14 The UUCP Networking Commands

This chapter describes the UNIX-to-UNIX Copy Program (UUCP). Using UUCP enables you to:

Perform tasks on a remote host (Section 14.3.2.3)

Transfer files between a local and remote host (Section 14.5)

Work in background mode

Switch back and forth between the local and remote host, performing tasks on either or both, concurrently

For additional information on UUCP, see the uucp_intro(7) reference page. For an overview of UUCP system management and tasks, see Network Administration.

With UUCP, you can connect over a hardwired asynchronous line, a network or a telephone line (using modems at both ends) to:

Another workstation

Another computer running a UNIX based operating system

A computer running an operating system that is not UNIX based (this requires certain hardware and software)

14.1 UUCP Pathname Conventions

UUCP pathnames follow the same conventions as the operating system with the following exceptions:

Relative pathnames may not work with all UUCP commands. In such a case, reenter the command and use the full pathname.

On hosts that support UUCP, the /usr/spool/uucppublic directory is set up for transferring data among other hosts. The brief form of this directory is ~uucp.

The pathname for a file on a remote host requires an exclamation point, (!) after the host name. For example, sea!/research/new specifies the file new in the directory /research on host sea.

Sometimes to specify a file, you must provide the names of the remote hosts along the network path. To do so in the Bourne, Korn, or POSIX shell, put an exclamation point (!) after each host name. For example, gem!car!sea!/research/cells specifies the file cells in directory /research on host sea, which is reachable through host car; car is reachable through host gem. In the C shell, the exclamation point (!) will be mistranslated unless you precede it with a backslash (\), for example:
```
gem\!car\!sea\!/research/cells
```

14.2 Finding Hosts that Support UUCP

To communicate with a remote host by using UUCP commands from your local host, you must determine which other hosts support the UUCP protocol. The UUCP uuname utility displays a list of all hosts with which you can communicate using UUCP from your local host. The following example shows the uuname command with output.

% uuname
elvis
fab4
Y107

This example shows that three remote hosts are accessible to the local host through UUCP. To identify the local host, use the -l option to the uuname command. For example:

% uuname -l
music

By using UUCP commands among compatible hosts, a user on host music can send to or receive files from hosts elvis, fab4 or Y107.

For more information, see the uuname(1) reference page.

14.3 Connecting to a Remote Host

Before you can use UUCP commands, you must connect your local host to the remote host. There are three commands you can use to connect to a remote host:

The cu and tip commands establish a full-duplex connection, giving the appearance of being directly logged in to the remote host. This connection enables the simultaneous transfer of data between the hosts.

The ct command establishes a remote connection by letting you dial an attached terminal and log in through a modem and telephone line.

Note

A remote connection is subject to the security features on the local and remote host. See your system administrator for more information.

14.3.1 Using cu to Connect to a Remote Host

The cu command and its options enable you to connect to a remote host, log in to it and perform tasks there from your local host. You can perform tasks on each host by switching back and forth between the two. If both hosts use the operating system, you can enter commands on the remote host from your local host.

14.3.1.1 Using cu to Connect by Name to a Remote Host

The following steps show how to use the cu command to connect from local host earth to remote host moon, log in to moon and enter a command there:

Enter the following cu command at the local system prompt; a message verifies the connection:
```
earth% cu moon
Connected
```
The login prompt for the remote host will be displayed.
When connecting to some remote hosts, you may need to press the Return key several times before a login prompt is displayed.

Log in to host moon at the login prompt. The system prompt for host moon is displayed.

Enter any command that host moon supports. For example, to list the contents of the /usr/geog/crater/earthside directory, enter the following command at the system prompt:
```
moon% ls /usr/geog/crater/earthside
copernicus.dat
tycho.dat
moon% 
```

Note

The preceding example may not work for all cu connections. It is used here as a brief, general example. See your system administrator for more information.

After logging in to the remote host, you can switch back and forth between it and the local host because they run concurrently. To return to your local host and enter a command there, type a tilde and an exclamation point (~!) followed directly by the command, or wait for the local host prompt to display and then enter the command. To return to the remote host, press Ctrl/D.

14.3.1.2 Using cu to Specify a Directly-Connected Remote Host

To connect to a directly-connected remote host, use the cu command with the -l option to name the hardwired line that connects the two computers. Most of these communication lines have names that are variations of the standard device name, tty.

To use the cu command with the -l option to connect to a remote host with an unknown name (but which uses hardwired device ttyd0), enter the following command:

earth% cu -lttyd0
Connected

After the connection is made, you can log in to and execute commands on remote host moon. Refer to the steps in Section 14.3.1.1.

To return to the local host, type a tilde and an exclamation point (~!) followed directly by the command, or wait for the local system prompt to be displayed before entering the command. To return to the remote host, press Ctrl/D.

Note

If you use the -l option, but still enter the name of a remote host, no error message will be generated. Instead, cu will try to connect to the first available line for the requested host name, ignoring the specified line. If it makes the connection, it may not be the one you wanted.

14.3.1.3 Using cu to Connect by Telephone to a Remote Host

You can use cu to connect to a remote host, by telephone, whenever the remote host has not been set up to communicate with the local host through UUCP. To do so, the following conditions must be met with:

Both the local and the remote host are connected to modems.

You know the telephone number of the remote modem and have a valid login on that host.

The following example shows how to use the cu command to connect to a remote host that has a long-distance telephone number of 1-612-555-6789. The -s option specifies a transmission rate of 300 baud. Assuming that dialing 9 is necessary for an outside dial tone, enter the following cu command at the local system prompt:

earth% cu -s300 9=16125556789
Connected

After the connection is made, you can log in to and execute commands on the remote host. (Refer to the steps in Section 14.3.1.1).

To return to the local host, type a tilde and an exclamation point (~!) followed directly by the command, or wait for the local system prompt to display before entering the command. To return to the remote host, press Ctrl/D.

If you do not use the -s option to specify a transmission speed, an appropriate rate is selected by default from data in /usr/lib/uucp/Devices.

For added security use the -n option, which prompts you for the telephone number. This suppresses the display of the phone number with the ps command, which would otherwise display the number with the cu command that you enter.

Table 14-1 summarizes the cu command options and entries. See the cu(1) reference page for more information.

Table 14-1: Options to the cu Command

Option	Description
`-sspeed`	Specifies the rate at which data is transmitted to the remote host. The default rate, set during UUCP installation and based on data in `/usr/lib/uucp/Devices`, should be sufficient for most of your work.
`-e \| -o`	Specify `-e` for even or `-o` for odd parity for data sent to the remote host.
`-h`	Specify `-h` to emulate local echoing, to support calls to other hosts that expect terminals to be set to half-duplex mode.
`-d`	Specify `-d` to print diagnostic traces.
`-n`	Specify `-n` to have `cu` prompt for a telephone number (for added security)
`-lline`	Specifies the name of a device (line) for the communication between two computers. The default is either a hardwired asynchronous line or a telephone line with an automatic dialer such as a modem. If your site has several communication lines, you may want to specify a particular line for your `cu` link. Usually, you do not have to specify a line or device; the default established during UUCP installation should be sufficient. If you want to connect to a remote computer but do not know its name, you can enter the `cu` command with the `-l` option and a variation of the standard device name `tty` (for example, `-ltty1`). Ask your system administrator for the device names at your site.
`-t`	Dials a terminal that has been set to auto-answer and maps `carriage return` to `carriage return/linefeed`.
`host_name`	Specifies the name of the remote host with which you want to establish a connection.
`telno`	Specifies the telephone number in a remote connection using a modem.

14.3.1.4 Local cu Commands

While connected by cu to a remote host, you can use local cu commands to perform the following tasks:

Go back and forth between the local and remote hosts

Change directories on the local host

Copy files between local and remote hosts

Terminate a remote connection

To return temporarily to the local host to work, type a tilde and an exclamation point (~!) at the remote system prompt; wait for the local system prompt to be displayed in the following form, where local is the name of the local host:

~ [ local ] !

Instead of waiting for the local system prompt to be displayed, you can enter the command immediately after typing the ~! that accesses the local host. For example, while connected by cu to remote host moon, you can enter the following command to return to local host earth and use the cat command to read the /usr/crew/r2/asimov/AI file:

moon% ~!cat /usr/crew/r2/asimov/AI

There are three cu local commands for tasks that are performed very often. You enter these commands from the remote host to perform tasks on the local host while you continue working on the remote host. These commands are preceded by a tilde and a percent symbol:

`~%cd directory_name`	Changes the directory on the local host
`~%take from [to]`	Copies a file from the remote host to the local host
`~%put to [from]`	Copies a file from the local host to the remote host

For example, while connected by cu to remote host moon, you can change the current directory on local host earth from /usr/geog/ocean to /usr/geog/ocean/pacific by entering the following command:

moon% ~%cd pacific

While connected by cu to remote host moon, you can copy the file, /usr/ETI/clavius to the file /usr/NASA/decode on local host earth by entering the ~%take local command at the remote system prompt:

moon% ~%take /usr/ETI/clavius /usr/NASA/decode

While connected by cu to remote host moon, you can copy the local file /usr/NASA/jupiter to the file, /usr/ETI/clavius/hal9 on the remote host by entering the ~%put local command at the remote system prompt:

moon% ~%put /usr/NASA/jupiter /usr/ETI/clavius/hal9

Note

Before using the ~%take and ~%put commands, ensure that the destination directory exists. Unlike the uucp command, these cu local commands do not create intermediate directories during file transfers.

You can transfer only ASCII files with ~%take and ~%put. (For example, a PostScript file is an ASCII file, but an executable file is not.)

14.3.1.5 Using cu to Connect a Local Host to Several Remote Hosts

You can enter the cu command to connect host X to host Y, log on to host Y and then enter the cu command there to connect to host Z. You then have one local host, X and two remote hosts, Y and Z.

You can run an operating system command on host Z after you log in there. Then, from Z, you can run commands on the other hosts as follows:

To run a command on host X, prefix the command with a single tilde (~)

To run a command on host Y, prefix the command with two tildes (~~)

Table 14-2 summarizes the most common cu local commands. For information about other cu local commands, see the cu(1) reference page.

Table 14-2: Local cu Commands

Command Description

~.

Logs you off the remote host and terminates the remote connection.

When connected to the remote host over a telephone line using a modem, this command does not always work. In such cases, press Ctrl/D to log off; then type a tilde and a period (~.) at the prompt and press the Return key to terminate the remote connection.

~!

Returns the session from the remote host to the local host. Type a tilde and an exclamation point (~!) at the prompt and enter any command. To return to the remote host, press Ctrl/D.

After establishing the cu connection, you can go back and forth between the two hosts by typing ~! (to go from remote to local) and pressing Ctrl/D (to go from local to remote).

~%cd directory_name

Changes the current directory on the local host to that specified by the directory_name variable. If no directory name is specified, cu changes it to your home directory.

~%take source [dest]

Copies a file from the remote to the local host. If you do not specify a dest destination file on the local host, the ~%take command copies the remote file to the local host and assigns the same file name.

~%put source [dest]

Copies a file from the local to the remote host. If you do not specify a dest destination file on the remote host, the ~%put command copies the local file to the remote host and assigns the same file name.

~$cmd

Executes the cmd command on the local host and sends the output to the remote host for execution by the remote shell.

14.3.2 Using tip to Connect to a Remote Host

The tip command and its options enable you to connect to a remote host, log in to it and perform tasks there from your local host. You can do tasks on each by switching back and forth between the two hosts. If both hosts use the operating system, you can enter commands on the remote host from your local host.

14.3.2.1 Using tip to Connect by Name to a Remote Host

The following steps show how to use the tip command to connect from local host earth to remote host moon, log in to moon and enter a command there:

Enter the following tip command at the local system prompt; a message verifies the connection:
```
earth% tip moon
Connected
```
The login prompt for the remote host will be displayed.
When connecting to some remote hosts, you may need to press the Return key several times before a login prompt is displayed.

Log in to host moon at the login prompt. The system prompt for host moon is displayed.

Wait for the system prompt, then enter any command that host moon supports. For example, to list the contents of the /usr/geog/crater/darkside directory, enter the following command at the system prompt:
```
moon% ls /usr/geog/crater/darkside
copernicus.dat
tycho.dat
moon% 
```

Note

The preceding example may not work for all tip connections. It is used here as a brief, general example. See your system administrator if necessary.

After logging in to the remote host, you can switch back and forth between it and the local host because they run concurrently. To return to your local host and enter a command there, type a tilde and an exclamation point (~!) followed directly by the command or wait for the local host prompt to display and then enter the command. To return to the remote host, press Ctrl/D.

14.3.2.2 Using tip to Connect by Telephone to a Remote Host

You can use the tip command to connect by telephone to a remote host if the following conditions are met with:

Both the local and the remote host are connected to modems.

You know the telephone number of the remote modem or there is an entry for the remote host in /etc/remote.

The following steps show how to use the tip command to connect to a remote host that has the local telephone number 555-1234, using a transmission rate of 300 baud:

Enter the following tip command at the local prompt, jupiter; a message verifies the connection:
```
jupiter% tip -300 5551234
Connected
```

Press the Return key. When connecting to some remote hosts, you may need to press the Return key several times before the remote host's login prompt is displayed.

Log in at the remote host login prompt. The connection to your local host is still open, so you can work on the local or remote host.

Note

If you do not specify a transmission speed, the tip command uses a 1200-baud rate by default.

The following steps show how to use the tip command to connect, using a 300-baud transmission rate, to a remote host that has a long-distance telephone number of 1-612-555-9876.

Assuming that you must dial 9 for an outside dial tone, enter the following tip command at the prompt of local host earth; a message verifies the connection:
```
earth% tip -300 9,16125559876
Connected
```

Press the Return key. When connecting to some remote hosts, you may need to press the Return key several times before the remote host's login prompt is displayed.

Log in at the remote host login prompt. The connection to your local host is still open, so you can work on the local or remote host.

For information about customizing the /etc/remote and /etc/phones files, see Network Administration and the remote(4) and phones(4) reference pages.

Table 14-3 summarizes the tip command options and entries. See the tip(1) reference page for more information.

Table 14-3: Options to the tip Command

Option	Description
`-baud_rate`	Specifies data transmission rate to the remote host. The default rate is 1200 baud. The baud rate, set when UUCP is installed and customized for your site, is configured according to the hardware used to establish connections.
`-v`	Displays any variables as they are read (verbose) from the `.tiprc` file.
`host_name`	Specifies the remote host to which you want to connect; the `tip` command connects over a hardwired line or a telephone line using a modem, depending on how your system communication is set up between the local and remote hosts.
`telno`	Specifies the telephone number in a remote connection, using a modem. Use this method when the remote host name is not recognized by `tip` (that is, there is no entry in the `/etc/remote` file).

14.3.2.3 Local tip Commands

While connected by tip to a remote host, you can use local commands to perform the following tasks:

Go back and forth between the local and the remote host

Change directory on the local host from the remote host

Copy files between local and remote hosts

Terminate a remote connection

To return temporarily to the local host and enter commands there, type a tilde and exclamation point (~!) at the remote system prompt. The local system prompt will display in the following form, where shell is the name of the local shell and pmt is the prompt for the local shell, either % for the C shell or $ for the Bourne, Korn, or POSIX shell:

~ [ shell ] pmt!

To return to the remote host, press Ctrl/D at the local system prompt. To terminate the tip process, type a tilde and press Ctrl/D (~^D).

You can use the following tip commands from the remote host to perform tasks on the local host while you continue working on the remote host. These commands are preceded by a tilde:

`~c directory_name`	Changes the local directory
`~t from [to]`	Copies- a file from the remote host to a file on the local host
`~<`	Copies a file from the remote host to a file on the local host
`~p from [to]`	Copies a file from the local host to a file on the remote host
`~>`	Copies a file from the local host to a file on the remote host

For example, while connected by tip to remote host moon, you can change the current directory on local host earth, from /usr/geog/polar to /usr/geog/polar/arctic by entering the following command:

moon% ~c arctic

While connected by tip to remote host moon, you can copy the /usr/darkside/temp/dat file to the /usr/NASA/bios/temp file on local host earth by entering the following command:

moon% ~t /usr/darkside/temp/dat /usr/NASA/bios/temp

While connected by tip to remote host moon, you can copy the local /usr/NASA/bios/warn file to the /usr/darkside/temp/change file on the remote host by entering the following command:

moon% ~p /usr/NASA/bios/warn /usr/darkside/temp/change

Note

You can only transfer ASCII files with the ~t and ~p commands. (For example, a PostScript file is an ASCII file, but an object (code) file is not.)
Neither ~t nor ~p checks for file transfer errors; the uucp command provides this verification.

14.3.2.4 Using tip to Connect a Local Host to Several Remote Hosts

You can enter the tip command to connect host X to host Y, log on to host Y and then enter the tip command there (if Y supports tip) to connect to host Z. You then have one local host, X and two remote hosts, Y and Z.

You can run an operating system command on host Z (if Z is a host) after you log in there. Then, from Z, you can run commands on the other hosts as follows:

To run a command on host X, prefix the command with a single tilde (~).

To run a command on host Y, prefix the command with two tildes (~~).

Note

A command sequence that begins with a tilde (~) can be interpreted by tip only if it is at the beginning of the command line.

Table 14-4 summarizes the most common tip local commands. For information about other tip local commands, see the tip(1) reference page.

Table 14-4: Local tip Commands

Command Description

~Ctrl/D
~.

Logs you off the remote host and terminates the remote connection.

When connected to the remote host over a telephone line using a modem, this does not always work. In such cases, press Ctrl/D to log off; then enter ~Ctrl/D or ~. at the prompt and press the Return key to terminate the remote connection.

~!

Returns the session from the remote host to a shell on the local host. Type a tilde and an exclamation point (~!) at the prompt to enter any command. To return to the remote host, press Ctrl/D.

After establishing the tip connection, you can go back and forth between the two hosts by typing ~! (to go from remote to local) and press Ctrl/D (to go from local to remote).

~c directory_name

Changes the current directory on the local host to that specified by the directory_name variable. If no directory name is specified, tip changes it to your home directory.

~t source [dest]

Copies a file from the remote to the local host. If you do not specify a dest destination file on the local host, the ~t command copies the remote file to the local host and assigns the same file name.

~p source [dest]

Copies a file from the local to the remote host. If you do not specify a dest destination file on the remote host, the ~p command copies the local file to the remote host and assigns the same file name.

~<

Copies a file from the remote to the local host; the tip command prompts for the command string that will be used on the remote host to display the remote file and the name of the local file, for example,

cat
filename

.

~>

Copies a file from the local to the remote host; the tip command prompts for the name of the local file and sends the file to the remote host as if it were standard input. You should set up a command on the remote host to accept this input before executing the ~> command. For example, remote%

cat >
destination-file

.

Note

The tip command uses system prompts and character sequences that match a system's interrupt sequence to signal the end of file transfers through the ~< or ~> command. These values are configured in the /etc/remote file. See the remote(4) reference page for more information.

14.3.3 Using ct to Connect to a Remote Terminal with a Modem

The ct command enables a user on a remote ASCII terminal with a modem to communicate with a local host with a modem over a telephone line. The remote terminal user can then log in and work on the local host. If there are no available telephone lines, the ct command displays a message and asks if you want to wait for one.

The ct command is useful:

When secure communications are needed.
Because the local host contacts the remote terminal, the remote user does not need to know the telephone number of the local host. The local user entering ct can monitor the work of the remote user.

When the cost for the telephone connection should be charged either to the local site or to a specific account on the remote terminal (like a collect call).
The -h option can be omitted to emulate making a collect call. The user on a remote terminal enters the ct command without the -h option.

The following ct features are useful under certain circumstances:

You can instruct ct to continue dialing a number until the connection is established or until a set length of time has elapsed.

You can specify more than one telephone number and ct can dial each modem until a connection is established.

Note

Usually, a user on the remote terminal calls the user on the local host to request a ct session. If such connections occur often, your system manager may want to set up UUCP so that a local host automatically enters ct to one or more specified terminals at a designated time. For information about customizing UUCP, see your system administrator.

For example, to connect to a remote terminal modem at the same site as yours, enter the following command. The remote modem has a telephone number of 7-6092:

earth% ct 76092
Allocated dialer at 1200 baud
Confirm hang_up? (y to hang_up)

After entering the command, a message verifies the connection and prompts you to either hang up any other phone lines currently in use or cancel the command.

The following example shows how to use the ct command to connect to a remote terminal modem with a local telephone number of 555-0043, specifying 9 for an outside line and the -w option for a 2-minute wait for the modem line:

earth% ct -w2 9=5550043
Allocated dialer at 1200 baud
Confirm hang_up? (y to hang_up)

As before, you are prompted to either hang up any other phone lines currently in use or cancel the command.

The following example shows how to use the ct command to connect from local host earth, to a remote terminal modem with a long-distance number of 1-201-555-7824, specifying 9 for an outside line and the -w option for a 5-minute wait for the modem line:

earth% ct -w5 9=12015557824
Allocated dialer at 1200 baud
Confirm hang_up? (y to hang_up)

You are prompted to either hang up any other phone lines currently in use or cancel the command.

See the ct(1) reference page for more information.

Table 14-5 summarizes ct command options and required entries.

Table 14-5: Options to the ct Command

Option Description

-wminutes

Specifies the maximum length of time in minutes that the ct command waits for a line. The ct command dials the remote modem at one-minute intervals until the connection is established or the specified number of minutes has elapsed.

Using the -w option suppresses the messages that ct usually displays if it cannot make the connection.

-xnumber

Produces detailed information about the command's execution on standard error output on the local host, to be used for debugging. The debugging level, number, is a single digit in the range from 0-9; the recommended default is 9.

-v

Enables the ct command to send a running narrative to standard error output.

-h

Prevents ct from breaking the current connection.

-sspeed

Specifies the data transmission rate of ct; the default is 1200-baud. Set the baud rate to the baud rate of the terminal to which you are connecting.

telno

Specifies the phone number of the remote modem. You can enter a local or a long-distance number and specify secondary dial tones such as 9 for an outside line or an access code.

Use an equal sign (=) following a secondary dial tone (9=) and a hyphen (-) for delays, as in 555-5092. Telephone numbers may contain up to 31 characters, including any of the following:

The digits 0-9

A hyphen or dash (-)

An equal sign (=)

An asterisk (*)

A number or pound sign (#)

14.4 Using uux to Run Commands on Remote Hosts

The uux command enables you to run commands on a remote host while you work on your local host. If these commands do not exist on the remote host, uux does not execute and the remote host will notify you of this by mail. If the command executes and produces output (for example, cat or diff), you can program uux to place that output in a file on any particular host.

Note

For security reasons, certain sites may restrict the use of some commands through uux. Also, enhanced security features on the local host may affect the execution of certain commands on remote hosts through uux. See your system administrator for more information.

The uux command syntax depends on how the command interpreter of a given shell treats special characters. The syntax is the same for the Bourne, Korn, and POSIX shells, but different for the C shell.

Regardless of the shell from which you use uux, there are two ways to specify the destination:

uux [ option... ] "commandstring > destination"

uux [ option... ] commandstring \{ destination \}

In the first syntax statement, the right-angle bracket (the redirection symbol) (>) directs the output of the remote command to a destination directory or file. A pair of double quotation marks (" ") encloses the entire command because the redirection symbol, the right-angle bracket (>), is a special character. Whenever you use any of the following characters in a command line, you must enclose that character or the entire command in double quotation (" ") marks:

Left-angle bracket (<)

Right-angle bracket (>)

Semi-colon (;)

Vertical bar or pipe (|)

Plus sign (+)

Left-bracket ([)

Right-bracket (])

Question-mark (?)

In the second syntax statement, enclose the destination name within braces ({ }). You must type a backslash (\) before each brace because braces are special characters to the shell command interpreter. Without backslashes, the braces would be misinterpreted.

When specifying the pathname of a destination file, you can use a full name or a pathname preceded by ~user where user is the name of the user's login directory.

The output files must have 'write' permission status. If you are uncertain about the permission status of a specific target output file, direct the results of the command to the /usr/spool/uucppublic directory; ~uucp is a brief way of specifying this directory from a shell.

14.4.1 Using uux from the Bourne, Korn or POSIX Shells

The following example shows how the uux command uses the operating system cat command to concatenate the /u/doc/F1 file located on host gem, with the /usr/doc/F2 file located on host sky. The result is placed in the /u/doc/F3 file on host gem.

uux "gem!cat  gem!/u/doc/F1  sky!/usr/doc/F2  >  gem!/u/doc/F3"

In the following example, the task is the same as in the previous command, but braces ({ }) are used instead of the redirection symbol to specify the destination in the uux command line. The task is the same as in the previous command, but the destination output is implicit:

uux gem!cat  gem!/u/doc/F1  sky!/usr/doc/F2  \{gem!/u/doc/F3\}

14.4.2 Using uux from the C Shell

To perform the same operation as in the previous section, but in the C shell, enter one of the following uux commands:

uux "gem\!cat gem\!/u/doc/F1 sky\!/usr/doc/F2 > gem\!/u/doc/F3"

The following example uses an implicit destination output file:

uux gem\!cat gem\!/u/doc/F1 sky\!/usr/doc/F2 \{gem\!/u/doc/F3\}

In the two following examples, uux uses the cat command to send the acct6 file from remote host boston, as output to the acct6 file in the public directory on your local host:

uux "cat boston\!/reports/acct6 > ~uucp/acct6"

The following example uses an implicit destination output file:

uux cat  boston\!/reports/acct6  \{ ~uucp/acct6\}

14.4.3 Other uux Features and Suggestions

The uux command assumes that your local host is the default, so you do not need to specify it in the command line. For example, to run the diff command to compare the /u/F1 file on host car with the /u/F2 file on host sea and place the result in the /u/F3 file on the local host, use the following command:

uux "diff  car!/u/F1  sea!/u/F2  >  /u/F3"

You can also represent the local host by using just an exclamation point, as in the following example:

uux "!diff  car!/u/F1  sea!/u/F2  >  !/u/F3"

When you specify the pathname source file in commands such as diff or cat, you can include the following shell pattern-matching characters which the remote host will interpret:

Question-mark (?)

Asterisk (*)

Left-bracket ([)

Right bracket (])

Enclose these characters either within two backslashes (\ ... \) or within quotation marks (" ... ") so that the local shell does not interpret the characters before uux sends the command to the remote host. Do not use pattern-matching characters in destination names.

If you use the left-angle bracket (<), the right angle-bracket (>), the semi-colon (;) and the pipe (|) shell characters, place them within backslashes (\ ... \), quotation marks (" ... ") or place the entire command line within backslashes or quotation marks.

Note

The shell redirection characters, two left-angle brackets (<<) and two right-angle brackets (>>), do not work in UUCP.

Table 14-6 summarizes uux command options and required entries. See the uux(1) reference page for more information.

Table 14-6: Options to the uux Command

Option Description

-n

Cancels notification through mailx that usually occurs when a command fails to execute on the designated host.

The -n and -z options are mutually exclusive.

-z

Sends a message through mailx when command execution fails on the designated host.

The -n and -z options are mutually exclusive.

-j

Displays the job identification number of the uux request that runs the remote command; use this number with the uustat command. See Section 13.8.1 for more information.

cmd_string

Specifies any command accepted by the designated host. For more information on the command formats, see Section 13.4.

dest_name

Specifies the host and file for storing the output of the command run on a remote host. For example, if you want to list all the files in a directory on a remote host, you can use uux to place the listing in a file on your own host by entering the appropriate destination name. For more information on the destination formats, see Section 13.4.

14.5 Using UUCP to Send and Receive Files

On UNIX-based computers that support the UUCP protocol, you can use the uucp command to copy one or more files from one computer to another. You can use uucp to copy files as follows:

Between local and remote hosts

Between two remote hosts

Between two hosts through an intermediate host

Within your local host

To facilitate file transfers, many sites make the public UUCP directory, /usr/spool/uucppublic, available. This directory provides read and write access to all users and bypasses security restrictions. The brief way to specify this directory is ~uucp or ~/ in a uucp command.

Note

File transfer through uucp is subject to security features on either host. The uucp utility does not display error messages for failed file transfers. For more information, see your system administrator.
The system administrator defines security restrictions to prevent unwarranted use by remote users. Therefore only certain directories and files are accessible for transfer.

14.5.1 Using UUCP to Copy Files in the Bourne, Korn and POSIX Shells

From the Bourne, Korn, or POSIX shell, you can specify uucp file names without using a backslash (\) before the exclamation point (!) that precedes the host name of the destination file. For example, to copy the star file from local host earth to the /sun/stats file in the public directory on the remote host sky, enter the following command:

earth% uucp star sky! ~/sun/stats

To copy the same file and explicitly identify the /usr/spool/uucppublic directory, enter the following command:

earth% uucp star sky!/usr/spool/uucppublic/sun/stats

If you need to copy a file to a remote host whose address is unknown to your local host, you can do so by means of another host that knows the remote host's address. You can copy a local file to a remote host by first sending it to one or more intermediate hosts, separating each host name by an exclamation point (!). For example, to copy the local file star to the /sun/stats file on the remote host sky by first sending it through the intermediate host, mlkway, enter the following command:

earth% uucp star mlkway!sky! ~uucp/sun/stats

You can use uucp from your local host to copy a file from a remote host to your local host. For example, to copy the /cells/type1 file from remote host biochem to the local file, /dna/sequence, enter the following command from local host earth:

earth% uucp  biochem!/cells/type1  /dna/sequence

You can copy multiple files from a remote host to a local host by using a pattern-matching character to specify files. For example, to copy all files with names beginning with report from the /geog/survey directory on remote host moon to the ~uucp public directory on local host earth, enter the following command:

earth% uucp  moon\!/geog/survey/report*  ~uucp

14.5.2 Using UUCP to Copy Files in the C Shell

In the C shell, the exclamation point (!) has a special meaning. To prevent the command interpreter from mistranslating it, you must precede it with a backslash (\) in a pathname.

For example, to copy the /usr/NASA/ctrl-specs file from local host earth to the ~uucp public directory on remote host luna7, enter the following command from the local host:

earth% uucp  /usr/NASA/ctrl-specs  luna7\!~uucp

To copy the plan9 file from the /usr/reports/exobio directory on remote host luna7 to the ~uucp public directory on local host earth, enter the following command:

earth% uucp  luna7\!/usr/reports/exobio/plan9  ~uucp

To copy all files with names beginning with msg from the /sensory/visual/earthrise directory on the remote host luna7 to the ~uucp public directory on local host earth, you can enter the following command:

earth% uucp  luna7\!/sensory/visual/earthrise/msg'*'  ~uucp

Here, the pattern-matching character, the asterisk (*) in the source file names is enclosed within single quotation marks to prevent misinterpretation.

In the next example, the same files are copied to ~uucp, but the entire pathname of the source files is enclosed in double quotation marks to prevent misinterpretation:

earth% uucp  "luna7\!/sensory/visual/earthrise/msg*"  ~uucp

Table 14-7 summarizes uucp command options and required entries. See the uucp(1) reference page for more information.

Table 14-7: Options to the UUCP Command

Option	Description
`-d`	Creates intermediate directories needed when copying a source file to a destination file on a remote host. Entering `uucp` with the destination pathname creates the required directory. The `-d` option is the default.
`-f`	Prevents creating intermediate directories during the file transfer.
`-j`	Displays the job identification number of the transfer operation; use with the `uustat` command to check transfer status or with `uustat -k` to terminate the transfer. See Section 13.8.1 for more information.
`-m`	Specifies that `uucp` send mail to the requester to verify copying of destination file on a remote host; no mail is sent for a local transfer.
`-nusername`	Notifies the recipient, `username` on the remote host, that a file has been sent; no mail is sent for a local transfer.
`source_file`	Specifies the pathname of the file that you want to send or receive. For more information about UUCP pathnames, see Section 13.1.
`destination_name`	Specifies the pathname of the file (or directory) that receives the copy. For more information about destination file pathnames, see Section 13.5.1 and Section 13.5.2.

14.6 Using uuto with uupick to Copy Files

The uuto command copies the file you specify to the public directory on the destination host where it is obtained by the recipient through uupick. The rmail program notifies the recipient when the file arrives.

Note

Any file transfer is subject to the security features on the local and remote hosts. See your system administrator for more information.

For example, to send the /usr/bin/data/junk file from local host moe to user curly on remote host stooge, enter the following command:

moe% uuto  /usr/bin/data/junk  stooge!curly

The uuto command copies the file to the /usr/spool/uucppublic/receive/curly/moe file on host stooge. Next, the rmail utility sends user curly a mail message stating that the file has arrived. User curly can then enter the uupick command to access the file and save, move or delete it. In the following example, user curly enters the uupick command on host stooge; the response from uupick follows:

stooge% uupick
from system moe: file junk
?

At the uupick question mark (?) prompt, user curly enters the d and q options to delete the file and exit from uupick:

? d
? q

Table 14-8 summarizes the uupick file handling options, entered at the ? prompt.

Table 14-8: Options to the uupick Command

Option	Description
`*`	Displays available `uupick` file-handling options.
[Return]	Signals `uupick` to get the next file.
`a` [`dir`]	Moves all `uuto` files from the public directory to the specified directory on the local host; specify the directory by using a full or relative pathname. The default is the current directory.
`d`	The `d` option deletes the current file obtained by `uupick`.
`m` [`dir`]	Moves a file to a directory specified by either full or relative pathname; the default is the current directory.
`p`	Displays the file.
`q` [Ctrl/D]	Exits `uupick` without displaying, moving or deleting any file in the public directory. You can also press Ctrl/D to quit.
`!command`	Returns to the operating system to run a command. After `command` executes, control returns to `uupick`.

See the uupick(1) reference page for more information.

14.7 Using uuto to Send a File Locally

You can also use uuto to send a file to another user on your local host. However, the recipient does not receive a mail message indicating the file transfer. For example, user shemp can send the file /usr/bin/data/status to user larry on local host stooge, where each is logged in:

stooge% uuto  /usr/bin/data/status  larry

Table 14-9 summarizes uuto command options and required entries. See the uuto(1) reference page for more information.

Table 14-9: Options to the uuto Command

Option	Description
`-m`	Notifies sender when `uuto` copies a source file to the specified user name and host
`-p`	Usually, `uuto` copies the source file to: `/usr/spool/uucppublic/receive` `/username/host/file` The `-p` option sends the source file to the spool directory on the local host before transferring a copy of it to the public directory on the specified host.
`file_name`	The pathname of the source file.
`destination_name`	The pathname to the location where you want to copy the source file. The `destination_name` must include the user name of the person receiving the file and has the form, `host`!`username`, where `host` is the name of the remote computer and `username` is the user name of the recipient. When copying a file on your local host, the `destination_name` can be simply the name of the user to whom you are sending the file.

14.8 Displaying Job Status of UUCP Utilities

The UUCP utilities include three commands viz., uustat, uulog and uumonitor. These commands display status information about UUCP jobs and are described in the following sections.

14.8.1 The uustat Command

The uustat command supports UUCP jobs by providing the following:

Status information of file transfers requested by uucp and uuto

Status information of command executions requested by uux

Limited control of jobs queued to run on a remote computer

Cancellation of copy requests from uucp

Status reports from uustat are displayed on your workstation screen in this basic form; variations depend on the uustat option.

jobid date/time status system_name username size file

Note

Any status display operation is subject to the security features on the local and remote hosts. See your system administrator for more information.

Entering uustat without options displays the status information for all the UUCP commands that you have entered since the last time the holding queue was cleaned up.

To report the status of jobs requested by a specific user, use the -u option, as shown here, for user hugh:

% uustat -u hugh

Two types of information, each produced by a uustat option, are the current queue and the holding queue. Output of the uustat -q command is the current queue, which lists the UUCP jobs either queued to run or being currently executed on one or more remote hosts. The output of the uustat -a command is the holding queue, which lists all jobs that have not been executed during a set period of time.

Note

After the set time period has elapsed, delete the entries in the holding queue manually with the uucleanup command or automatically through the uudemon.cleanu script. The uudemon.cleanu script has an entry in /usr/spool/cron/crontabs/uucp which is activated by the /etc/cron daemon. For more information about cleaning up UUCP queues, see the uucleanup(8) reference page or your system administrator.

14.8.1.1 Displaying the Holding Queue Output with a uustat Option

To examine the status of all UUCP jobs in the holding queue, enter the uustat -a command as shown here with example output:

% uustat -a
sunC3113  Thu Jun 04 17:47:25 1999 S sun doc 289  D.car471afd8
gemN3130  Thu Jun 04 09:14:30 1999 R gem geo 338  D.car471bc0a
seaC3120  Wed Jun 03 16:02:33 1999 S sea doc 828  /u/doc/tt
seaC3119  Wed Jun 03 12:32:01 1999 S sea msg rmail doc

This example output consists of the following seven fields:

Field 1 - job ID of the operation; if you need to cancel a process that is still on the local computer, you would use this field as input to the uustat command with the -k option, for example:
```
% uustat -k seaC3119
```

Field 2 - date and time that the UUCP command was entered

Field 3 - S or an R, depending on whether the job sends or receives a file

Field 4 - name of the hosts where the command was entered

Field 5 - user name of the person who entered the command

Field 6 - file size or, in the case of remote execution (as in the last output line), the name of the remote command (rmail)

Field 7 - when the size is given in field 6 (as in the first three output lines), the file name is displayed in this field
The file name can be either the name given by the user, such as /u/doc/tt or a name that UUCP assigns internally to data files associated with remote executions, such as D.car471afd8

To report the status of all UUCP jobs in the holding queue requested by a specific host, enter the uustat -s command as shown here with example output, for host sky:

% uustat -s sky
skyNlbd7 Wed Jun 03 12:09:30 1999 S sky doc 522    /user/doc/A
skyClbd8 Wed Jun 03 12:10:15 1999 S sky doc 59     D.3b2a12ce4924
skyC3119 Wed Jun 03 12:11:18 1999 S sky doc rmail  msg

This output is the same as the output produced by the command uustat -a -s sky.

14.8.1.2 Displaying the Current Queue Output with uustat Options

To examine the status of all UUCP jobs currently being executed or queued to run on each host, enter the uustat -q command as shown here with example output:

% uustat -q
sea  3C      Mon Jul 13 09:14:35 1999  NO DEVICES AVAILABLE
sun  2C      Mon Jul 13 10:02:22 1999  SUCCESSFUL
gem  1C (2)  Mon Jul 13 10:12:48 1999  CAN'T ACCESS DEVICE

This example output consists of the following five fields:

Field 1 - host name

Field 2 - number of files, either command (C) or executable (X), in the holding queue for that host

Field 3 - number of days (if one or more) that the file has been in the holding queue

Field 4 - date and time when UUCP last tried to communicate with the host in field 1

Field 5 - status message of the interaction

See the uustat(1) reference page for more information.

Table 14-10 summarizes uustat command options and required entries.

Table 14-10: Options to the uustat Command

Option	Description
`-a`	Displays information for all jobs in the holding queue, regardless of the user who entered the original UUCP command.
`-k jobid`	Cancels the UUCP process specified by `jobid`. You can cancel a job only if you entered the UUCP command specified by `jobid`. Anyone with superuser privileges also can cancel UUCP requests.
`-m`	Reports the status of your most recent attempt to communicate with another computer through UUCP. For example, status is reported as successful if the UUCP request was executed. If the job was not completed, UUCP reports an error message, such as `Login failed`.
`-p`	Runs a `ps -flp` (process status: a full, long list of specified process IDs) command for all PID numbers in the lock files. You must have superuser privileges to use this option.
`-q`	Lists the jobs currently queued for each host. These jobs are either waiting to be executed or in the process of executing. If a status file exists for the host, UUCP reports its date, time and the status information. After the process is completed, UUCP removes the job from the current queue.
`-r jobid`	Rejuvenates the UUCP process specified by the job identification number. This option enables you to mark files in the holding queue with the current date and time, to ensure that the cleanup operation does not delete these files until the allotted job modification time is over.
`-shost`	Reports the status of all UUCP requests that users have entered to run on the specified `host`.
`-uusername`	Reports the status of all UUCP requests entered by the user `username`. You can use both the `-shost` and the `-uusername` options with the `uustat` command to get a status report on all UUCP requests entered by a particular user on a particular host.

14.8.2 Using the uulog Command to Display UUCP Log Files

Whenever the local host uses the uucp, uuto or uux commands, UUCP log files are created. There is a log file for each remote host and for each daemon. The uulog command displays these log files. Use uulog to display a summary of uucp, uuto and uux command requests by the host.

The uulog command displays the contents of the log file activity of either of the following daemons:

The uucico daemon, called by uucp and uuto
The activity of this daemon is logged in /usr/spool/uucp/.Log/uucico/host.

The uuxqt daemon, called by uux
The activity of this daemon is logged in /usr/spool/uucp/.Log/uuxqt/host.

To display just the uuxqt log file, use the -x option of uulog, as follows:

% /usr/lib/uucp/uulog -x

The uulog command also enables you to display the uucico log file or the file transfer log for any host or only a specified number of lines at the end of either log file. For example, to display the uucico log file for host sky, use the -s option as follows:

% /usr/lib/uucp/uulog -s sky

To display the last 40 lines of the file transfer log for host sky, use the -f option and the number option as shown:

% /usr/lib/uucp/uulog -f sky -40

Table 14-11 summarizes uulog command options and required entries.

Table 14-11: Options to the uulog Command

Option	Description
`-f host`	Performs a `tail -f` on the file transfer log for the specified `host`, displaying the end of the log file. Use the `Interrupt` key sequence to leave the file and return to the prompt.
`-s`[`host`]	Prints information about copy requests involving the specified host. If no host is specified, information is displayed for all hosts.
`-x`[`host`]	Displays the `uuxqt` log file for the the specified host. If no host is specified, information is displayed for all hosts.
`-number`	Displays the last `number` lines of the log file. See the `tail`(1) reference page for the application of this parameter.

14.8.3 Monitoring UUCP Status

The uumonitor command is helpful for detecting a host whose status has changed due to a backlog of jobs, a temporary shutdown or a change of either the phone number or login password.

The uumonitor output consists of the following six fields:

Field 1 - host name

Field 2 - number of command files queued for the remote host; if too large (for example, 100-1000, depending on the host), then the cause of the backlog should be determined

Field 3 - number of requests for remote execution from the remote host

Field 4 - result of the most recent attempt to connect to the remote host

Field 5 - number of remote host login failures, not including failed dial attempts; if greater than 20, no further attempts are made

Field 6 - time of last status entry

For more information, see the uumonitor(8) reference page.