tip(1) (man pages section 1: User Commands)

man pages section 1: User Commands

tip(1)

Name

tip– connect to remote system

Synopsis

tip [-v] [-speed-entry] {hostname | phone-number | device}

Description

The tip utility establishes a full-duplex terminal connection to a remote host. Once the connection is established, a remote session using tip behaves like an interactive session on a local terminal.

The remote file contains entries describing remote systems and line speeds used by tip.

Each host has a default baud rate for the connection, or you can specify a speed with the -speed-entry command line argument.

When phone-number is specified, tip looks for an entry in the remote file of the form:

tip -speed-entry

When tip finds such an entry, it sets the connection speed accordingly. If it finds no such entry, tip interprets -speed-entry as if it were a system name, resulting in an error message.

If you omit -speed-entry, tip uses the tip0 entry to set a speed for the connection.

When device is specified, tip attempts to open that device, but will do so using the access privileges of the user, rather than tip's usual access privileges (setuid uucp). The user must have read/write access to the device. The tip utility interprets any character string beginning with the slash character ( / ) as a device name.

When establishing the connection, tip sends a connection message to the remote system. The default value for this message can be found in the remote file.

When tip attempts to connect to a remote system, it opens the associated device with an exclusive-open ioctl(2) call. Thus, only one user at a time may access a device. This is to prevent multiple processes from sampling the terminal line. In addition, tip honors the locking protocol used by uucp(1C).

When tip starts up, it reads commands from the file .tiprc in your home directory.

Options

-v: Display commands from the .tiprc file as they are executed.

Usage

Typed characters are normally transmitted directly to the remote machine, which does the echoing as well.

At any time that tip prompts for an argument (for example, during setup of a file transfer), the line typed may be edited with the standard erase and kill characters. A null line in response to a prompt, or an interrupt, aborts the dialogue and returns you to the remote machine.

Commands

A tilde (~) appearing as the first character of a line is an escape signal which directs tip to perform some special action. tip recognizes the following escape sequences:

~^D ~.

Drop the connection and exit (you may still be logged in on the remote machine). Note: If you rlogin and then run tip on the remote host, you must type ~~. (tilde tilde dot) to end the tip session. If you type ~. (tilde dot), it terminates the rlogin.

~c [name]

Change directory to name. No argument implies change to your home directory.

~!

Escape to an interactive shell on the local machine. Exiting the shell returns you to tip.

~>

Copy file from local to remote.

~<

Copy file from remote to local.

~p from [ to ]

Send a file to a remote host running the UNIX system. When you use the put command, the remote system runs the command string

cat > to

while tip sends it the from file. If the to file is not specified, the from file name is used. This command is actually a UNIX-system-specific version of the `~>' command.

~t from [ to ]

Take a file from a remote host running the UNIX system. As in the put command the to file defaults to the from file name if it is not specified. The remote host executes the command string

cat from ;  echo ^A

to send the file to tip.

~|

Pipe the output from a remote command to a local process. The command string sent to the local system is processed by the shell.

~C

Connect a program to the remote machine. The command string sent to the program is processed by the shell. The program inherits file descriptors 0 as remote line input, 1 as remote line output, and 2 as tty standard error.

~$

Pipe the output from a local process to the remote host. The command string sent to the local system is processed by the shell.

~#

Send a BREAK to the remote system.

~s

Set a variable (see the discussion below).

~^Z

Stop tip. Only available when run under a shell that supports job control, such as the C shell.

~^Y

Stop only the “local side” of tip. Only available when run under a shell that supports job control, such as the C shell. The “remote side” of tip, that is, the side that displays output from the remote host, is left running.

~?

Get a summary of the tilde escapes.

Copying files requires some cooperation on the part of the remote host. When a ~> or ~< escape is used to send a file, tip prompts for a file name (to be transmitted or received) and a command to be sent to the remote system, in case the file is being transferred from the remote system. While tip is transferring a file, the number of lines transferred will be continuously displayed on the screen. A file transfer may be aborted with an interrupt.

Auto-call Units

tip may be used to dial up remote systems using a number of auto-call unit's (ACUs). When the remote system description contains the du capability, tip uses the call-unit (cu), ACU type (at), and phone numbers (pn) supplied. Normally, tip displays verbose messages as it dials.

Depending on the type of auto-dialer being used to establish a connection, the remote host may have garbage characters sent to it upon connection. The user should never assume that the first characters typed to the foreign host are the first ones presented to it. The recommended practice is to immediately type a kill character upon establishing a connection (most UNIX systems either support @ or Control-U as the initial kill character).

tip currently supports the Ventel MD-212+ modem and DC Hayes-compatible modems.

When tip initializes a Hayes-compatible modem for dialing, it sets up the modem to auto-answer. Normally, after the conversation is complete, tip drops DTR, which causes the modem to "hang up."

Most modems can be configured so that when DTR drops, they re-initialize themselves to a preprogrammed state. This can be used to reset the modem and disable auto-answer, if desired.

Additionally, it is possible to start the phone number with a Hayes S command so that you can configure the modem before dialing. For example, to disable auto-answer, set up all the phone numbers in /etc/remote using something like pn=S0=0DT5551212. The S0=0 disables auto-answer.

Remote Host Description

Descriptions of remote hosts are normally located in the system-wide file /etc/remote. However, a user may maintain personal description files (and phone numbers) by defining and exporting the REMOTE shell variable. The remote file must be readable by tip, but a secondary file describing phone numbers may be maintained readable only by the user. This secondary phone number file is /etc/phones, unless the shell variable PHONES is defined and exported. The phone number file contains lines of the form:

system-name phone-number

Each phone number found for a system is tried until either a connection is established, or an end of file is reached. Phone numbers are constructed from `0123456789-=*', where the `=' and `*' are used to indicate a second dial tone should be waited for (ACU dependent).

tip Internal Variables

tip maintains a set of variables which are used in normal operation. Some of these variables are read-only to normal users (root is allowed to change anything of interest). Variables may be displayed and set through the ~s escape. The syntax for variables is patterned after vi(1) and mail(1). Supplying all as an argument to the ~s escape displays all variables that the user can read. Alternatively, the user may request display of a particular variable by attaching a ? to the end. For example, `~s escape?' displays the current escape character.

Variables are numeric (num), string (str), character (char), or Boolean (bool) values. Boolean variables are set merely by specifying their name. They may be reset by prepending a ! to the name. Other variable types are set by appending an = and the value. The entire assignment must not have any blanks in it. A single set command may be used to interrogate as well as set a number of variables.

Variables may be initialized at run time by placing set commands (without the ~s prefix) in a .tiprc file in one's home directory. The -v option makes tip display the sets as they are made. Comments preceded by a # sign can appear in the .tiprc file.

Finally, the variable names must either be completely specified or an abbreviation may be given. The following list details those variables known to tip.

beautify

(bool) Discard unprintable characters when a session is being scripted; abbreviated be. If the nb capability is present, beautify is initially set to off. Otherwise, beautify is initially set to on.

baudrate

(num) The baud rate at which the connection was established; abbreviated ba. If a baud rate was specified on the command line, baudrate is initially set to the specified value. Or, if the br capability is present, baudrate is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, baudrate is set to 300 baud. Once tip has been started, baudrate can only changed by the super-user.

dialtimeout

(num) When dialing a phone number, the time (in seconds) to wait for a connection to be established; abbreviated dial. dialtimeout is initially set to 60 seconds, and can only changed by the super-user.

disconnect

(str) The string to send to the remote host to disconnect from it; abbreviated di. If the di capability is present, disconnect is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, disconnect is set to a null string ("").

echocheck

(bool) Synchronize with the remote host during file transfer by waiting for the echo of the last character transmitted; abbreviated ec. If the ec capability is present, echocheck is initially set to on. Otherwise, echocheck is initially set to off.

eofread

(str) The set of characters which signify an end-of-transmission during a ~< file transfer command; abbreviated eofr. If the ie capability is present, eofread is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, eofread is set to a null string ("").

eofwrite

(str) The string sent to indicate end-of-transmission during a ~> file transfer command; abbreviated eofw. If the oe capability is present, eofread is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, eofread is set to a null string ("").

eol

(str) The set of characters which indicate an end-of-line. tip will recognize escape characters only after an end-of-line. If the el capability is present, eol is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, eol is set to a null string ("").

escape

(char) The command prefix (escape) character; abbreviated es. If the es capability is present, escape is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, escape is set to ` ~ '.

etimeout

(num) The amount of time, in seconds, that tip should wait for the echo-check response when echocheck is set; abbreviated et. If the et capability is present, etimeout is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, etimeout is set to 10 seconds.

exceptions

(str) The set of characters which should not be discarded due to the beautification switch; abbreviated ex. If the ex capability is present, exceptions is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, exceptions is set to `\t\n\f\b'.

force

(char) The character used to force literal data transmission; abbreviated fo. If the fo capability is present, force is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, force is set to \377 (which disables it).

framesize

(num) The amount of data (in bytes) to buffer between file system writes when receiving files; abbreviated fr. If the fs capability is present, framesize is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, framesize is set to 1024.

halfduplex

(bool) Do local echoing because the host is half-duplex; abbreviated hdx. If the hd capability is present, halfduplex is initially set to on. Otherwise, halfduplex is initially set to off.

hardwareflow

(bool) Do hardware flow control; abbreviated hf. If the hf capability is present, hardwareflow is initially set to on. Otherwise, hardwareflowcontrol is initially set to off.

host

(str) The name of the host to which you are connected; abbreviated ho. host is permanently set to the name given on the command line or in the HOST environment variable.

localecho

(bool) A synonym for halfduplex; abbreviated le.

log

(str) The name of the file to which to log information about outgoing phone calls. log is initially set to /var/adm/aculog, and can only be inspected or changed by the super-user.

parity

(str) The parity to be generated and checked when talking to the remote host; abbreviated par. The possible values are:

none> zero: Parity is not checked on input, and the parity bit is set to zero on output.
one: Parity is not checked on input, and the parity bit is set to one on output.
even: Even parity is checked for on input and generated on output.
odd: Odd parity is checked for on input and generated on output.

If the pa capability is present, parity is initially set to the value of that capability; otherwise, parity is set to none.

phones

The file in which to find hidden phone numbers. If the environment variable PHONES is set, phones is set to the value of PHONES. Otherwise, phones is set to /etc/phones. The value of phones cannot be changed from within tip.

prompt

(char) The character which indicates an end-of-line on the remote host; abbreviated pr. This value is used to synchronize during data transfers. The count of lines transferred during a file transfer command is based on receipt of this character. If the pr capability is present, prompt is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, prompt is set to \n.

raise

(bool) Upper case mapping mode; abbreviated ra. When this mode is enabled, all lower case letters will be mapped to upper case by tip for transmission to the remote machine. If the ra capability is present, raise is initially set to on. Otherwise, raise is initially set to off.

raisechar

(char) The input character used to toggle upper case mapping mode; abbreviated rc. If the rc capability is present, raisechar is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, raisechar is set to \377 (which disables it).

rawftp

(bool) Send all characters during file transfers; do not filter non-printable characters, and do not do translations like \n to \r. Abbreviated raw. If the rw capability is present, rawftp is initially set to on. Otherwise, rawftp is initially set to off.

record

(str) The name of the file in which a session script is recorded; abbreviated rec. If the re capability is present, record is initially set to the value of that capability. Otherwise, record is set to tip.record.

remote

The file in which to find descriptions of remote systems. If the environment variable REMOTE is set, remote is set to the value of REMOTE. Otherwise, remote is set to /etc/remote. The value of remote cannot be changed from within tip.

script

(bool) Session scripting mode; abbreviated sc. When script is on, tip will record everything transmitted by the remote machine in the script record file specified in record. If the beautify switch is on, only printable ASCII characters will be included in the script file (those characters between 040 and 0177). The variable exceptions is used to indicate characters which are an exception to the normal beautification rules. If the sc capability is present, script is initially set to on. Otherwise, script is initially set to off.

tabexpand

(bool) Expand TAB characters to SPACE characters during file transfers; abbreviated tab. When tabexpand is on, each tab is expanded to eight SPACE characters. If the tb capability is present, tabexpand is initially set to on. Otherwise, tabexpand is initially set to off.

tandem

(bool) Use XON/XOFF flow control to limit the rate that data is sent by the remote host; abbreviated ta. If the nt capability is present, tandem is initially set to off. Otherwise, tandem is initially set to on.

verbose

(bool) Verbose mode; abbreviated verb; When verbose mode is enabled, tip prints messages while dialing, shows the current number of lines transferred during a file transfer operations, and more. If the nv capability is present, verbose is initially set to off. Otherwise, verbose is initially set to on.

SHELL

(str) The name of the shell to use for the ~! command; default value is /bin/sh, or taken from the environment.

HOME

(str) The home directory to use for the ~c command. Default value is taken from the environment.

Examples

Example 1 Using the tip command

An example of the dialog used to transfer files is given below.

arpa% tip monet
[connected]
...(assume we are talking to a UNIX system)...
ucbmonet login: sam
Password:
monet% cat  sylvester.c
~> Filename: sylvester.c
32 lines transferred in 1 minute 3 seconds
monet%
monet% ~< Filename: reply.c
List command for remote host: cat reply.c
65 lines transferred in 2 minutes
monet%
...(or, equivalently)...
monet% ~p sylvester.c
...(actually echoes as ~[put] sylvester.c)...
32 lines transferred in 1 minute 3 seconds
monet%
monet% ~t reply.c
...(actually echoes as ~[take] reply.c)...
65 lines transferred in 2 minutes
monet%
...(to print a file locally)...
monet% ~|Local command: pr h sylvester.c | lpr
List command for remote host: cat sylvester.c
monet% ~^D
[EOT]
...(back on the local system)...

Environment Variables

The following environment variables are read by tip.

REMOTE: The location of the remote file.
PHONES: The location of the file containing private phone numbers.
HOST: A default host to connect to.
HOME: One's log-in directory (for chdirs).
SHELL: The shell to fork on a `~!' escape.

Files

/etc/phones
/etc/remote
/var/spool/locks/LCK. .*: lock file to avoid conflicts with UUCP
/var/adm/aculog: file in which outgoing calls are logged
~/.tiprc: initialization file

Attributes

See attributes(5) for descriptions of the following attributes:

ATTRIBUTE TYPE	ATTRIBUTE VALUE
Availability	SUNWcsu

Bugs

There are two additional variables, chardelay and linedelay, that are currently not implemented.

SunOS 5.11 Last Revised 28 Nov 2001