cu(1C)




NAME

     cu - call another UNIX system


SYNOPSIS

     cu [-c device | -l line]  [-s speed] [-b bits] [-h] [-n]  [-
     t]  [-d]  [-o  |  -e]   [-L]  [-C]  [-H]  telno | systemname
     [local-cmd]


DESCRIPTION

     The command cu calls up another UNIX system, a terminal,  or
     possibly  a  non-UNIX  system.  It  manages  an  interactive
     conversation with possible transfers of files.  It  is  con-
     venient to think of cu as operating in two phases. The first
     phase is the connection phase in  which  the  connection  is
     established.  cu  then enters the conversation phase. The -d
     option is the only one that applies to both phases.


OPTIONS

     cu accepts many options. The -c, -l, and -s options  play  a
     part in selecting the medium. The remaining options are used
     in configuring the line.

     -b bits
           Forces bits to be the number of bits processed on  the
           line.  bits  is either  7 or 8. This allows connection
           between systems with different  character  sizes.   By
           default,  the character size of the line is set to the
           same value as the  current  local  terminal,  but  the
           character size setting is affected by LC_CTYPE also.

     -c device
           Forces cu to use only entries in the "Type" field (the
           first  field in the /etc/uucp/Devices file) that match
           the user specified device, usually the name of a local
           area network.

     -C    Runs the local-cmd specified at the end of the command
           line  instead  of entering interactive mode. The stdin
           and stdout of the command that is  run  refer  to  the
           remote connection.

     -d    Prints diagnostic traces.

     -e    Sets an EVEN data parity.  This option designates that
           EVEN  parity  is  to be generated for data sent to the
           remote system.

     -h    Sets communication mode to half-duplex.   This  option
           emulates local echo in order to support calls to other
           computer systems that expect terminals to  be  set  to
           half-duplex mode.

     -H    Ignores one hangup. This allows the user to remain  in
           cu  while  the remote machine disconnects and places a
           call back to the local machine.  This option should be
           used when connecting to systems with callback or dial-
           back modems. Once the callback occurs subsequent hang-
           ups  will  cause  cu to terminate.  This option can be
           specified more than once. For more  information  about
           dialback   configuration,  see  remote(4)  and  System
           Administration Guide: IP Services

     -l line
           Specifies a device name to use  as  the  communication
           line.  This  can  be  used to override the search that
           would otherwise take place  for  the  first  available
           line  having  the  right  speed. When the -l option is
           used without the -s option, the speed  of  a  line  is
           taken from the  /etc/uucp/Devices file record in which
           line matches the second field (the Line  field).  When
           the  -l and -s options are both used together, cu will
           search the /etc/uucp/Devices  file  to  check  if  the
           requested  speed  for the requested line is available.
           If so, the connection will be made  at  the  requested
           speed, otherwise, an error message will be printed and
           the call will not be made.  In the general case  where
           a  specified  device is a directly connected asynchro-
           nous line (for  instance,  /dev/term/a),  a  telephone
           number   (telno) is not required. The specified device
           need not be in the /dev directory.  If  the  specified
           device  is associated with an auto dialer, a telephone
           number must be  provided.

     -L    Goes through the login chat sequence specified in  the
           /etc/uucp/Systems file. For more information about the
           chat sequence, see  System  Administration  Guide:  IP
           Services

     -n    Requests user prompt for telephone number.  For  added
           security,  this option will prompt the user to provide
           the telephone number to be dialed, rather than  taking
           it from the command line.

     -o    Sets an ODD data parity.  This option designates  that
           ODD  parity  is  to  be generated for data sent to the
           remote system.

     -s speed
           Specifies the transmission  speed  (300,  1200,  2400,
           4800,  9600, 19200, 38400). The default value is "Any"
           speed which will depend on the order of the  lines  in
           the /etc/uucp/Devices file.

     -t    Dials a terminal which has been set  to  auto  answer.
           Appropriate  mapping  of  carriage-return to carriage-
           return-line-feed pairs is set.


OPERANDS

     The following operands are supported:

     telno When using an automatic dialler, specifies  the  tele-
           phone  number with equal signs for secondary dial tone
           or minus signs placed appropriately for  delays  of  4
           seconds.

     systemname
           Specifies a uucp system name, which can be used rather
           than  a telephone number; in this case, cu will obtain
           an appropriate direct line or telephone number from  a
           system file.


USAGE

  Connection Phase
     cu uses the same mechanism that uucp(1C) does to establish a
     connection.  This  means  that  it will use the uucp control
     files /etc/uucp/Devices and /etc/uucp/Systems. This gives cu
     the ability to choose from several different media to estab-
     lish the connection. The possible  media  include  telephone
     lines,  direct  connections,  and local area networks (LAN).
     The /etc/uucp/Devices file contains a list of media that are
     available  on  your  system. The /etc/uucp/Systems file con-
     tains information for connecting to remote systems,  but  it
     is not generally readable.

     Note:   cu   determines    which    /etc/uucp/Systems    and
     /etc/uucp/Devices  files  to use based upon the name used to
     invoke cu. In the simple case, this name will be  "cu",  but
     you  could also have created a link to cu with another name,
     such as "pppcu", in which case cu  would  then  look  for  a
     "service=pppcu"  entry  in  the   /etc/uucp/Sysfiles file to
     determine which /etc/uucp/Systems file to use.

     The telno or systemname parameter from the command  line  is
     used  to  tell  cu  what system you wish to connect to. This
     parameter can be blank, a telephone number, a  system  name,
     or a LAN specific address.

     telephone number
           A telephone number is a string consisting of the  tone
           dial  characters  (the  digits  0 through 9, *, and #)
           plus the special characters = and -.  The  equal  sign
           designates  a  secondary  dial tone and the minus sign
           creates a  4 second delay.

     system name
           A system name is the name of any  computer  that  uucp
           can  call;  the  uuname(1C)  command  prints a list of
           these names.

     LAN address
           The documentation for your  LAN will show the form  of
           the LAN specific address.

     If cu's default behavior is invoked (not using the -c or  -l
     options),  cu  will use the telno or systemname parameter to
     determine which medium to use.  If  a  telephone  number  is
     specified,  cu  will assume that you wish to use a telephone
     line and it will select an automatic call unit (ACU). Other-
     wise,  cu will assume that it is a system name. cu will fol-
     low the uucp calling mechanism and use the /etc/uucp/Systems
     and  /etc/uucp/Devices  files  to  obtain the best available
     connection. Since cu will choose a speed that is appropriate
     for  the  medium  that  it  selects,  you may not use the -s
     option when this parameter is a system name.

     The -c and -l options modify this default  behavior.  -c  is
     most  often used to select a  LAN by specifying a Type field
     from the /etc/uucp/Devices file. You must include  either  a
     telno  or  systemname value when using the -c option. If the
     connection  to  systemname  fails,  a  connection  will   be
     attempted  using  systemname as a  LAN specific address. The
     -l option is used to specify  a  device  associated  with  a
     direct  connection. If the connection is truly a direct con-
     nection to the remote machine, then  there  is  no  need  to
     specify a systemname. This is the only case where a telno or
     systemname parameter is  unnecessary.  On  the  other  hand,
     there may be cases in which the specified device connects to
     a dialer, so it is valid to specify a telephone number.  The
     -c  and  -l options should not be specified on the same com-
     mand line.

  Conversation Phase
     After making the connection, cu runs as two  processes.  The
     transmit  process  reads  data  from the standard input and,
     except for lines beginning with ~, passes it to  the  remote
     system.  The  receive  process  accepts data from the remote
     system and, except for lines beginning with ~, passes it  to
     the standard output. Normally, an automatic DC3/DC1 protocol
     is used to control input from the remote so  the  buffer  is
     not overrun. Lines beginning with ~ have special meanings.

  Commands
     The transmit process interprets the following user initiated
     commands:

     ~.    Terminates the conversation.

     ~!    Escapes to an interactive shell on the local system.
     ~!cmd...
           Runs cmd on the local system (via sh -c).

     ~$cmd...
           Runs cmd locally and send its  output  to  the  remote
           system.

     ~%cd  Changes the directory on the local system. Note:  ~!cd
           will cause the command to be run by a sub-shell, prob-
           ably not what was intended.

     ~%take from [to]
           Copies file from (on the remote system) to file to  on
           the  local system. If to is omitted, the from argument
           is used in both places.

     ~%put from [to]
           Copies file from (on  local  system)  to  file  to  on
           remote  system. If to is omitted, the from argument is
           used in both places.

     ~~line
           Sends the line ~ line to the remote system.

     ~%break
           Transmits a  BREAK to the  remote  system  (which  can
           also be specified as ~%b).

     ~%debug
           Toggles the -d debugging option on or off  (which  can
           also be specified as ~%d).

     ~t    Prints the values of the  termio  structure  variables
           for the user's terminal (useful for debugging).

     ~l    Prints the values of the  termio  structure  variables
           for  the  remote communication line (useful for debug-
           ging).

     ~%ifc Toggles between DC3/DC1 input control protocol and  no
           input  control.  This is useful when the remote system
           does not respond properly to the DC3 and  DC1  charac-
           ters (can also be specified as ~%nostop).

     ~%ofc Toggles  the  output  flow  control   setting.    When
           enabled,  outgoing  data may be flow controlled by the
           remote host (can also be specified as ~%noostop).

     ~%divert
           Allows/disallows  unsolicited  diversions.   That  is,
           diversions not specified by ~%take.

     ~%old Allows/disallows old style syntax for received  diver-
           sions.

     ~%nostop
           Same as  ~%ifc.

     The receive process normally copies  data  from  the  remote
     system  to  the standard output of the local system.  It may
     also direct the output to local files.

     The use of ~%put requires stty(1) and cat(1) on  the  remote
     side. It also requires that the current erase and kill char-
     acters on the remote system be identical  to  these  current
     control  characters  on  the  local  system. Backslashes are
     inserted at appropriate places.

     The use of ~%take requires  the  existence  of  echo(1)  and
     cat(1) on the remote system, and that the remote system must
     be using the Bourne shell, sh. Also, tabs mode (see stty(1))
     should  be set on the remote system if tabs are to be copied
     without expansion to spaces.

     When cu is used on system X to connect to system Y and  sub-
     sequently  used on system Y to connect to system Z, commands
     on system Y can be executed by using ~~. Executing  a  tilde
     command  reminds  the  user  of  the local system uname. For
     example, uname can be executed on Z, X, and Y as follows:

     uname
     Z
     ~[X]!uname
     X
     ~~[Y]!uname
     Y

     In general, ~ causes the command to be executed on the  ori-
     ginal  machine.  ~~ causes the command to be executed on the
     next machine in the chain.


EXAMPLES

     Example 1: Dialling a system

     To dial a system whose telephone number is  9 1 201 555 1234
     using  1200 baud (where dialtone is expected after the  9):

     example% cu -s 1200 9=12015551234
     If the speed is not specified, "Any" is the default value.

     Example 2: Logging in to a system on a direct line

     To login to a system connected by a direct line:

     example% cu -l /dev/term/b
     or

     example% cu -l term/b

     Example 3: Dialling a system with specific line and speed

     To dial a system with a specific line and speed:

     example% cu -s 1200 -l term/b

     Example 4: Using a system name

     To use a system name:

     example% cu systemname


ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES

     See environ(5) for descriptions of the following environment
     variables   that  affect  the  execution  of  cu:  LC_CTYPE,
     LC_MESSAGES, and NLSPATH.


EXIT STATUS

     The following exit values are returned:

     0     Successful completion.

     >0    An error occurred.


FILES

     /etc/uucp/Devices
           device file

     /etc/uucp/Sysfiles
           system file

     /etc/uucp/Systems
           system file

     /var/spool/locks/*
           lock file


ATTRIBUTES

     See attributes(5) for descriptions of the  following  attri-
     butes:

     ____________________________________________________________
    |       ATTRIBUTE TYPE        |       ATTRIBUTE VALUE       |
    |_____________________________|_____________________________|
    | Availability                | SUNWbnuu                    |
    |_____________________________|_____________________________|


SEE ALSO

     cat(1),  echo(1),   stty(1),   tip(1),   uname(1),   ct(1C),
     uuname(1C), uucp(1C), remote(4), attributes(5), environ(5)

     System Administration Guide: IP Services


NOTES

     The cu utility takes the default action upon receipt of sig-
     nals, with the exception of:

     SIGHUP
           Close the connection and terminate.

     SIGINT
           Forward to the remote system.

     SIGQUIT
           Forward to the remote system.

     SIGUSR1
           Terminate the cu process without the normal connection
           closing sequence.

     The cu command does not do any integrity checking on data it
     transfers. Data fields with special cu characters may not be
     transmitted  properly.  Depending  on  the   interconnection
     hardware,  it  may be necessary to use a ~. to terminate the
     conversion, even if stty 0 has been used. Non-printing char-
     acters are not dependably transmitted using either the ~%put
     or ~%take commands. ~%put and ~%take cannot  be  used   over
     multiple links.  Files must be moved one link at a time.

     There is an artificial slowing of transmission by cu  during
     the ~%put operation so that loss of data is unlikely.  Files
     transferred using ~%take or ~%put must  contain  a  trailing
     newline,  otherwise,  the  operation  will hang.  Entering a
     <Control-D> command usually clears the hang condition.


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