4307
4308       query_command
4309              Type: path
4310              Default: “”
4311
4312              This  specifies  the  command Mutt will use to make external ad‐
4313              dress queries.  The string may contain a  “%s”,  which  will  be
4314              substituted with the query string the user types.  Mutt will add
4315              quotes around the string substituted for “%s” automatically  ac‐
4316              cording  to shell quoting rules, so you should avoid adding your
4317              own.  If no “%s” is found in the string, Mutt  will  append  the
4318              user's query to the end of the string.  See “query” for more in‐
4319              formation.
4320
4321
4322
4323       query_format
4324              Type: string
4325              Default: “%4c %t %-25.25a %-25.25n %?e?(%e)?”
4326
4327              This variable describes the format of the “query” menu. The fol‐
4328              lowing printf(3)-style sequences are understood:
4329              %a     destination address
4330              %c     current entry number
4331              %e     extra information *
4332              %n     destination name
4333              %t     “*” if current entry is tagged, a space otherwise
4334              %>X    right justify the rest of the string and pad with “X”
4335              %|X    pad to the end of the line with “X”
4336              %*X    soft-fill with character “X” as pad
4337
4338              For  an  explanation of “soft-fill”, see the $index_format docu‐
4339              mentation.
4340
4341              * = can be optionally printed if nonzero, see the $status_format
4342              documentation.
4343
4344
4345
4346       quit
4347              Type: quadoption
4348              Default: yes
4349
4350              This  variable  controls whether “quit” and “exit” actually quit
4351              from mutt.  If this option is set, they do quit, if it is unset,
4352              they  have no effect, and if it is set to ask-yes or ask-no, you
4353              are prompted for confirmation when you try to quit.
4354
4355
4356
4357       quote_regexp
4358              Type: regular expression
4359              Default: “^([ \t]*[|>:}#])+”
4360
4361              A regular expression used in the  internal  pager  to  determine
4362              quoted  sections  of  text in the body of a message. Quoted text
4363              may be filtered out using the <toggle-quoted> command,  or  col‐
4364              ored according to the “color quoted” family of directives.
4365
4366              Higher  levels  of  quoting  may  be colored differently (“color
4367              quoted1”, “color quoted2”, etc.). The quoting  level  is  deter‐
4368              mined  by  removing the last character from the matched text and
4369              recursively reapplying the regular expression until it fails  to
4370              produce a match.
4371
4372              Match  detection  may  be overridden by the $smileys regular ex‐
4373              pression.
4374
4375
4376
4377       read_inc
4378              Type: number
4379              Default: 10
4380
4381              If set to a value greater than 0, Mutt will display  which  mes‐
4382              sage  it is currently on when reading a mailbox or when perform‐
4383              ing search actions such as search  and  limit.  The  message  is
4384              printed  after  this  many  messages  have been read or searched
4385              (e.g., if set to 25, Mutt will print a message  when  it  is  at
4386              message  25,  and  then again when it gets to message 50).  This
4387              variable is meant to indicate progress when reading or searching
4388              large mailboxes which may take some time.  When set to 0, only a
4389              single message will appear before the reading the mailbox.
4390
4391              Also see the $write_inc, $net_inc and  $time_inc  variables  and
4392              the  “tuning”  section  of the manual for performance considera‐
4393              tions.
4394
4395
4396
4397       read_only
4398              Type: boolean
4399              Default: no
4400
4401              If set, all folders are opened in read-only mode.
4402
4403
4404
4405       realname
4406              Type: string
4407              Default: “”
4408
4409              This variable specifies what “real” or “personal” name should be
4410              used when sending messages.
4411
4412              By default, this is the GECOS field from /etc/passwd.  Note that
4413              this variable will not be used when the user has set a real name
4414              in the $from variable.
4415
4416
4417
4418       recall
4419              Type: quadoption
4420              Default: ask-yes
4421
4422              Controls  whether  or  not  Mutt recalls postponed messages when
4423              composing a new message.
4424
4425              Setting this variable to yes is not generally useful,  and  thus
4426              not recommended.  Note that the <recall-message> function can be
4427              used to manually recall postponed messages.
4428
4429              Also see $postponed variable.
4430
4431
4432
4433       record
4434              Type: path
4435              Default: “~/sent”
4436
4437              This specifies the file into which your outgoing messages should
4438              be  appended.  (This is meant as the primary method for saving a
4439              copy of your messages, but another way to do this is  using  the
4440              “my_hdr”  command  to  create a “Bcc:” field with your email ad‐
4441              dress in it.)
4442
4443              The value of  $record  is  overridden  by  the  $force_name  and
4444              $save_name  variables,  and  the  “fcc-hook”  command.  Also see
4445              $copy and $write_bcc.
4446
4447              Multiple mailboxes may be specified if $fcc_delimiter is set  to
4448              a string delimiter.
4449
4450
4451
4452       reflow_space_quotes
4453              Type: boolean
4454              Default: yes
4455
4456              This  option controls how quotes from format=flowed messages are
4457              displayed in the pager and when replying (with $text_flowed  un‐
4458              set).   When  set,  this  option adds spaces after each level of
4459              quote marks, turning ”>>>foo” into ”> > > foo”.
4460
4461              Note: If $reflow_text is  unset,  this  option  has  no  effect.
4462              Also,  this  option does not affect replies when $text_flowed is
4463              set.
4464
4465
4466
4467       reflow_text
4468              Type: boolean
4469              Default: yes
4470
4471              When set, Mutt will  reformat  paragraphs  in  text/plain  parts
4472              marked  format=flowed.   If  unset, Mutt will display paragraphs
4473              unaltered from how they appear in the message body.  See RFC3676
4474              for details on the format=flowed format.
4475
4476              Also see $reflow_wrap, and $wrap.
4477
4478
4479
4480       reflow_wrap
4481              Type: number
4482              Default: 78
4483
4484              This  variable  controls the maximum paragraph width when refor‐
4485              matting text/plain parts when $reflow_text  is  set.   When  the
4486              value  is  0, paragraphs will be wrapped at the terminal's right
4487              margin.  A positive value sets the paragraph width  relative  to
4488              the left margin.  A negative value set the paragraph width rela‐
4489              tive to the right margin.
4490
4491              Also see $wrap.
4492
4493
4494
4495       reply_regexp
4496              Type: regular expression (localized)
4497              Default: “^(re)(\[[0-9]+\])*:[ \t]*”
4498
4499              A regular expression  used  to  recognize  reply  messages  when
4500              threading  and  replying.  The  default value corresponds to the
4501              standard Latin ”Re:” prefix.
4502
4503              This value may have been localized by the  translator  for  your
4504              locale, adding other prefixes that are common in the locale. You
4505              can add your own prefixes by appending inside ”^(re)”.  For  ex‐
4506              ample: ”^(re|se)” or ”^(re|aw|se)”.
4507
4508              The  second parenthesized expression matches zero or more brack‐
4509              eted numbers following the prefix, such as ”Re[1]: ”.  The  ini‐
4510              tial  ”\\[”  means  a  literal left-bracket character.  Note the
4511              backslash must be doubled  when  used  inside  a  double  quoted
4512              string  in  the  muttrc.   ”[0-9]+”  means  one or more numbers.
4513              ”\\]” means a literal right-bracket.  Finally the  whole  paren‐
4514              thesized  expression has a ”*” suffix, meaning it can occur zero
4515              or more times.
4516
4517              The last part matches a colon followed by an optional  space  or
4518              tab.   Note  ”\t”  is converted to a literal tab inside a double
4519              quoted string.  If you use a single  quoted  string,  you  would
4520              have  to type an actual tab character, and would need to convert
4521              the double-backslashes to single backslashes.
4522
4523              Note: the result of this regexp match  against  the  subject  is
4524              stored  in the header cache.  Mutt isn't smart enough to invali‐
4525              date a header cache entry based on changing $reply_regexp, so if
4526              you  aren't  seeing correct values in the index, try temporarily
4527              turning off the header cache.  If that fixes the  problem,  then
4528              once  the  variable  is  set  to  your liking, remove your stale
4529              header cache files and turn the header cache back on.
4530
4531
4532
4533       reply_self
4534              Type: boolean
4535              Default: no
4536
4537              If unset and you are replying to a message  sent  by  you,  Mutt
4538              will  assume  that  you  want to reply to the recipients of that
4539              message rather than to yourself.
4540
4541              Also see the “alternates” command.
4542
4543
4544
4545       reply_to
4546              Type: quadoption
4547              Default: ask-yes
4548
4549              If set, when replying to a message, Mutt will  use  the  address
4550              listed  in  the  Reply-to: header as the recipient of the reply.
4551              If unset, it will use the address in the From: header field  in‐
4552              stead.   This  option  is useful for reading a mailing list that
4553              sets the Reply-To: header field to the list address and you want
4554              to send a private message to the author of a message.
4555
4556
4557
4558       resolve
4559              Type: boolean
4560              Default: yes
4561
4562              When  set, the cursor will be automatically advanced to the next
4563              (possibly undeleted) message whenever a  command  that  modifies
4564              the current message is executed.
4565
4566
4567
4568       resume_draft_files
4569              Type: boolean
4570              Default: no
4571
4572              If  set,  draft  files (specified by -H on the command line) are
4573              processed similarly to when resuming a postponed  message.   Re‐
4574              cipients  are not prompted for; send-hooks are not evaluated; no
4575              alias expansion takes place; user-defined headers and signatures
4576              are not added to the message.
4577
4578
4579
4580       resume_edited_draft_files
4581              Type: boolean
4582              Default: yes
4583
4584              If  set, draft files previously edited (via -E -H on the command
4585              line) will have $resume_draft_files automatically set when  they
4586              are used as a draft file again.
4587
4588              The  first  time  a draft file is saved, mutt will add a header,
4589              X-Mutt-Resume-Draft to the saved file.  The next time the  draft
4590              file  is  read  in,  if  mutt  sees the header, it will set $re‐
4591              sume_draft_files.
4592
4593              This option is designed to prevent multiple signatures, user-de‐
4594              fined headers, and other processing effects from being made mul‐
4595              tiple times to the draft file.
4596
4597
4598
4599       reverse_alias
4600              Type: boolean
4601              Default: no
4602
4603              This variable controls whether or  not  Mutt  will  display  the
4604              “personal”  name from your aliases in the index menu if it finds
4605              an alias that matches the message's sender.  For example, if you
4606              have the following alias:
4607
4608
4609              alias juser abd30425@somewhere.net (Joe User)
4610
4611
4612              and then you receive mail which contains the following header:
4613
4614
4615              From: abd30425@somewhere.net
4616
4617
4618              It would be displayed in the index menu as “Joe User” instead of
4619              “abd30425@somewhere.net.”  This  is  useful  when  the  person's
4620              e-mail address is not human friendly.
4621
4622
4623
4624       reverse_name
4625              Type: boolean
4626              Default: no
4627
4628              It  may  sometimes arrive that you receive mail to a certain ma‐
4629              chine, move the messages to another machine, and reply  to  some
4630              the  messages  from there.  If this variable is set, the default
4631              From: line of the reply messages  is  built  using  the  address
4632              where  you received the messages you are replying to if that ad‐
4633              dress matches your “alternates”.  If the variable is  unset,  or
4634              the  address that would be used doesn't match your “alternates”,
4635              the From: line will use your address on the current machine.
4636
4637              Also see the “alternates” command and $reverse_realname.
4638
4639
4640
4641       reverse_realname
4642              Type: boolean
4643              Default: yes
4644
4645              This variable fine-tunes the behavior of the $reverse_name  fea‐
4646              ture.
4647
4648              When  it  is  unset,  Mutt  will  remove the real name part of a
4649              matching address.  This allows the  use  of  the  email  address
4650              without  having to also use what the sender put in the real name
4651              field.
4652
4653              When it is set, Mutt will use the matching address as-is.
4654
4655              In either case, a missing real name will be filled in afterwards
4656              using the value of $realname.
4657
4658
4659
4660       rfc2047_parameters
4661              Type: boolean
4662              Default: yes
4663
4664              When this variable is set, Mutt will decode RFC2047-encoded MIME
4665              parameters. You want to set this variable when mutt suggests you
4666              to save attachments to files named like:
4667
4668
4669              =?iso-8859-1?Q?file=5F=E4=5F991116=2Ezip?=
4670
4671
4672              When this variable is set interactively, the change won't be ac‐
4673              tive until you change folders.
4674
4675              Note that this use of RFC2047's encoding is  explicitly  prohib‐
4676              ited by the standard, but nevertheless encountered in the wild.
4677
4678              Also  note  that setting this parameter will not have the effect
4679              that mutt generates this kind of encoding.  Instead,  mutt  will
4680              unconditionally use the encoding specified in RFC2231.
4681
4682
4683
4684       save_address
4685              Type: boolean
4686              Default: no
4687
4688              If set, mutt will take the sender's full address when choosing a
4689              default folder for saving a mail. If $save_name  or  $force_name
4690              is  set  too, the selection of the Fcc folder will be changed as
4691              well.
4692
4693
4694
4695       save_empty
4696              Type: boolean
4697              Default: yes
4698
4699              When unset, mailboxes which contain no saved  messages  will  be
4700              removed  when closed (the exception is $spoolfile which is never
4701              removed).  If set, mailboxes are never removed.
4702
4703              Note: This only applies to mbox and MMDF folders, Mutt does  not
4704              delete MH and Maildir directories.
4705
4706
4707
4708       save_history
4709              Type: number
4710              Default: 0
4711
4712              This  variable  controls  the size of the history (per category)
4713              saved in the $history_file file.
4714
4715
4716
4717       save_name
4718              Type: boolean
4719              Default: no
4720
4721              This variable controls  how  copies  of  outgoing  messages  are
4722              saved.   When set, a check is made to see if a mailbox specified
4723              by the recipient address exists (this is done by searching for a
4724              mailbox  in  the $folder directory with the username part of the
4725              recipient address).  If the mailbox exists, the outgoing message
4726              will be saved to that mailbox, otherwise the message is saved to
4727              the $record mailbox.
4728
4729              Also see the $force_name variable.
4730
4731
4732
4733       score
4734              Type: boolean
4735              Default: yes
4736
4737              When this variable is unset, scoring is turned off.  This can be
4738              useful  to  selectively disable scoring for certain folders when
4739              the $score_threshold_delete variable and related are used.
4740
4741
4742
4743       score_threshold_delete
4744              Type: number
4745              Default: -1
4746
4747              Messages which have been assigned a score equal to or lower than
4748              the value of this variable are automatically marked for deletion
4749              by mutt.  Since mutt scores are always greater than or equal  to
4750              zero,  the  default  setting  of this variable will never mark a
4751              message for deletion.
4752
4753
4754
4755       score_threshold_flag
4756              Type: number
4757              Default: 9999
4758
4759              Messages which have been assigned a score greater than or  equal
4760              to this variable's value are automatically marked ”flagged”.
4761
4762
4763
4764       score_threshold_read
4765              Type: number
4766              Default: -1
4767
4768              Messages which have been assigned a score equal to or lower than
4769              the value of this variable are automatically marked as  read  by
4770              mutt.   Since  mutt  scores  are always greater than or equal to
4771              zero, the default setting of this variable  will  never  mark  a
4772              message read.
4773
4774
4775
4776       search_context
4777              Type: number
4778              Default: 0
4779
4780              For the pager, this variable specifies the number of lines shown
4781              before search  results.  By  default,  search  results  will  be
4782              top-aligned.
4783
4784
4785
4786       send_charset
4787              Type: string
4788              Default: “us-ascii:iso-8859-1:utf-8”
4789
4790              A  colon-delimited list of character sets for outgoing messages.
4791              Mutt will use the first character set into which the text can be
4792              converted exactly.  If your $charset is not “iso-8859-1” and re‐
4793              cipients may not understand “UTF-8”, it is advisable to  include
4794              in  the  list  an appropriate widely used standard character set
4795              (such as “iso-8859-2”, “koi8-r” or “iso-2022-jp”) either instead
4796              of or after “iso-8859-1”.
4797
4798              In  case the text cannot be converted into one of these exactly,
4799              mutt uses $charset as a fallback.
4800
4801
4802
4803       send_multipart_alternative
4804              Type: quadoption
4805              Default: no
4806
4807              If set, Mutt will generate a multipart/alternative container and
4808              an  alternative  part  using  the  filter  script  specified  in
4809              $send_multipart_alternative_filter.  See the section “MIME  Mul‐
4810              tipart/Alternative” (alternative-order).
4811
4812              Note  that enabling multipart/alternative is not compatible with
4813              inline PGP encryption.  Mutt will prompt to use PGP/MIME in that
4814              case.
4815
4816
4817
4818       send_multipart_alternative_filter
4819              Type: path
4820              Default: “”
4821
4822              This  specifies  a  filter  script,  which will convert the main
4823              (composed) message of the email to an alternative  format.   The
4824              message  will be piped to the filter's stdin.  The expected out‐
4825              put of the filter is the generated mime  type,  e.g.  text/html,
4826              followed  by  a blank line, and then the converted content.  See
4827              the section “MIME Multipart/Alternative” (alternative-order).
4828
4829
4830
4831       sendmail
4832              Type: path
4833              Default: “/usr/sbin/sendmail -oem -oi”
4834
4835              Specifies the program and arguments used to deliver mail sent by
4836              Mutt.   Mutt expects that the specified program interprets addi‐
4837              tional arguments as recipient addresses.  Mutt appends  all  re‐
4838              cipients  after  adding a -- delimiter (if not already present).
4839              Additional flags, such as for $use_8bitmime, $use_envelope_from,
4840              $dsn_notify, or $dsn_return will be added before the delimiter.
4841
4842              Note:  This  command is invoked differently from most other com‐
4843              mands in Mutt.  It is tokenized by space, and  invoked  directly
4844              via  execvp(3) with an array of arguments - so commands or argu‐
4845              ments with spaces in them are not supported.  The shell  is  not
4846              used to run the command, so shell quoting is also not supported.
4847
4848              See also: $write_bcc.
4849
4850
4851
4852       sendmail_wait
4853              Type: number
4854              Default: 0
4855
4856              Specifies  the  number  of  seconds  to  wait  for the $sendmail
4857              process to finish before giving up and putting delivery  in  the
4858              background.
4859
4860              Mutt interprets the value of this variable as follows:
4861              >0     number  of  seconds to wait for sendmail to finish before
4862                     continuing
4863              0      wait forever for sendmail to finish
4864              <0     always put sendmail in the background without waiting
4865
4866              Note that if you specify a value other than 0, the output of the
4867              child process will be put in a temporary file.  If there is some
4868              error, you will be informed as to where to find the output.
4869
4870
4871
4872       shell
4873              Type: path
4874              Default: “”
4875
4876              Command to use when spawning a subshell.  By default, the user's
4877              login shell from /etc/passwd is used.
4878
4879
4880
4881       sidebar_delim_chars
4882              Type: string
4883              Default: “/.”
4884
4885              This  contains  the  list  of characters which you would like to
4886              treat as folder separators for displaying paths in the sidebar.
4887
4888              Local mail is often arranged  in  directories:  `dir1/dir2/mail‐
4889              box'.
4890
4891
4892              set sidebar_delim_chars='/'
4893
4894
4895              IMAP mailboxes are often named: `folder1.folder2.mailbox'.
4896
4897
4898              set sidebar_delim_chars='.'
4899
4900
4901              See  also:  $sidebar_short_path,  $sidebar_folder_indent, $side‐
4902              bar_indent_string.
4903
4904
4905
4906       sidebar_divider_char
4907              Type: string
4908              Default: “|”
4909
4910              This specifies the characters to be drawn  between  the  sidebar
4911              (when  visible)  and  the  other  Mutt panels. ASCII and Unicode
4912              line-drawing characters are supported.
4913
4914
4915
4916       sidebar_folder_indent
4917              Type: boolean
4918              Default: no
4919
4920              Set this to indent mailboxes in the sidebar.
4921
4922              See also:  $sidebar_short_path,  $sidebar_indent_string,  $side‐
4923              bar_delim_chars.
4924
4925
4926
4927       sidebar_format
4928              Type: string
4929              Default: “%B%*  %n”
4930
4931              This  variable allows you to customize the sidebar display. This
4932              string is similar to $index_format,  but  has  its  own  set  of
4933              printf(3)-like sequences:
4934              %B     Name of the mailbox
4935              %S     * Size of mailbox (total number of messages)
4936              %N     * Number of unread messages in the mailbox
4937              %n     N if mailbox has new mail, blank otherwise
4938              %F     * Number of Flagged messages in the mailbox
4939              %!     “!”  :  one flagged message; “!!” : two flagged messages;
4940                     “n!” : n flagged messages (for n > 2).  Otherwise  prints
4941                     nothing.
4942              %d     * @ Number of deleted messages
4943              %L     * @ Number of messages after limiting
4944              %t     * @ Number of tagged messages
4945              %>X    right justify the rest of the string and pad with “X”
4946              %|X    pad to the end of the line with “X”
4947              %*X    soft-fill with character “X” as pad
4948
4949              *  = Can be optionally printed if nonzero @ = Only applicable to
4950              the current folder
4951
4952              In order to use %S, %N, %F, and %!,  $mail_check_stats  must  be
4953              set.   When  thus  set,  a  suggested  value  for this option is
4954              ”%B%?F? [%F]?%* %?N?%N/?%S”.
4955
4956
4957
4958       sidebar_indent_string
4959              Type: string
4960              Default: “  ”
4961
4962              This specifies the string that is used to  indent  mailboxes  in
4963              the sidebar.  It defaults to two spaces.
4964
4965              See  also:  $sidebar_short_path,  $sidebar_folder_indent, $side‐
4966              bar_delim_chars.
4967
4968
4969
4970       sidebar_new_mail_only
4971              Type: boolean
4972              Default: no
4973
4974              When set, the sidebar will  only  display  mailboxes  containing
4975              new, or flagged, mail.
4976
4977              See also: sidebar_whitelist.
4978
4979
4980
4981       sidebar_next_new_wrap
4982              Type: boolean
4983              Default: no
4984
4985              When  set,  the <sidebar-next-new> command will not stop and the
4986              end of the list of mailboxes, but wrap around to the  beginning.
4987              The  <sidebar-prev-new>  command is similarly affected, wrapping
4988              around to the end of the list.
4989
4990
4991
4992       sidebar_relative_shortpath_indent
4993              Type: boolean
4994              Default: no
4995
4996              When set, this option changes how $sidebar_short_path and $side‐
4997              bar_folder_indent  perform shortening and indentation: both will
4998              look at the previous sidebar entries and shorten/indent relative
4999              to the most recent parent.
5000
5001              An example of this option set/unset for mailboxes listed in this
5002              order, with $sidebar_short_path=yes, $sidebar_folder_indent=yes,
5003              and $sidebar_indent_string=”→”:
5004              mailbox
5005                     set unset
5006              =a.b   =a.b →b
5007              =a.b.c.d
5008                     →c.d →→→d
5009              =a.b.e →e →→e
5010
5011              The second line illustrates most clearly.  With this option set,
5012              =a.b.c.d is shortened relative to =a.b, becoming c.d; it is also
5013              indented  one  place  relative  to =a.b.  With this option unset
5014              =a.b.c.d is always shortened to the last part of the mailbox,  d
5015              and  is  indented  three places, with respect to $folder (repre‐
5016              sented by '=').
5017
5018              When set, the third line will also  be  indented  and  shortened
5019              relative to the first line.
5020
5021
5022
5023       sidebar_short_path
5024              Type: boolean
5025              Default: no
5026
5027              By default the sidebar will show the mailbox's path, relative to
5028              the $folder variable. Setting sidebar_shortpath=yes will shorten
5029              the names relative to the previous name. Here's an example:
5030              shortpath=no
5031                     shortpath=yes    shortpath=yes,   folderindent=yes,   in‐
5032                     dentstr=”..”
5033              fruit  fruit fruit
5034              fruit.apple
5035                     apple ..apple
5036              fruit.banana
5037                     banana ..banana
5038              fruit.cherry
5039                     cherry ..cherry
5040
5041              See also: $sidebar_delim_chars,  $sidebar_folder_indent,  $side‐
5042              bar_indent_string.
5043
5044
5045
5046       sidebar_sort_method
5047              Type: sort order
5048              Default: unsorted
5049
5050              Specifies  how  to  sort mailbox entries in the sidebar.  By de‐
5051              fault, the entries are sorted alphabetically.  Valid values:
5052              ‐ alpha (alphabetically)
5053              ‐ count (all message count)
5054              ‐ flagged (flagged message count)
5055              ‐ name (alphabetically)
5056              ‐ new (unread message count)
5057              ‐ path (alphabetically)
5058              ‐ unread (unread message count)
5059              ‐ unsorted
5060
5061              You may optionally use the “reverse-” prefix to specify  reverse
5062              sorting  order  (example:  “set  sidebar_sort_method=reverse-al‐
5063              pha”).
5064
5065
5066
5067       sidebar_use_mailbox_shortcuts
5068              Type: boolean
5069              Default: no
5070
5071              When set, sidebar  mailboxes  will  be  displayed  with  mailbox
5072              shortcut prefixes ”=” or ”~”.
5073
5074              When  unset, the sidebar will trim off a matching $folder prefix
5075              but otherwise not use mailbox shortcuts.
5076
5077
5078
5079       sidebar_visible
5080              Type: boolean
5081              Default: no
5082
5083              This specifies whether or not to show sidebar. The sidebar shows
5084              a list of all your mailboxes.
5085
5086              See also: $sidebar_format, $sidebar_width
5087
5088
5089
5090       sidebar_width
5091              Type: number
5092              Default: 30
5093
5094              This  controls  the  width  of  the  sidebar.  It is measured in
5095              screen columns.  For example: sidebar_width=20 could display  20
5096              ASCII characters, or 10 Chinese characters.
5097
5098
5099
5100       sig_dashes
5101              Type: boolean
5102              Default: yes
5103
5104              If  set,  a line containing “-- ” (note the trailing space) will
5105              be inserted before your $signature.  It is strongly  recommended
5106              that  you not unset this variable unless your signature contains
5107              just your name.  The reason for this is  because  many  software
5108              packages  use  “--  \n”  to detect your signature.  For example,
5109              Mutt has the ability to highlight the signature in  a  different
5110              color in the built-in pager.
5111
5112
5113
5114       sig_on_top
5115              Type: boolean
5116              Default: no
5117
5118              If set, the signature will be included before any quoted or for‐
5119              warded text.  It is strongly recommended that  you  do  not  set
5120              this variable unless you really know what you are doing, and are
5121              prepared to take some heat from netiquette guardians.
5122
5123
5124
5125       signature
5126              Type: path
5127              Default: “~/.signature”
5128
5129              Specifies the filename of your signature, which is  appended  to
5130              all outgoing messages.   If the filename ends with a pipe (“|”),
5131              it is assumed that filename is a shell command and input  should
5132              be read from its standard output.
5133
5134
5135
5136       simple_search
5137              Type: string
5138              Default: “~f %s | ~s %s”
5139
5140              Specifies  how  Mutt  should  expand a simple search into a real
5141              search pattern.  A simple search is one that  does  not  contain
5142              any  of  the “~” pattern modifiers.  See “patterns” for more in‐
5143              formation on search patterns.
5144
5145              For example, if you simply type  “joe”  at  a  search  or  limit
5146              prompt, Mutt will automatically expand it to the value specified
5147              by this variable by replacing “%s”  with  the  supplied  string.
5148              For  the default value, “joe” would be expanded to: “~f joe | ~s
5149              joe”.
5150
5151
5152
5153       size_show_bytes
5154              Type: boolean
5155              Default: no
5156
5157              If set, message sizes will display bytes for values less than  1
5158              kilobyte.  See formatstrings-size.
5159
5160
5161
5162       size_show_fractions
5163              Type: boolean
5164              Default: yes
5165
5166              If  set,  message  sizes will be displayed with a single decimal
5167              value for sizes from 0 to 10 kilobytes and 1  to  10  megabytes.
5168              See formatstrings-size.
5169
5170
5171
5172       size_show_mb
5173              Type: boolean
5174              Default: yes
5175
5176              If  set, message sizes will display megabytes for values greater
5177              than or equal to 1 megabyte.  See formatstrings-size.
5178
5179
5180
5181       size_units_on_left
5182              Type: boolean
5183              Default: no
5184
5185              If set, message sizes units will be displayed to the left of the
5186              number.  See formatstrings-size.
5187
5188
5189
5190       sleep_time
5191              Type: number
5192              Default: 1
5193
5194              Specifies  time,  in  seconds, to pause while displaying certain
5195              informational messages, while moving from folder to  folder  and
5196              after  expunging  messages from the current folder.  The default
5197              is to pause one second, so a value of zero for this option  sup‐
5198              presses the pause.
5199
5200
5201
5202       smart_wrap
5203              Type: boolean
5204              Default: yes
5205
5206              Controls  the  display  of lines longer than the screen width in
5207              the internal pager. If set, long lines are  wrapped  at  a  word
5208              boundary.   If  unset,  lines  are  simply wrapped at the screen
5209              edge. Also see the $markers variable.
5210
5211
5212
5213       smileys
5214              Type: regular expression
5215              Default: “(>From )|(:[-^]?[][)(><}{|/DP])”
5216
5217              The pager uses this variable to catch some  common  false  posi‐
5218              tives  of $quote_regexp, most notably smileys and not consider a
5219              line quoted text if it also matches $smileys. This  mostly  hap‐
5220              pens at the beginning of a line.
5221
5222
5223
5224       smime_ask_cert_label
5225              Type: boolean
5226              Default: yes
5227
5228              This flag controls whether you want to be asked to enter a label
5229              for a certificate about to be added to the database or  not.  It
5230              is set by default.  (S/MIME only)
5231
5232
5233
5234       smime_ca_location
5235              Type: path
5236              Default: “”
5237
5238              This variable contains the name of either a directory, or a file
5239              which  contains  trusted  certificates  for  use  with  OpenSSL.
5240              (S/MIME only)
5241
5242
5243
5244       smime_certificates
5245              Type: path
5246              Default: “”
5247
5248              Since  for  S/MIME there is no pubring/secring as with PGP, mutt
5249              has to handle storage and retrieval of keys by itself.  This  is
5250              very  basic  right  now, and keys and certificates are stored in
5251              two different directories, both  named  as  the  hash-value  re‐
5252              trieved  from  OpenSSL.  There  is  an index file which contains
5253              mailbox-address keyid pairs, and which can be  manually  edited.
5254              This option points to the location of the certificates.  (S/MIME
5255              only)
5256
5257
5258
5259       smime_decrypt_command
5260              Type: string
5261              Default: “”
5262
5263              This format string specifies a command which is used to  decrypt
5264              application/x-pkcs7-mime attachments.
5265
5266              The OpenSSL command formats have their own set of printf(3)-like
5267              sequences similar to PGP's:
5268              %f     Expands to the name of a file containing a message.
5269              %s     Expands to the name of a file  containing  the  signature
5270                     part
5271                                of  a multipart/signed attachment when verify‐
5272                     ing it.
5273              %k     The key-pair specified with $smime_default_key
5274              %c     One or more certificate IDs.
5275              %a     The algorithm used for encryption.
5276              %d     The   message    digest    algorithm    specified    with
5277                     $smime_sign_digest_alg.
5278              %C     CA location:  Depending on whether $smime_ca_location
5279                                points to a directory or file, this expands to
5280                                “-CApath   $smime_ca_location”   or   “-CAfile
5281                     $smime_ca_location”.
5282
5283              For examples on how to configure these formats, see the smime.rc
5284              in  the  samples/  subdirectory which has been installed on your
5285              system alongside the documentation.  (S/MIME only)
5286
5287
5288
5289       smime_decrypt_use_default_key
5290              Type: boolean
5291              Default: yes
5292
5293              If set (default) this tells mutt to use the default key for  de‐
5294              cryption. Otherwise, if managing multiple certificate-key-pairs,
5295              mutt will try to use the mailbox-address to determine the key to
5296              use.  It  will  ask  you  to supply a key, if it can't find one.
5297              (S/MIME only)
5298
5299
5300
5301       smime_default_key
5302              Type: string
5303              Default: “”
5304
5305              This is the default key-pair to use for S/MIME  operations,  and
5306              must be set to the keyid (the hash-value that OpenSSL generates)
5307              to work properly.
5308
5309              It will  be  used  for  encryption  (see  $postpone_encrypt  and
5310              $smime_self_encrypt).  If  GPGME  is enabled, this is the key id
5311              displayed by gpgsm.
5312
5313              It will be used  for  decryption  unless  $smime_decrypt_use_de‐
5314              fault_key is unset.
5315
5316              It will also be used for signing unless $smime_sign_as is set.
5317
5318              The  (now deprecated) smime_self_encrypt_as is an alias for this
5319              variable, and should no longer be used.  (S/MIME only)
5320
5321
5322
5323       smime_encrypt_command
5324              Type: string
5325              Default: “”
5326
5327              This command is used to create encrypted S/MIME messages.
5328
5329              This is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command  command
5330              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5331
5332
5333
5334       smime_encrypt_with
5335              Type: string
5336              Default: “aes256”
5337
5338              This  sets  the  algorithm  that  should be used for encryption.
5339              Valid choices are “aes128”, “aes192”, “aes256”,  “des”,  “des3”,
5340              “rc2-40”, “rc2-64”, “rc2-128”.  (S/MIME only)
5341
5342
5343
5344       smime_get_cert_command
5345              Type: string
5346              Default: “”
5347
5348              This  command  is used to extract X509 certificates from a PKCS7
5349              structure.
5350
5351              This is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command  command
5352              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5353
5354
5355
5356       smime_get_cert_email_command
5357              Type: string
5358              Default: “”
5359
5360              This  command  is  used to extract the mail address(es) used for
5361              storing X509 certificates, and  for  verification  purposes  (to
5362              check  whether the certificate was issued for the sender's mail‐
5363              box).
5364
5365              This is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command  command
5366              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5367
5368
5369
5370       smime_get_signer_cert_command
5371              Type: string
5372              Default: “”
5373
5374              This  command  is used to extract only the signers X509 certifi‐
5375              cate from a S/MIME signature, so that  the  certificate's  owner
5376              may get compared to the email's “From:” field.
5377
5378              This  is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command command
5379              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5380
5381
5382
5383       smime_import_cert_command
5384              Type: string
5385              Default: “”
5386
5387              This command is used to import a certificate via smime_keys.
5388
5389              This is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command  command
5390              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5391
5392
5393
5394       smime_is_default
5395              Type: boolean
5396              Default: no
5397
5398              The  default behavior of mutt is to use PGP on all auto-sign/en‐
5399              cryption operations. To override and to use OpenSSL instead this
5400              must  be set.  However, this has no effect while replying, since
5401              mutt will automatically select the  same  application  that  was
5402              used  to  sign/encrypt  the  original  message.  (Note that this
5403              variable  can  be  overridden  by  unsetting  $crypt_autosmime.)
5404              (S/MIME only)
5405
5406
5407
5408       smime_keys
5409              Type: path
5410              Default: “”
5411
5412              Since  for  S/MIME there is no pubring/secring as with PGP, mutt
5413              has to handle storage and retrieval  of  keys/certs  by  itself.
5414              This  is  very basic right now, and stores keys and certificates
5415              in two different directories, both named as the  hash-value  re‐
5416              trieved  from  OpenSSL.  There  is  an index file which contains
5417              mailbox-address keyid pair, and which can  be  manually  edited.
5418              This option points to the location of the private keys.  (S/MIME
5419              only)
5420
5421
5422
5423       smime_pk7out_command
5424              Type: string
5425              Default: “”
5426
5427              This command is used to extract PKCS7 structures of S/MIME  sig‐
5428              natures, in order to extract the public X509 certificate(s).
5429
5430              This  is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command command
5431              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5432
5433
5434
5435       smime_self_encrypt
5436              Type: boolean
5437              Default: yes
5438
5439              When set, S/MIME encrypted messages will also be encrypted using
5440              the certificate in $smime_default_key.  (S/MIME only)
5441
5442
5443
5444       smime_sign_as
5445              Type: string
5446              Default: “”
5447
5448              If  you  have  a separate key to use for signing, you should set
5449              this to the signing key. Most  people  will  only  need  to  set
5450              $smime_default_key.  (S/MIME only)
5451
5452
5453
5454       smime_sign_command
5455              Type: string
5456              Default: “”
5457
5458              This command is used to created S/MIME signatures of type multi‐
5459              part/signed, which can be read by all mail clients.
5460
5461              This is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command  command
5462              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  NOTE: %c and %k will de‐
5463              fault to $smime_sign_as if  set,  otherwise  $smime_default_key.
5464              (S/MIME only)
5465
5466
5467
5468       smime_sign_digest_alg
5469              Type: string
5470              Default: “sha256”
5471
5472              This  sets  the  algorithm that should be used for the signature
5473              message digest.  Valid  choices  are  “md5”,  “sha1”,  “sha224”,
5474              “sha256”, “sha384”, “sha512”.  (S/MIME only)
5475
5476
5477
5478       smime_sign_opaque_command
5479              Type: string
5480              Default: “”
5481
5482              This command is used to created S/MIME signatures of type appli‐
5483              cation/x-pkcs7-signature, which can  only  be  handled  by  mail
5484              clients supporting the S/MIME extension.
5485
5486              This  is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command command
5487              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5488
5489
5490
5491       smime_timeout
5492              Type: number (long)
5493              Default: 300
5494
5495              The number of seconds after which a cached passphrase  will  ex‐
5496              pire if not used.  (S/MIME only)
5497
5498
5499
5500       smime_verify_command
5501              Type: string
5502              Default: “”
5503
5504              This  command is used to verify S/MIME signatures of type multi‐
5505              part/signed.
5506
5507              This is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command  command
5508              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5509
5510
5511
5512       smime_verify_opaque_command
5513              Type: string
5514              Default: “”
5515
5516              This  command is used to verify S/MIME signatures of type appli‐
5517              cation/x-pkcs7-mime.
5518
5519              This is a format string, see the $smime_decrypt_command  command
5520              for possible printf(3)-like sequences.  (S/MIME only)
5521
5522
5523
5524       smtp_authenticators
5525              Type: string
5526              Default: “”
5527
5528              This  is  a  colon-delimited list of authentication methods mutt
5529              may attempt to use to log in to an SMTP  server,  in  the  order
5530              mutt should try them.  Authentication methods are any SASL mech‐
5531              anism, e.g.  “digest-md5”, “gssapi” or “cram-md5”.  This  option
5532              is  case-insensitive.  If  it is “unset” (the default) mutt will
5533              try  all  available  methods,  in  order  from  most-secure   to
5534              least-secure.
5535
5536              Example:
5537
5538
5539              set smtp_authenticators=”digest-md5:cram-md5”
5540
5541
5542
5543
5544       smtp_oauth_refresh_command
5545              Type: string
5546              Default: “”
5547
5548              The command to run to generate an OAUTH refresh token for autho‐
5549              rizing your connection to your SMTP server.  This  command  will
5550              be run on every connection attempt that uses the OAUTHBEARER au‐
5551              thentication mechanism.  See “oauth” for details.
5552
5553
5554
5555       smtp_pass
5556              Type: string
5557              Default: “”
5558
5559              Specifies the password for your SMTP account.   If  unset,  Mutt
5560              will  prompt  you for your password when you first send mail via
5561              SMTP.  See $smtp_url to configure mutt to send mail via SMTP.
5562
5563              Warning: you should only use this  option  when  you  are  on  a
5564              fairly  secure machine, because the superuser can read your mut‐
5565              trc even if you are the only one who can read the file.
5566
5567
5568
5569       smtp_url
5570              Type: string
5571              Default: “”
5572
5573              Defines the SMTP smarthost where sent  messages  should  relayed
5574              for delivery. This should take the form of an SMTP URL, e.g.:
5575
5576
5577              smtp[s]://[user[:pass]@]host[:port]
5578
5579
5580              where  “[...]”  denotes an optional part.  Setting this variable
5581              overrides the value of the $sendmail variable.
5582
5583              Also see $write_bcc.
5584
5585
5586
5587       sort
5588              Type: sort order
5589              Default: date
5590
5591              Specifies how to sort messages in the “index” menu.  Valid  val‐
5592              ues are:
5593              ‐ date or date-sent
5594              ‐ date-received
5595              ‐ from
5596              ‐ mailbox-order (unsorted)
5597              ‐ score
5598              ‐ size
5599              ‐ spam
5600              ‐ subject
5601              ‐ threads
5602              ‐ to
5603
5604              You  may optionally use the “reverse-” prefix to specify reverse
5605              sorting order (example: “set sort=reverse-date-sent”).
5606
5607              For values except “threads”,  this  provides  the  primary  sort
5608              method.   When two message sort values are equal, $sort_aux will
5609              be used for a secondary sort.
5610
5611              When set to “threads”, Mutt threads messages in  the  index.  It
5612              uses  the  variable  $sort_thread_groups to sort between threads
5613              (at the top/root level), and $sort_aux to sort  sub-threads  and
5614              children.
5615
5616
5617
5618       sort_alias
5619              Type: sort order
5620              Default: alias
5621
5622              Specifies  how  the entries in the “alias” menu are sorted.  The
5623              following are legal values:
5624              ‐ address (sort alphabetically by email address)
5625              ‐ alias (sort alphabetically by alias name)
5626              ‐ unsorted (leave in order specified in .muttrc)
5627
5628
5629       sort_aux
5630              Type: sort order
5631              Default: date
5632
5633              For non-threaded mode, this provides a secondary sort  for  mes‐
5634              sages  in  the  “index” menu, used when the $sort value is equal
5635              for two messages.
5636
5637              When sorting by threads, this variable controls how the branches
5638              of  the  thread  trees are sorted.  This can be set to any value
5639              that $sort can, except “threads” (in that case, mutt  will  just
5640              use  “date-sent”).   You  can also specify the “last-” prefix in
5641              addition to the “reverse-” prefix, but “last-” must  come  after
5642              “reverse-”.   The  “last-”  prefix  causes messages to be sorted
5643              against its siblings by which has the last descendant, using the
5644              rest of $sort_aux as an ordering.  For instance,
5645
5646
5647              set sort_aux=last-date-received
5648
5649
5650              would  mean  that  if a new message is received in a sub-thread,
5651              that sub-thread becomes the last one displayed.
5652
5653              Note: For reversed-threads $sort order,  $sort_aux  is  reversed
5654              again (which is not the right thing to do, but kept to not break
5655              any existing configuration setting).
5656
5657
5658
5659       sort_browser
5660              Type: sort order
5661              Default: alpha
5662
5663              Specifies how to sort entries in the file browser.  By  default,
5664              the entries are sorted alphabetically.  Valid values:
5665              ‐ alpha (alphabetically)
5666              ‐ count
5667              ‐ date
5668              ‐ size
5669              ‐ unread
5670              ‐ unsorted
5671
5672              You  may optionally use the “reverse-” prefix to specify reverse
5673              sorting order (example: “set sort_browser=reverse-date”).
5674
5675
5676
5677       sort_browser_mailboxes
5678              Type: sort order
5679              Default: unsorted
5680
5681              Specifies how to sort entries in the mailbox  browser.   By  de‐
5682              fault,  the entries are unsorted, displayed in the same order as
5683              listed in the “mailboxes” command.  Valid values:
5684              ‐ alpha (alphabetically)
5685              ‐ count
5686              ‐ date
5687              ‐ size
5688              ‐ unread
5689              ‐ unsorted
5690
5691              You may optionally use the “reverse-” prefix to specify  reverse
5692              sorting  order (example: “set sort_browser_mailboxes=reverse-al‐
5693              pha”).
5694
5695
5696
5697       sort_re
5698              Type: boolean
5699              Default: yes
5700
5701              This variable is  only  useful  when  sorting  by  threads  with
5702              $strict_threads  unset.   In that case, it changes the heuristic
5703              mutt uses to thread messages by  subject.   With  $sort_re  set,
5704              mutt  will only attach a message as the child of another message
5705              by subject if the subject of the child  message  starts  with  a
5706              substring  matching the setting of $reply_regexp.  With $sort_re
5707              unset, mutt will attach the message whether or not this  is  the
5708              case,  as  long  as the non-$reply_regexp parts of both messages
5709              are identical.
5710
5711
5712
5713       sort_thread_groups
5714              Type: sort order
5715              Default: aux
5716
5717              When sorting by threads, this variable controls how threads  are
5718              sorted  in  relation  to  other threads (at the top/root level).
5719              This can be set to any value that $sort can,  except  “threads”.
5720              You  can also specify the “last-” prefix in addition to the “re‐
5721              verse-” prefix, but “last-” must  come  after  “reverse-”.   The
5722              “last-” prefix causes messages to be sorted against its siblings
5723              by  which  has  the  last  descendant,   using   the   rest   of
5724              $sort_thread_groups as an ordering.
5725
5726              For  backward  compatibility,  the default value is “aux”, which
5727              means to use $sort_aux for top-level thread  sorting  too.   The
5728              value  “aux” does not respect “last-” or “reverse-” prefixes, it
5729              simply delegates sorting directly to $sort_aux.
5730
5731              Note: For reversed-threads $sort order,  $sort_thread_groups  is
5732              reversed  again (which is not the right thing to do, but kept to
5733              not break any existing configuration setting).
5734
5735
5736
5737       spam_separator
5738              Type: string
5739              Default: “,”
5740
5741              This variable controls what happens when multiple  spam  headers
5742              are matched: if unset, each successive header will overwrite any
5743              previous matches value for the spam label. If set, each  succes‐
5744              sive  match  will  append to the previous, using this variable's
5745              value as a separator.
5746
5747
5748
5749       spoolfile
5750              Type: path
5751              Default: “”
5752
5753              If your spool mailbox is in a non-default place where Mutt  can‐
5754              not  find  it,  you can specify its location with this variable.
5755              Mutt will initially set this variable to the value of the  envi‐
5756              ronment variable $MAIL or $MAILDIR if either is defined.
5757
5758
5759
5760       ssl_ca_certificates_file
5761              Type: path
5762              Default: “/etc/ssl/certs/ca-bundle.crt”
5763
5764              This  variable  specifies  a file containing trusted CA certifi‐
5765              cates.  Any server certificate that is signed with one of  these
5766              CA certificates is also automatically accepted. (GnuTLS only)
5767
5768              Example:
5769
5770
5771              set ssl_ca_certificates_file=/etc/ssl/certs/ca-certificates.crt
5772
5773
5774
5775
5776       ssl_client_cert
5777              Type: path
5778              Default: “”
5779
5780              The file containing a client certificate and its associated pri‐
5781              vate key.
5782
5783
5784
5785       ssl_force_tls
5786              Type: boolean
5787              Default: yes
5788
5789              If this variable is set, Mutt will require that all  connections
5790              to  remote  servers be encrypted. Furthermore it will attempt to
5791              negotiate TLS even if the server does not advertise the capabil‐
5792              ity,  since it would otherwise have to abort the connection any‐
5793              way. This option supersedes $ssl_starttls.
5794
5795
5796
5797       ssl_min_dh_prime_bits
5798              Type: number
5799              Default: 0
5800
5801              This variable specifies the minimum acceptable  prime  size  (in
5802              bits)  for  use in any Diffie-Hellman key exchange. A value of 0
5803              will use the default from the GNUTLS library. (GnuTLS only)
5804
5805
5806
5807       ssl_starttls
5808              Type: quadoption
5809              Default: yes
5810
5811              If set (the default), mutt  will  attempt  to  use  STARTTLS  on
5812              servers  advertising  the  capability. When unset, mutt will not
5813              attempt to use STARTTLS regardless of the server's capabilities.
5814
5815              Note that STARTTLS is subject to many kinds of attacks,  includ‐
5816              ing  the  ability of a machine-in-the-middle to suppress the ad‐
5817              vertising of support.  Setting $ssl_force_tls is recommended  if
5818              you rely on STARTTLS.
5819
5820
5821
5822       ssl_use_sslv2
5823              Type: boolean
5824              Default: no
5825
5826              If  set  ,  Mutt  will use SSLv2 when communicating with servers
5827              that request it. N.B. As of 2011, SSLv2 is considered  insecure,
5828              and          using          is          inadvisable.         See
5829              https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc6176 .  (OpenSSL only)
5830
5831
5832
5833       ssl_use_sslv3
5834              Type: boolean
5835              Default: no
5836
5837              If set , Mutt will use SSLv3  when  communicating  with  servers
5838              that  request it. N.B. As of 2015, SSLv3 is considered insecure,
5839              and       using       it       is        inadvisable.        See
5840              https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7525 .
5841
5842
5843
5844       ssl_use_tlsv1
5845              Type: boolean
5846              Default: no
5847
5848              If  set  , Mutt will use TLSv1.0 when communicating with servers
5849              that request it. N.B. As of 2015, TLSv1.0  is  considered  inse‐
5850              cure,      and      using     it     is     inadvisable.     See
5851              https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7525 .
5852
5853
5854
5855       ssl_use_tlsv1_1
5856              Type: boolean
5857              Default: no
5858
5859              If set , Mutt will use TLSv1.1 when communicating  with  servers
5860              that  request  it.  N.B. As of 2015, TLSv1.1 is considered inse‐
5861              cure,     and     using     it     is      inadvisable.      See
5862              https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc7525 .
5863
5864
5865
5866       ssl_use_tlsv1_2
5867              Type: boolean
5868              Default: yes
5869
5870              If  set  , Mutt will use TLSv1.2 when communicating with servers
5871              that request it.
5872
5873
5874
5875       ssl_use_tlsv1_3
5876              Type: boolean
5877              Default: yes
5878
5879              If set , Mutt will use TLSv1.3 when communicating  with  servers
5880              that request it.
5881
5882
5883
5884       ssl_usesystemcerts
5885              Type: boolean
5886              Default: yes
5887
5888              If  set to yes, mutt will use CA certificates in the system-wide
5889              certificate store when  checking  if  a  server  certificate  is
5890              signed by a trusted CA. (OpenSSL only)
5891
5892
5893
5894       ssl_verify_dates
5895              Type: boolean
5896              Default: yes
5897
5898              If  set  (the  default),  mutt  will  not automatically accept a
5899              server certificate that is either not yet valid or  already  ex‐
5900              pired.  You  should  only unset this for particular known hosts,
5901              using the <account-hook> function.
5902
5903
5904
5905       ssl_verify_host
5906              Type: boolean
5907              Default: yes
5908
5909              If set (the default),  mutt  will  not  automatically  accept  a
5910              server  certificate whose host name does not match the host used
5911              in your folder URL. You should only unset  this  for  particular
5912              known hosts, using the <account-hook> function.
5913
5914
5915
5916       ssl_verify_host_override
5917              Type: string
5918              Default: “”
5919
5920              Defines  an alternate host name to verify the server certificate
5921              against.  This should not be set unless you are  sure  what  you
5922              are  doing,  but  it  might be useful for connection to a .onion
5923              host without a properly configured host name in the certificate.
5924              See $ssl_verify_host.
5925
5926
5927
5928       ssl_verify_partial_chains
5929              Type: boolean
5930              Default: no
5931
5932              This  option  should  not be changed from the default unless you
5933              understand what you are doing.
5934
5935              Setting this variable to yes will permit verifying partial  cer‐
5936              tification chains, i. e. a certificate chain where not the root,
5937              but an intermediate certificate CA, or the host certificate, are
5938              marked  trusted (in $certificate_file), without marking the root
5939              signing CA as trusted.
5940
5941              (OpenSSL 1.0.2b and newer only).
5942
5943
5944
5945       ssl_ciphers
5946              Type: string
5947              Default: “@SYSTEM”
5948
5949              Contains a colon-separated list of ciphers  to  use  when  using
5950              SSL.  For OpenSSL, see ciphers(1) for the syntax of the string.
5951
5952              For GnuTLS, this option will be used in place of ”NORMAL” at the
5953              start of the priority string.  See  gnutls_priority_init(3)  for
5954              the  syntax  and  more  details.  (Note: GnuTLS version 2.1.7 or
5955              higher is required.)
5956
5957
5958
5959       status_chars
5960              Type: string
5961              Default: “-*%A”
5962
5963              Controls the characters used by  the  “%r”  indicator  in  $sta‐
5964              tus_format.  The first character is used when the mailbox is un‐
5965              changed. The second is used when the mailbox has  been  changed,
5966              and  it  needs  to  be  resynchronized. The third is used if the
5967              mailbox is in read-only mode, or if  the  mailbox  will  not  be
5968              written  when  exiting  that  mailbox (You can toggle whether to
5969              write changes to a mailbox with  the  <toggle-write>  operation,
5970              bound  by  default  to “%”). The fourth is used to indicate that
5971              the current folder has been opened in attach- message mode (Cer‐
5972              tain operations like composing a new mail, replying, forwarding,
5973              etc. are not permitted in this mode).
5974
5975
5976
5977       status_format
5978              Type: string (localized)
5979              Default: “-%r-Mutt: %f [Msgs:%?M?%M/?%m%?n? New:%n?%?o? Old:%o?%?d? Del:%d?%?F? Flag:%F?%?t? Tag:%t?%?p? Post:%p?%?b? Inc:%b?%?B? Back:%B?%?l? %l?]---(%s/%?T?%T/?%S)-%>-(%P)---”
5980
5981              Controls the format of the status line displayed in the  “index”
5982              menu.   This string is similar to $index_format, but has its own
5983              set of printf(3)-like sequences:
5984              %b     number of mailboxes with new mail *
5985              %B     number of backgrounded editing sessions *
5986              %d     number of deleted messages *
5987              %f     the full pathname of the current mailbox
5988              %F     number of flagged messages *
5989              %h     local hostname
5990              %l     size (in bytes)  of  the  current  mailbox  (see  format‐
5991                     strings-size) *
5992              %L     size  (in bytes) of the messages shown (i.e., which match
5993                     the current limit) (see formatstrings-size) *
5994              %m     the number of messages in the mailbox *
5995              %M     the number of messages shown (i.e., which match the  cur‐
5996                     rent limit) *
5997              %n     number of new messages in the mailbox *
5998              %o     number of old unread messages *
5999              %p     number of postponed messages *
6000              %P     percentage of the way through the index
6001              %r     modified/read-only/won't-write/attach-message  indicator,
6002                     according to $status_chars
6003              %R     number of read messages *
6004              %s     current sorting mode ($sort)
6005              %S     current aux sorting method ($sort_aux)
6006              %t     number of tagged messages *
6007              %T     current thread group sorting method ($sort_thread_groups)
6008                     *
6009              %u     number of unread messages *
6010              %v     Mutt version string
6011              %V     currently active limit pattern, if any *
6012              %>X    right justify the rest of the string and pad with “X”
6013              %|X    pad to the end of the line with “X”
6014              %*X    soft-fill with character “X” as pad
6015
6016              For  an  explanation of “soft-fill”, see the $index_format docu‐
6017              mentation.
6018
6019              * = can be optionally printed if nonzero
6020
6021              Some of the above sequences can be used to  optionally  print  a
6022              string  if  their  value  is nonzero.  For example, you may only
6023              want to see the number of flagged messages if such messages  ex‐
6024              ist,  since  zero is not particularly meaningful.  To optionally
6025              print a string based upon one of the above sequences,  the  fol‐
6026              lowing construct is used:
6027
6028              %?<sequence_char>?<optional_string>?
6029
6030              where sequence_char is a character from the table above, and op‐
6031              tional_string is the  string  you  would  like  printed  if  se‐
6032              quence_char  is  nonzero.  optional_string may contain other se‐
6033              quences as well as normal text, but you may  not  nest  optional
6034              strings.
6035
6036              Here is an example illustrating how to optionally print the num‐
6037              ber of new messages in a mailbox:
6038
6039              %?n?%n new messages.?
6040
6041              You can also switch between two strings using the following con‐
6042              struct:
6043
6044              %?<sequence_char>?<if_string>&<else_string>?
6045
6046              If the value of sequence_char is non-zero, if_string will be ex‐
6047              panded, otherwise else_string will be expanded.
6048
6049              You can force the result of any printf(3)-like  sequence  to  be
6050              lowercase by prefixing the sequence character with an underscore
6051              (“_”) sign.  For example, if you want to display the local host‐
6052              name in lowercase, you would use: “%_h”.
6053
6054              If  you prefix the sequence character with a colon (“:”) charac‐
6055              ter, mutt will replace any dots in the expansion by underscores.
6056              This  might be helpful with IMAP folders that don't like dots in
6057              folder names.
6058
6059
6060
6061       status_on_top
6062              Type: boolean
6063              Default: no
6064
6065              Setting this variable causes the “status bar” to be displayed on
6066              the  first  line  of  the screen rather than near the bottom. If
6067              $help is set, too it'll be placed at the bottom.
6068
6069
6070
6071       strict_threads
6072              Type: boolean
6073              Default: no
6074
6075              If set, threading will only make use of  the  “In-Reply-To”  and
6076              “References:”  fields when you $sort by message threads.  By de‐
6077              fault, messages with the same subject are  grouped  together  in
6078              “pseudo  threads.”. This may not always be desirable, such as in
6079              a personal mailbox where you might have several  unrelated  mes‐
6080              sages  with  the  subjects  like “hi” which will get grouped to‐
6081              gether. See also $sort_re for a less drastic way of  controlling
6082              this behavior.
6083
6084
6085
6086       suspend
6087              Type: boolean
6088              Default: yes
6089
6090              When unset, mutt won't stop when the user presses the terminal's
6091              susp key, usually “^Z”. This is useful if you run mutt inside an
6092              xterm using a command like “xterm -e mutt”.
6093
6094
6095
6096       text_flowed
6097              Type: boolean
6098              Default: no
6099
6100              When  set, mutt will generate “format=flowed” bodies with a con‐
6101              tent type of “text/plain; format=flowed”.  This format is easier
6102              to  handle  for  some mailing software, and generally just looks
6103              like ordinary text.  To actually make use of this format's  fea‐
6104              tures, you'll need support in your editor.
6105
6106              The  option  only  controls  newly composed messages.  Postponed
6107              messages, resent messages, and draft messages  (via  -H  on  the
6108              command line) will use the content-type of the source message.
6109
6110              Note that $indent_string is ignored when this option is set.
6111
6112
6113
6114       thorough_search
6115              Type: boolean
6116              Default: yes
6117
6118              Affects  the  ~b, ~B, and ~h search operations described in sec‐
6119              tion “patterns”.  If set, the headers  and  body/attachments  of
6120              messages  to be searched are decoded before searching. If unset,
6121              messages are searched as they appear in the folder.
6122
6123              Users searching attachments or for non-ASCII  characters  should
6124              set  this  value because decoding also includes MIME parsing/de‐
6125              coding and possible character set  conversions.  Otherwise  mutt
6126              will  attempt to match against the raw message received (for ex‐
6127              ample quoted-printable encoded or with  encoded  headers)  which
6128              may lead to incorrect search results.
6129
6130
6131
6132       thread_received
6133              Type: boolean
6134              Default: no
6135
6136              When  set, mutt uses the date received rather than the date sent
6137              to thread messages by subject.
6138
6139
6140
6141       tilde
6142              Type: boolean
6143              Default: no
6144
6145              When set, the internal-pager will pad blank lines to the  bottom
6146              of the screen with a tilde (“~”).
6147
6148
6149
6150       time_inc
6151              Type: number
6152              Default: 0
6153
6154              Along  with  $read_inc,  $write_inc, and $net_inc, this variable
6155              controls the frequency with  which  progress  updates  are  dis‐
6156              played.  It  suppresses updates less than $time_inc milliseconds
6157              apart. This can improve throughput on systems with  slow  termi‐
6158              nals, or when running mutt on a remote system.
6159
6160              Also see the “tuning” section of the manual for performance con‐
6161              siderations.
6162
6163
6164
6165       timeout
6166              Type: number
6167              Default: 600
6168
6169              When Mutt is waiting for user input either idling in menus or in
6170              an  interactive prompt, Mutt would block until input is present.
6171              Depending on the context, this would prevent certain  operations
6172              from working, like checking for new mail or keeping an IMAP con‐
6173              nection alive.
6174
6175              This variable controls how many seconds Mutt will at  most  wait
6176              until it aborts waiting for input, performs these operations and
6177              continues to wait for input.
6178
6179              A value of zero or less will cause Mutt to never time out.
6180
6181
6182
6183       tmpdir
6184              Type: path
6185              Default: “”
6186
6187              This variable allows you to specify where Mutt  will  place  its
6188              temporary  files  needed  for displaying and composing messages.
6189              If this variable is not set, the environment variable $TMPDIR is
6190              used.  If $TMPDIR is not set then “/tmp” is used.
6191
6192
6193
6194       to_chars
6195              Type: string
6196              Default: “ +TCFL”
6197
6198              Controls  the  character used to indicate mail addressed to you.
6199              The first character is the one used when the  mail  is  not  ad‐
6200              dressed  to  your  address.  The second is used when you are the
6201              only recipient of the message.  The third is when  your  address
6202              appears  in the “To:” header field, but you are not the only re‐
6203              cipient of the message.  The fourth character is used when  your
6204              address  is specified in the “Cc:” header field, but you are not
6205              the only recipient.  The fifth character  is  used  to  indicate
6206              mail that was sent by you.  The sixth character is used to indi‐
6207              cate when a mail was sent to a mailing-list you subscribe to.
6208
6209
6210
6211       trash
6212              Type: path
6213              Default: “”
6214
6215              If set, this variable specifies the path  of  the  trash  folder
6216              where  the  mails  marked for deletion will be moved, instead of
6217              being irremediably purged.
6218
6219              NOTE: When you delete a message in the trash folder, it  is  re‐
6220              ally deleted, so that you have a way to clean the trash.
6221
6222
6223
6224       ts_icon_format
6225              Type: string (localized)
6226              Default: “M%?n?AIL&ail?”
6227
6228              Controls  the format of the icon title, as long as “$ts_enabled”
6229              is set.  This string is identical in formatting to the one  used
6230              by “$status_format”.
6231
6232
6233
6234       ts_enabled
6235              Type: boolean
6236              Default: no
6237
6238              Controls  whether mutt tries to set the terminal status line and
6239              icon name.  Most terminal emulators emulate the status  line  in
6240              the window title.
6241
6242
6243
6244       ts_status_format
6245              Type: string (localized)
6246              Default: “Mutt with %?m?%m messages&no messages?%?n? [%n NEW]?”
6247
6248              Controls  the  format of the terminal status line (or window ti‐
6249              tle), provided that “$ts_enabled” has been set. This  string  is
6250              identical in formatting to the one used by “$status_format”.
6251
6252
6253
6254       tunnel
6255              Type: string
6256              Default: “”
6257
6258              Setting  this  variable will cause mutt to open a pipe to a com‐
6259              mand instead of a raw socket. You may be able to use this to set
6260              up  preauthenticated  connections to your IMAP/POP3/SMTP server.
6261              Example:
6262
6263
6264              set tunnel=”ssh -q mailhost.net /usr/local/libexec/imapd”
6265
6266
6267              Note: For this example to work you must be able to log in to the
6268              remote machine without having to enter a password.
6269
6270              When  set,  Mutt  uses  the  tunnel  for all remote connections.
6271              Please see “account-hook” in the manual for how to use different
6272              tunnel commands per connection.
6273
6274
6275
6276       tunnel_is_secure
6277              Type: boolean
6278              Default: yes
6279
6280              When  set, Mutt will assume the $tunnel connection does not need
6281              STARTTLS to be enabled.  It will also allow IMAP PREAUTH  server
6282              responses  inside  a  tunnel to proceed.  This is appropriate if
6283              $tunnel uses ssh or directly invokes the server locally.
6284
6285              When unset,  Mutt  will  negotiate  STARTTLS  according  to  the
6286              ssl_starttls  and  ssl_force_tls variables.  If ssl_force_tls is
6287              set, Mutt will abort connecting if an IMAP server responds  with
6288              PREAUTH.   This  setting is appropriate if $tunnel does not pro‐
6289              vide security and could be tampered with by attackers.
6290
6291
6292
6293       uncollapse_jump
6294              Type: boolean
6295              Default: no
6296
6297              When set, Mutt will jump to the next  unread  message,  if  any,
6298              when the current thread is uncollapsed.
6299
6300
6301
6302       uncollapse_new
6303              Type: boolean
6304              Default: yes
6305
6306              When  set,  Mutt  will  automatically  uncollapse  any collapsed
6307              thread that  receives  a  new  message.  When  unset,  collapsed
6308              threads  will  remain collapsed. the presence of the new message
6309              will still affect index sorting, though.
6310
6311
6312
6313       use_8bitmime
6314              Type: boolean
6315              Default: no
6316
6317              Warning: do not set this variable unless you are using a version
6318              of sendmail which supports the -B8BITMIME flag (such as sendmail
6319              8.8.x) or you may not be able to send mail.
6320
6321              When set, Mutt will invoke $sendmail with  the  -B8BITMIME  flag
6322              when sending 8-bit messages to enable ESMTP negotiation.
6323
6324
6325
6326       use_domain
6327              Type: boolean
6328              Default: yes
6329
6330              When  set,  Mutt  will qualify all local addresses (ones without
6331              the “@host” portion) with the value of $hostname.  If unset,  no
6332              addresses will be qualified.
6333
6334
6335
6336       use_envelope_from
6337              Type: boolean
6338              Default: no
6339
6340              When  set, mutt will set the envelope sender of the message.  If
6341              $envelope_from_address is set, it will be used as the sender ad‐
6342              dress. If unset, mutt will attempt to derive the sender from the
6343              “From:” header.
6344
6345              Note that this information is passed to sendmail  command  using
6346              the -f command line switch. Therefore setting this option is not
6347              useful if the $sendmail variable already contains -f or  if  the
6348              executable  pointed  to  by  $sendmail  doesn't  support  the -f
6349              switch.
6350
6351
6352
6353       use_from
6354              Type: boolean
6355              Default: yes
6356
6357              When set, Mutt will generate the “From:” header field when send‐
6358              ing  messages.  If unset, no “From:” header field will be gener‐
6359              ated unless the user explicitly sets one using the “my_hdr” com‐
6360              mand.
6361
6362
6363
6364       use_ipv6
6365              Type: boolean
6366              Default: yes
6367
6368              When set, Mutt will look for IPv6 addresses of hosts it tries to
6369              contact.  If this option is unset, Mutt will restrict itself  to
6370              IPv4 addresses.  Normally, the default should work.
6371
6372
6373
6374       user_agent
6375              Type: boolean
6376              Default: no
6377
6378              When  set, mutt will add a “User-Agent:” header to outgoing mes‐
6379              sages, indicating which version of mutt was used  for  composing
6380              them.
6381
6382
6383
6384       visual
6385              Type: path
6386              Default: “”
6387
6388              Specifies  the  visual editor to invoke when the “~v” command is
6389              given in the built-in editor.
6390
6391
6392
6393       wait_key
6394              Type: boolean
6395              Default: yes
6396
6397              Controls whether Mutt will ask you to press a key after  an  ex‐
6398              ternal  command  has been invoked by these functions: <shell-es‐
6399              cape>,  <pipe-message>,   <pipe-entry>,   <print-message>,   and
6400              <print-entry> commands.
6401
6402              It  is also used when viewing attachments with “auto_view”, pro‐
6403              vided that the corresponding mailcap entry has  a  needsterminal
6404              flag, and the external program is interactive.
6405
6406              When  set, Mutt will always ask for a key. When unset, Mutt will
6407              wait for a key only if the external command returned a  non-zero
6408              status.
6409
6410
6411
6412       weed
6413              Type: boolean
6414              Default: yes
6415
6416              When set, mutt will weed headers when displaying, forwarding, or
6417              replying to messages.
6418
6419              Also  see   $copy_decode_weed,   $pipe_decode_weed,   $print_de‐
6420              code_weed.
6421
6422
6423
6424       wrap
6425              Type: number
6426              Default: 0
6427
6428              When set to a positive value, mutt will wrap text at $wrap char‐
6429              acters.  When set to a negative value, mutt will  wrap  text  so
6430              that there are $wrap characters of empty space on the right side
6431              of the terminal. Setting it to zero makes mutt wrap at the  ter‐
6432              minal width.
6433
6434              Also see $reflow_wrap.
6435
6436
6437
6438       wrap_headers
6439              Type: number
6440              Default: 78
6441
6442              This  option specifies the number of characters to use for wrap‐
6443              ping an outgoing message's headers. Allowed values  are  between
6444              78 and 998 inclusive.
6445
6446              Note:  This  option usually shouldn't be changed. RFC5233 recom‐
6447              mends a line length of 78 (the default), so please  only  change
6448              this setting when you know what you're doing.
6449
6450
6451
6452       wrap_search
6453              Type: boolean
6454              Default: yes
6455
6456              Controls whether searches wrap around the end.
6457
6458              When  set,  searches  will wrap around the first (or last) item.
6459              When unset, incremental searches will not wrap.
6460
6461
6462
6463       wrapmargin
6464              Type: number
6465              Default: 0
6466
6467              (DEPRECATED) Equivalent to setting $wrap with a negative value.
6468
6469
6470
6471       write_bcc
6472              Type: boolean
6473              Default: no
6474
6475              Controls whether mutt writes out the “Bcc:” header when  prepar‐
6476              ing  messages  to be sent.  Some MTAs, such as Exim and Courier,
6477              do not strip the “Bcc:” header; so it is advisable to leave this
6478              unset  unless you have a particular need for the header to be in
6479              the sent message.
6480
6481              If mutt is set to deliver directly  via  SMTP  (see  $smtp_url),
6482              this  option  does nothing: mutt will never write out the “Bcc:”
6483              header in this case.
6484
6485              Note this option only affects the sending of  messages.   Fcc'ed
6486              copies of a message will always contain the “Bcc:” header if one
6487              exists.
6488
6489
6490
6491       write_inc
6492              Type: number
6493              Default: 10
6494
6495              When  writing  a  mailbox,  a  message  will  be  printed  every
6496              $write_inc  messages  to indicate progress.  If set to 0, only a
6497              single message will be displayed before writing a mailbox.
6498
6499              Also see the $read_inc, $net_inc and $time_inc variables and the
6500              “tuning” section of the manual for performance considerations.
6501
6502
6503

SEE ALSO

6505       iconv(1),   iconv(3),   mailcap(5),   maildir(5),   mbox(5),   mutt(1),
6506       printf(3), regex(7), strftime(3)
6507
6508       The Mutt Manual
6509
6510       The Mutt home page: http://www.mutt.org/
6511

AUTHOR

6513       Michael Elkins, and others.  Use <mutt-dev@mutt.org> to contact the de‐
6514       velopers.
6515
6516
6517
6518Unix                             January 2019                        muttrc(5)
Impressum