In Unix, can I be notified on one account if I receive mail on another?

If you are using the X Window System graphical environment, you may have xbiff notify you when new mail has arrived. To use it, open an xterm to the account from which you want the notification of new mail, and run xbiff. For details, consult the man page for xbiff. To do so, at the Unix prompt, enter: man xbiff

If you are not using X, your options are more limited. On some systems, the biff command can notify you when mail arrives. Be aware that on many systems, including the UITS central computers at Indiana University, biff is either unavailable or does not work correctly. To use biff, first connect to the account from which you want the notification of new mail. Then, at the Unix prompt, enter: biff y After you have activated biff, use telnet or ssh to connect to the other account. When biff detects that you have received mail on the first account, it will send a notification to the second. For more information about biff, at the Unix prompt, enter: man biff

At Indiana University, for personal or departmental Linux or Unix systems support, see At IU, how do I get support for Linux or Unix?

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