KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) NNNNAAAAMMMMEEEE kermit - kermit file transfer SSSSYYYYNNNNOOOOPPPPSSSSIIIISSSS kkkkeeeerrrrmmmmiiiitttt [ option ...] [file ...] DDDDEEEESSSSCCCCRRRRIIIIPPPPTTTTIIIIOOOONNNN _K_e_r_m_i_t is a file transfer program that allows files to be moved between many machine of different operating systems and architectures. This man page describes version 4.2 of the program. Arguments are optional. If _k_e_r_m_i_t is executed without argu- ments, it will enter command mode. Otherwise, _k_e_r_m_i_t will read the arguments off the command line and interpret them. The following notation is used in command descriptions: ffffnnnn A Unix file specification, possibly containing the "wildcard" characters '*' or '?' ('*' matches all character strings, '?' matches any single charac- ter). ffffnnnn1111 A Unix file specification which may not contain '*' or '?'. rrrrffffnnnn A remote file specification in the remote system's own syntax, which may denote a single file or a group of files. rrrrffffnnnn1111 A remote file specification which should denote only a single file. nnnn A decimal number between 0 and 94. cccc A decimal number between 0 and 127 representing the value of an ASCII character. cccccccc A decimal number between 0 and 31, or else exactly 127, representing the value of an ASCII con- trol character. [[[[ ]]]] Any field in square braces is optional. {{{{xxxx,,,,yyyy,,,,zzzz}}}} Alternatives are listed in curly braces. _K_e_r_m_i_t command line options may specify either actions or settings. If _K_e_r_m_i_t is invoked with a command line that specifies no actions, then it will issue a prompt and begin interactive dialog. Action options specify either pro- tocol transactions or terminal connection. 1 LOCAL 1 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) CCCCoooommmmmmmmaaaannnndddd lllliiiinnnneeee ooooppppttttiiiioooonnnnssss ----ssss ffffnnnn Send the specified file or files. If fn contains wildcard (meta) characters, the Unix shell expands it into a list. If fn is '-' then _k_e_r_m_i_t sends from standard input, which must come from a file: kermit -s - < foo.bar or a parallel process: ls -l | kermit -s - You cannot use this mechanism to send terminal typein. If you want to send a file whose name is "-" you can precede it with a path name, as in kermit -s ./- ----rrrr Receive a file or files. Wait passively for files to arrive. ----kkkk Receive (passively) a file or files, sending them to standard output. This option can be used in several ways: kermit -k Displays the incoming files on your screen; to be used only in "local mode" (see below). kermit -k > fn1 Sends the incoming file or files to the named file, fn1. If more than one file arrives, all are concatenated together into the single file fn1. kermit -k | command Pipes the incoming data (single or multiple files) to the indicated command, as in kermit -k | sort > sorted.stuff ----aaaa ffffnnnn1111 If you have specified a file transfer option, you may specify an alternate name for a single file with the -a option. For example, kermit -s foo -a bar 2 LOCAL 2 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) sends the file foo telling the receiver that its name is bar. If more than one file arrives or is sent, only the first file is affected by the -_a option: kermit -ra baz stores the first incoming file under the name baz. ----xxxx Begin server operation. May be used in either local or remote mode. Before proceeding, a few words about remote and local opera- tion are necessary. _K_e_r_m_i_t is "local" if it is running on a PC or workstation that you are using directly, or if it is running on a multiuser system and transferring files over an external communication line -- not your job's control- ling terminal or console. _K_e_r_m_i_t is remote if it is running on a multiuser system and transferring files over its own controlling terminal's communication line, connected to your PC or workstation. If you are running _K_e_r_m_i_t on a PC, it is in local mode by default, with the "back port" designated for file transfer and terminal connection. If you are running _K_e_r_m_i_t on a multiuser (timesharing) system, it is in remote mode unless you explicitly point it at an external line for file transfer or terminal connection. The following command sets _K_e_r_m_i_t'_s "mode": ----llll ddddeeeevvvv Line -- Specify a terminal line to use for file transfer and terminal connection, as in kermit -l /dev/ttyi5 When an external line is being used, you might also need some additional options for successful communication with the remote system: ----bbbb nnnn Baud -- Specify the baud rate for the line given in the -_l option, as in kermit -l /dev/ttyi5 -b 9600 This option should always be included with the -_l option, since the speed of an external line is not necessarily what you expect. ----pppp xxxx Parity -- e,o,m,s,n (even, odd, mark, space, or none). If parity is other than none, then the 8th-bit pre- fixing mechanism will be used for transferring 8-bit binary data, provided the opposite _K_e_r_m_i_t agrees. The default parity is none. 3 LOCAL 3 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) ----tttt Specifies half duplex, line turnaround with XON as the handshake character. The following commands may be used only with a _K_e_r_m_i_t which is local -- either by default or else because the -_l option has been specified. ----gggg rrrrffffnnnn Actively request a remote server to send the named file or files; rfn is a file specification in the remote host's own syntax. If fn happens to contain any special shell characters, like '*', these must be quoted, as in kermit -g x\*.\? ----ffff Send a 'finish' command to a remote server. ----cccc Establish a terminal connection over the specified or default communication line, before any protocol transaction takes place. Get back to the local system by typing the escape character (nor- mally Control-Backslash) followed by the letter 'c'. ----nnnn Like -_c, but after a protocol transaction takes place; -_c and -_n may both be used in the same com- mand. The use of -_n and -_c is illustrated below. On a timesharing system, the -_l and -_b options will also have to be included with the -_r, -_k, or -_s options if the other _K_e_r_m_i_t is on a remote system. If kkkkeeeerrrrmmmmiiiitttt is in local mode, the screen (stdout) is continously updated to show the progress of the file transer. A dot is printed for every four data packets, other packets are shown by type (e.g. 'S' for Send-Init), 'T' is printed when there's a timeout, and '%' for each retransmission. In addition, you may type (to stdin) certain "interrupt" commands during file transfer: Control-F: Interrupt the current File, and go on to the next (if any). Control-B: Interrupt the entire Batch of files, terminate the transaction. Control-R: Resend the current packet Control-A: Display a status report for the current transac- tion. 4 LOCAL 4 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) These interrupt characters differ from the ones used in other Kermit implementations to avoid conflict with Unix shell interrupt characters. With System III and System V implementations of Unix, interrupt commands must be pre- ceeded by the escape character (e.g. control-\). Several other command-line options are provided: ----iiii Specifies that files should be sent or received exactly "as is" with no conversions. This option is necessary for transmitting binary files. It may also be used to slightly boost efficiency in Unix- to-Unix transfers of text files by eliminating CRLF/newline conversion. ----wwww Write-Protect -- Avoid filename collisions for incoming files. ----qqqq Quiet -- Suppress screen update during file transfer, for instance to allow a file transfer to proceed in the background. ----dddd Debug -- Record debugging information in the file debug.log in the current directory. Use this option if you believe the program is misbehaving, and show the resulting log to your local _k_e_r_m_i_t main- tainer. ----hhhh Help -- Display a brief synopsis of the command line options. The command line may contain no more than one protocol action option. IIIInnnntttteeeerrrraaaaccccttttiiiivvvveeee ooooppppeeeerrrraaaattttiiiioooonnnn KKKKeeeerrrrmmmmiiiitttt''''ssss interactive command prompt is "C-Kermit>". In response to this prompt, you may type any valid command. KKKKeeeerrrrmmmmiiiitttt executes the command and then prompts you for another command. The process continues until you instruct the pro- gram to terminate. Commands begin with a keyword, nor- mally an English verb, such as "send". You may omit trail- ing characters from any keyword, so long as you specify sufficient characters to distinguish it from any other keyword valid in that field. Certain commonly-used keywords (such as "send", "receive", "connect") have special non-unique abbreviations ("s" for "send", "r" for "receive", "c" for "connect"). Certain characters have special func- tions in interactive commands: ???? Question mark, typed at any point in a command, will produce a message explaining what is possible or expected at that point. Depending on the context, the message may be a brief phrase, a menu of 5 LOCAL 5 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) keywords, or a list of files. EEEESSSSCCCC (The Escape or Altmode key) -- Request completion of the current keyword or filename, or insertion of a default value. The result will be a beep if the requested operation fails. DDDDEEEELLLL (The Delete or Rubout key) -- Delete the previous character from the command. You may also use BS (Backspace, Control-H) for this function. ^^^^WWWW (Control-W) -- Erase the rightmost word from the command line. ^^^^UUUU (Control-U) -- Erase the entire command. ^^^^RRRR (Control-R) -- Redisplay the current command. SSSSPPPP (Space) -- Delimits fields (keywords, filenames, numbers) within a command. HT (Horizontal Tab) may also be used for this purpose. CCCCRRRR (Carriage Return) -- Enters the command for execu- tion. LLLLFFFF (Linefeed) or FFFFFFFF (formfeed) may also be used for this purpose. \\\\ (Backslash) -- Enter any of the above characters into the command, literally. To enter a backslash, type two backslashes in a row (\\). You may type the editing characters (DEL, ^W, etc) repeatedly, to delete all the way back to the prompt. No action will be performed until the command is entered by typing carriage return, linefeed, or formfeed. If you make any mistakes, you will receive an informative error message and a new prompt -- make liberal use of '?' and ESC to feel your way through the commands. One important command is "help" -- you should use it the first time you run _K_e_r_- _m_i_t. Interactive _K_e_r_m_i_t accepts commands from files as well as from the keyboard. When you enter interactive mode, _K_e_r_m_i_t looks for the file .kermrc in your home or current directory (first it looks in the home directory, then in the current one) and executes any commands it finds there. These commands must be in interactive format, not Unix command-line format. A "take" command is also provided for use at any time during an interactive session. Command files may be nested to any reasonable depth. Here is a brief list of _K_e_r_m_i_t interactive commands: !!!! Execute a Unix shell command. bbbbyyyyeeee 6 LOCAL 6 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) Terminate and log out a remote _K_e_r_m_i_t server. cccclllloooosssseeee Close a log file. ccccoooonnnnnnnneeeecccctttt Establish a terminal connection to a remote system. ccccwwwwdddd Change Working Directory. ddddiiiiaaaallll Dial a telephone number. ddddiiiirrrreeeeccccttttoooorrrryyyy Display a directory listing. eeeecccchhhhoooo Display arguments literally. eeeexxxxiiiitttt Exit from the program, closing any open logs. ffffiiiinnnniiiisssshhhh Instruct a remote _K_e_r_m_i_t server to exit, but not log out. ggggeeeetttt Get files from a remote _K_e_r_m_i_t server. hhhheeeellllpppp Display a help message for a given command. lllloooogggg Open a log file -- debugging, packet, session, transaction. qqqquuuuiiiitttt Same as 'exit'. rrrreeeecccceeeeiiiivvvveeee Passively wait for files to arrive. rrrreeeemmmmooootttteeee Issue file management commands to a remote _K_e_r_m_i_t server. ssssccccrrrriiiipppptttt Execute a login script with a remote system. sssseeeennnndddd Send files. sssseeeerrrrvvvveeeerrrr Begin server operation. 7 LOCAL 7 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) sssseeeetttt Set various parameters. sssshhhhoooowwww Display values of 'set' parameters. ssssppppaaaacccceeee Display current disk space usage. ssssttttaaaattttiiiissssttttiiiiccccssss Display statistics about most recent transaction. ttttaaaakkkkeeee Execute commands from a file. The 'set' parameters are: bbbblllloooocccckkkk----cccchhhheeeecccckkkk Level of packet error detection. ddddeeeellllaaaayyyy How long to wait before sending first packet. dddduuuupppplllleeeexxxx Specify which side echoes during 'connect'. eeeennnndddd----ooooffff----ppppaaaacccckkkkeeeetttt Terminator for outbound packets. eeeessssccccaaaappppeeee----cccchhhhaaaarrrraaaacccctttteeeerrrr Character to prefix "escape commands" during 'connect'. ffffiiiilllleeee Set various file parameters. fffflllloooowwww----ccccoooonnnnttttrrrroooollll Communication line full-duplex flow control. hhhhaaaannnnddddsssshhhhaaaakkkkeeee Communication line half-duplex turnaround character. lllliiiinnnneeee Communication line device name. mmmmooooddddeeeemmmm----ddddiiiiaaaalllleeeerrrr Type of modem-dialer on communication line. ppppaaaacccckkkkeeeetttt----lllleeeennnnggggtttthhhh Maximum length for packets. ppppaaaadddd----cccchhhhaaaarrrraaaacccctttteeeerrrr Character to use for inter-packet padding. ppppaaaaddddddddiiiinnnngggg 8 LOCAL 8 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) How much inter-packet padding to use. ppppaaaarrrriiiittttyyyy Communication line character parity. pppprrrroooommmmpppptttt Change the _K_e_r_m_i_t program's prompt. ssssppppeeeeeeeedddd Communication line speed. ssssttttaaaarrrrtttt----ooooffff----ppppaaaacccckkkkeeeetttt Control character to mark beginning of packets. ttttiiiimmmmeeeeoooouuuutttt Timer interval to detect lost packets. The 'remote' com- mands are: ccccwwwwdddd Change remote working directory. ddddeeeelllleeeetttteeee Delete remote files. ddddiiiirrrreeeeccccttttoooorrrryyyy Display a listing of remote file names. hhhheeeellllpppp Request help from a remote server. hhhhoooosssstttt Issue a command to the remote host in its own command language ssssppppaaaacccceeee Display current disk space usage on remote system. ttttyyyyppppeeee Display a remote file on your screen. wwwwhhhhoooo Display who's logged in, or get information about a user. FFFFIIIILLLLEEEESSSS /usr/bin/kermit SSSSEEEEEEEE AAAALLLLSSSSOOOO Frank da Cruz and Bill Catchings, _K_e_r_m_i_t _U_s_e_r'_s _G_u_i_d_e, Columbia University _c_u(_1_C), _u_u_c_p(_1_C) DDDDIIIIAAAAGGGGNNNNOOOOSSSSTTTTIIIICCCCSSSS The diagnostics produced by kermit itself are intended to be 9 LOCAL 9 KERMIT(1C) WEGA KERMIT(1C) self-explanatory. BBBBUUUUGGGGSSSS See recent issues of Info-Kermit for a list of bugs. 10 LOCAL 10