Understanding the Sendmail Command in Linux

Understanding the Sendmail Command in Linux

The sendmail command is a Unix/Linux command used to send emails from one user to another. It’s an important tool for system administrators and can be used for a variety of tasks, such as scheduling automated emails or sending out notifications to multiple people.

The command is a part of the Sendmail mail transport agent (MTA), which is responsible for transferring emails from one computer to another. The sendmail command is one of the most popular MTAs available, and it allows users to send email using either a command-line interface or a graphical interface.

Basics of Sendmail

When you use the sendmail command, you specify an email address to send the message to, and the contents of the message. The message can be plain text or have HTML formatting. In addition to the receiver’s address, you can specify a “From” address, a “Subject” line, and a list of recipients to send the message to. The sendmail command then takes care of the rest, sending your message to the appropriate server.

You can also specify options when sending a message with the sendmail command. These options can include things like setting priority levels, encryption, delivery notification, and more. Many servers even support features such as server-side spam filtering or virus scanning.

Using Sendmail in Linux

The sendmail command is available on most Linux distributions by default. You can access the command-line interface via a terminal window, or you can use a graphical program such as Kmail or Evolution to access the graphical interface. The command-line interface is generally easier to use, as it doesn’t require the installation of any additional software.

To send a message using the sendmail command, open a terminal window and enter the command followed by the recipient’s address and the content of your message. For example:

sendmail example@example.com "This is my test message"

The command above sends an email to example@example.com with the subject line “This is my test message”. To add options or include a “From” address, add additional flags to the command. To see all available flags, enter the following in the terminal window:

man sendmail

Conclusion

The sendmail command is an important tool for system administrators and users on Linux systems. It allows users to quickly and easily send emails from their system, either with a command-line interface or a graphical interface. Using flags, system administrators can specify additional options such as encryption, delivery notification, and more. With its many uses, the sendmail command is a useful addition to any system.