rdist Command

This document describes the old AIX® rdist command located in the /usr/bin/rdist file as well as the new /usr/sbin/rdist command which is used with the new rdistd daemon.

/usr/bin/rdist Command

Purpose

Remote file distribution client program.

Syntax

To Use a Distribution File

rdist-n ] [  -q ] [  -b ] [  -D ] [  -R ] [  -h ] [  -i ] [  -v ] [  -w ] [  -y ] [  -f FileName ] [  -d Argument=Value ] [  -m Host ] ... [ Name ] ...

To Interpret Arguments as a Small Distribution File

rdist-n ] [ -q ] [ -b ] [ -D ] [ -R ] [ -h ] [ -i ] [ -v ] [ -w ] [ -y ] -c Name ... Login] Host:Destination ]

Description

Attention: Do not attempt to use the rdist command to send a file larger than 2 Gigabytes in size to a pre-AIX 4.2 or non-AIX machine. Doing so will result in undefined behaviors and, in rare cases, the loss of data.

The rdist command maintains identical copies of files on multiple hosts. The rdist command preserves the owner, group, mode, and modified time of files, if possible, and can update programs that are running. The rdist command can receive direction from the following sources:

If you do not use the -f flag, the rdist command looks for the distfile file in your $HOME directory. If it doesn't find a distfile file, it looks for Distfile file.

The value specified by the Name parameter is read as the name of a file to be updated or a subcommand to execute. If you do not specify a value for the Name parameter on the command line, the rdist command updates all the files and directories listed in the distribution file. If you specify - (minus sign) for the Name parameter, the rdist command uses standard input. If the name of a file specified by the Name parameter is the same as the name of a subcommand, the rdist command interprets the Name parameter as a subcommand.

The rdist command requires that a .rhosts file be configured on each host. See File Format for TCP/IP in AIX Version 7.1 Files Reference for details.

Note:
  1. If the rdist command is not present in the /usr/bin/rdist directory on a remote machine, create a link from the /usr/bin/rdist directory to the actual location of the rdist command. This location is usually the /usr/ucb/rdist directory.
  2. Currently, the rdist command can handle only 7-bit ASCII file names.

Flags

Item Description
-b Performs a binary comparison and updates files if they differ.
-c Directs the rdist command to interpret the remaining arguments as a small distribution file. Available arguments are:
Name
Specifies single name or list of names separated by blanks. The value can be either a file or a subcommand.
[Login@]Host
Specifies the machine to be updated and, optionally, the login name to be notified of the update.
Destination
Specifies a file on the remote machine if a single name is specified in the Name argument; specifies a directory if more than one name is specified.
Note: Do not use the -c flag with the -f, -d, or -m flag.
-d Argument=Value Defines the Argument variable as having the value specified by the Value variable. The -d flag defines or overrides variable definitions in the distfile file. The Value variable can be specified as an empty string, one name, or a list of names surrounded by parentheses and separated by tabs or spaces.
-D Turns on the debugging output.
-f FileName Specifies the name of the distribution file. If you do not use the -f flag, the default value is the distfile or Distfile file in your $HOME directory.
-h Copies the file that the link points to rather than the link itself.
-i Ignores unresolved links. The rdist command maintains the link structure of files being transferred and warns users if it cannot find all the links.
-m Host Limits which machines are to be updated. You can use the -m Host option multiple times to limit updates to a subset of the hosts listed in the distfile file.
-n Prints the subcommands without executing them. Use the -n flag to debug the distfile file.
-q Operates in quiet mode. The -q option suppresses printing of modified files on standard output.
-R Removes extraneous files. If a directory is being updated, any files that exist on the remote host but not in the master directory are removed. Use the -R flag to maintain identical copies of directories.
-v Verifies that the files are up-to-date on all hosts; files that are out-of-date are then displayed. However, the rdist -v command neither changes files nor sends mail. This flag overrides the -b flag when they are used together.
-y Prevents recent copies of files from being replaced by files that are not as recent. Files are normally updated when their time stamp and size differ. The -y flag prevents the rdist command from updating files more recent than the master file.
-w Appends the entire path name of the file to the destination directory name. Normally, the rdist command uses only the last component of a name for renaming files, preserving the directory structure of the copied files. When the -w flag is used with a file name that begins with a ~ (tilde), everything except the home directory is appended to the destination name. File names that do not begin with a / (slash) or a ~ (tilde) use the destination user's home directory as the root directory for the rest of the file name.

Distribution File (distfile File)

The distribution file specifies the files to copy, destination hosts for distribution, and operations to perform when updating files to be distributed with the rdist command. Normally, the rdist command uses the distfile file in your $HOME directory. You can specify a different file If you use the -f flag.

Entry Formats

Each entry in the distribution file has one of the following formats:

Item Description
VariableName NameList Defines variables used in other entries of the distribution file (SourceList, DestinationList, or SubcommandList).
[Label:SourceList -> DestinationList SubcommandList Directs the rdist command to distribute files named in the SourceList variable to hosts named in the DestinationList variable. Distribution file commands perform additional functions.
[Label:SourceList :: TimeStampFile SubcommandList                          Directs the rdist command to update files that have changed since a given date. Distribution file subcommands perform additional functions. Each file specified with the SourceList variable is updated if the file is newer than the time-stamp file. This format is useful for restoring files.

Labels are optional and used to identify a subcommand for partial updates.

Entries

Item Description
VariableName Identifies the variable used in the distribution file.
NameList Specifies a list of files and directories, hosts, or subcommands.
SourceList Specifies files and directories on the local host for the rdist command to use as the master copy for distribution.
DestinationList Indicates hosts to receive copies of the files.
SubcommandList Lists distribution file subcommands to be executed.

The rdist command treats new-line characters, tabs, and blanks as separators. Distribution file variables for expansion begin with a $ (dollar sign) followed by a single character or a name enclosed in {} (braces). Comments begin with a # (pound sign) and end with a new-line character.

Source and Destination List Format

The distribution file source and destination lists comprise zero or more names separated by blanks, as shown in the following format:

[Name1] [Name2] [Name3] ...

The rdist command recognizes and expands the following shell metacharacters on the local host in the same way as for the csh command.

To prevent these characters from being expanded, precede them with a \ (backslash). The rdist command also expands the ~ (tilde) in the same way as for the csh command, but does so separately on the local and destination hosts.

Distribution File Subcommands

Multiple commands to the shell must be separated by a ; (semicolon). Commands are executed in the user's home directory on the host being updated. The special subcommand can be used to rebuild private databases after a program has been updated.

The distribution file subcommand list may contain zero or more of the following subcommands:

Item Description
install Options [OptionalDestName]; Copies out-of-date files and directories. The rdist command copies each source file or directory to each host in the destination list. The available options as specified by the Options variable are the rdist command flags -b, -h, -i, -R, -v, -w, and -y. These options only apply to the files specified by the SourceList variable. When you use the -R flag, nonempty directories are removed if the corresponding file name is absent on the master host. The OptionalDestName parameter renames files.

If no install subcommand appears in the subcommand list or the destination name is not specified, the source file name is used. Directories in the path name are created if they do not exist on the remote host. The login name used on the destination host is the same as the local host unless the destination name is of the format login@host.

notify NameList; Mails the list of updated files and any errors that may have occurred to the listed names (the NameList parameter). If no @ (at sign) appears in the name, the destination host is appended to the name (name@host).
except NameList; Causes the rdist command to update all the files specified by the SourceList entry except for those files specified by the NameList variable.
except_pat NameList; Prevents the rdist command from updating any files that contain a string that matches a member of the list specified by the NameList variable.
special NameList "String"; Specifies shell commands (the "String" variable) to be executed on the remote host after the file specified by the NameList variable is updated or installed. If the NameList variable is omitted, the shell commands are executed for every file updated or installed. The shell variable FILE is set to the current file name before the rdist command executes the "String" variable. The "String" value must be enclosed in " " (double quotation marks) and can cross multiple lines in the distribution file.

Exit Status

This command returns the following exit values:

Item Description
0 Successful completion.
>0 Specifies that an error occurred.

Examples

Examples of the Format: VariableName = NameList

  1. To indicate which hosts' files to update, enter a line similar to the following:
    HOSTS =( matisse root@arpa )
    where the HOSTS variable is defined to be matisse and root@arpa. The rdist command updates files on the hosts matisse and root@arpa. You could use this variable as a destination list.
  2. To indicate a name to use as a value for a SourceList entry, enter a line similar to the following:
    FILES = ( /bin /lib/usr/bin /usr/games
        /usr/include/{*.h,{stand,sys,vax*,pascal,machine}/*.h}
           /usr/lib /usr/man/man? /usr/ucb /usr/local/rdist )
    where the FILES value is defined to be the files to be used for the SourceList entry.
  3. To indicate which files to exclude from the updating process, enter a line similar to the following:
    EXLIB = ( Mail.rc aliases aliases.dir aliases.pag crontab dshrc
        sendmail.cf sendmail.fc sendmail.hf sendmail.st uucp vfont)
    where the EXLIB value is defined as a list of files to exclude from the updating process.
  4. To copy all files from /usr/src/bin to arpa expanding the namelist variable so that all files except those present in the namelist variable and having .o as an extension are copied:
    /usr/src/bin ->arpa
    except_pat(\e\e.o\e ${<namelist> /SCCS\e ${<namelist>}

    or

    /usr/src/bin ->arpa
    except_pat(\\.o\e ${<namelist> /SCCS\e ${<namelist>}
  5. To copy all files from /usr/src/bin to arpa except those with an .o extension:
    /usr/src/bin ->arpa
    except_pat(\\.o\$ /SCCS\$

Examples of the Format: [label:] SourceList - DestinationList SubcommandList

  1. To copy a source list of files to a destination list of hosts, enter a line similar to the following:
    ${FILES} ->${HOSTS}
        install -R
        except /usr/lib/${EXLIB}  ;
        except /usr/games/lib  ;
        special /usr/sbin/sendmail "/usr/sbin/sendmail.bz"  ;
    The [Label:] entry of the line is optional and not shown here. The $ (dollar sign) and the {} (braces) cause the file names FILES, HOSTS, and EXLIB to be expanded into the lists designated for them in the previous examples. The rest of the example comprises the subcommand list.
  2. To use the [Label:] entry, enter the line as follows:
    srcsL:
    /usr/src/bin -> arpa
        except_pat (\e\e.o\e$ /SCCS\e$ ) ;

    The label is srcsL: and can be used to identify this entry for updating. The /usr/src/bin file is the source to be copied and host arpa is the destination of the copy. The third line contains a subcommand from the subcommand list.

  3. To use a time-stamp file, enter a line similar to the following:
    ${FILES} :: stamp.cory
        notify root@cory
    The $ (dollar sign) and {} (braces) cause the name specified by FILES to be expanded into the list designated for it. The time-stamp file is stamp.cory. The last line is a subcommand from the subcommand list.

Files

Item Description
/usr/bin/rdist Contains the rdist command.
$HOME/distfile Contains a list of subcommands to be read by the rdist command.
/tmp/rdist Contains an update list. This is a temporary file.

/usr/sbin/rdist Command

This document describes the old AIX rdist command located in the /usr/bin/rdist file as well as the new /usr/sbin/rdist command which is used with the new rdistd daemon.

Purpose

Client program for distributing files remotely.

Syntax

To Use a Distribution File

/usr/sbin/rdist [ -F n ] [ -A num ] [ -a num ] [ -d var=value] [ -l < local logopts> ] [ -L <remote logopts> ] [ -f distfile] [ -M maxproc -m host ] [ -o distops ] [ -t timeout ] [ -p <rdist-path> ] [ -P <transport-path> ] [ name ... ]

To Interpret Arguments as a Small Distribution File

/usr/sbin/rdist -Fn -c name ... [ login@ ] host [ :dest ]

To Invoke the Old rdist as a Server

/usr/sbin/rdist -Server

For Version Information

/usr/sbin/rdist -V

Description

rdist is a program to maintain identical copies of files over multiple hosts. It preserves the owner, group, mode, and modification time of files if possible and can update programs that are running. The rdist command can receive direction from the following sources:
  • The distribution file distfile in the current directory.
  • The standard input if distfile is specified as -.
  • If the -f flag is not used, rdist looks for the file named distfile and Distfile.
  • If the -c flag is used, the trailing arguments are interpreted as a small distfile. The equivalent distfile is as follows.
    ( filename ... ) -> [user@]host
         install       [dest name] ;

If no name arguments are specified, rdist will update all of the files and directories listed in distfile. Otherwise, the argument is taken to be the name of a file to be updated or the label of a command to execute. If the label and file names conflict, it is assumed to be a label. These may be used together to update specific files using specific commands.

The -Server option provides backward compatibility for older versions of rdist which used this option to put rdist into server mode. If rdist is started with the -Server command line option, it will attempt to run the old version of rdist. This option will only work if the old rdist is located at /usr/bin/rdist.

rdist uses an arbitrary transport program to access each target host. The transport program can be specified on the command line with the -P flag. If the -P flag is not used, rsh is taken as the transport program. If the rsh method is used and the target host is the string localhost and the remote user name is the same as the local user name, rdist will attempt to run the following command:
/bin/sh -c rdistd -S
Otherwise rdist will run the following command:
rsh host -l remuser rdistd -S

In the example above, the host parameter is the name of the target host, remuser is the name of the user to make the connection as and, rdistd is the rdist server command on the target host.

The transport program must be compatible with the above syntax for rsh. If not, the transport program should be wrapped in a shell script which understands this command line syntax.

On each target host rdist will run the following command:

rdistd -S

or

<rdistd path> -S

In the example above, the -p flag was specified. If -p flag is not included, or the <rdistd path> is a simple filename, rdistd or <rdistd path> must be somewhere in the PATH of the user running rdist on the remote (target) host.

The rdist command uses the following environment variables:
Item Description
TMPDIR Name of temporary directory to use. Default is /tmp.

Flags

Item Description
-A num Update or install files only if a minimum number of free files (inodes) exists on a filesystem.
-a num Update or install files only if a minimum amount of free space exists on a filesystem.
-d var = value Assign value to variable var. This option is used to define or override variable definitions in the distfile. Value can be the empty string, one name, or a list of names surrounded by parentheses and separated by tabs and/or spaces.
-F Update all clients sequentially without forking child processes.
-f distfile Use distfile as the distribution file. If distfile is specified as -, read from standard input.
-l logopts Sets local logging options. See the Message Logging section for more information on the syntax for logopts.
-L logopts Sets remote logging options. logopts is the same as for local logging except the values are passed to the remote server (rdistd ). See the Message Logging section for more information on the syntax of logopts.
-M num Limit the maximum number of simultaneously running child rdist processes to num. The default is 4.
-m machine Limits the updating of files to the given machine. Multiple -m arguments can be given to limit updates to a subset of the hosts listed in the distfile.
-n Display but do not execute commands. Use the -n flag to debug distfile.
-o distopts Specifies the dist options to enable. distopts is a comma separated list of options listed below. The valid values for distopts are:
chknfs
If the target filesystem is NFS, do not check or update files.
chkreadonly
If a file on the target host resides on a read only filesystem, no checking or updating of the file is attempted.
chksym
If the target on the remote host is a symbolic link, but is not on the master host, the remote target will be left a symbolic link.
compare
Perform a binary comparison and update files if they differ.
follow
Copy the file that the symbolic link points to rather than the link itself.
ignlnks
Ignore links which do not resolve. The normal behavior of rdist is to warn the user about unresolved links.
nochkowner
If the file already exists, do not check user ownership. The file ownership is only set when the file is updated.
nochkgroup
If the file already exists, do not check group ownership. The file ownership is only set when the file is updated.
nochkmode
Avoid checking file and directory permission modes. The permission mode is only set when the file is updated.
nodescend
Do not descend recursively into a directory. Only the existence, ownership, and mode of the directory are checked.
noexec
Do not check or update executable files that are in a.out format.
numchkgroup
Use the numeric group id (gid) to check group ownership instead of the group name.
numchkowner
Use the numeric user id (uid) to check user ownership instead of the user name.
quiet
Supress printing files that are being modified on the standard output.
remove
Remove any files in directories that exist on the remote host that do not exist in the master directory on the local host.
savetargets
Save files that are updated instead of removing them. Target files that are updated are first renamed from filename to filename.OLD.
sparse
Enable checking for sparse files. This option adds some additional processing overhead so it should only be enabled for targets likely to contain sparse files.
-o distopts (dist options, continued):
verify
Any file on any host that is out of date will be displayed but no file will be changed nor any mail sent.
whole
The whole file name is appended to the destination directory name. Normally, only the last component of a name is used when renaming files. This will preserve the directory structure of the files being copied instead of flattening the directory structure. For example, rdisting a list of files such as /path/dir1/f1 and /path/dir2/f2 to /tmp/dir would create files /tmp/dir/path/dir1/f1 and /tmp/dir/path/dir2/f2 instead of /tmp/dir/dir1/f1 and /tmp/dir/dir2/f2.
younger
Files are normally updated if their mtime and size disagree. This option causes rdist not to update files that are younger than the master copy. This can be used to prevent newer copies on other hosts from being replaced. A warning message is printed for files which are newer than the master copy.
-p <rdist-path> Search for the rdistd server in the given path on the target host.
-P <rdist-path> Use the transport program as given in transport-path. The transport-path may be a colon seperated list of possible pathnames. In this case, the first component of the path to exist is used.
-t timeout Sets the timeout period (in seconds) for waiting for responses from the remote rdist server. The default is 900 seconds.
-V Prints the version information and exits.

Message Logging

The rdist command provides a set of message facilities, each of which contains a list of message types specifying which types of messages to send to that facility. The local client (rdist) and the remote server (rdistd) each maintain separate copies of what types of messages to log to what facilities.

The -l logopts flag specifies what logging options to use locally on the client. The -L logopts flag specifies what logging options to pass to the remote rdistd server.

The form of logopts should be the following:
facility=types:facility= types... 
The valid facility names are as follows:
stdout
Messages to standard output.
file
Messages are sent to a file. The file name can be specified by the format file = filename = types.
syslog
Messages are sent to the syslogd facility.
notify
Messages are sent to the internal rdistnotify facility. This facility is used in conjunction with the notify ph in a distfile to specify what messages are mailed to the notify address.
types should be a comma separated list of message types. Each message type specified enables that message level. This is unlike the syslog system facility which uses an ascending order scheme. The following are the valid types:
change
Log messages for things that change.
info
Log general information.
notice
Log messages for general info about things that change. This includes things like making directories which are needed in order to install a specific target, but which are not explicitly specified in the distfile.
nerror
Log messages for normal errors that are not fatal.
ferror
Log messages for fatal errors.
warning
Log warnings about errors which are not as serious as nerror type messages.
verbose
Log messages for more information than normal, but less than debugging level.
debug
Log debugging information.
all
Log all but debug messages.

The Distribution File

The distribution file specifies the files to copy, destination hosts for distribution, and operations to perform when updating files to be distributed with the rdist command.

Entry Formats

Each entry in the distribution file has one of the following formats:
VariableName = NameList
Defines variables used in other entries of the distribution file (SourceList, DestinationList, or SubcommandList).
[Label:] SourceList -> DestinationList SubcommandList
Directs the rdist command to distribute files named in the SourceList variable to hosts named in the DestinationList variable.
Distribution file commands perform additional functions.
[Label:] SourceList :: TimeStampFile SubcommandList
Directs the rdist command to update files that have changed since a given date. Distribution file subcommands perform additional functions.
Each file specified with the SourceList variable is updated if the file is newer than the time-stamp file.

Labels are optional. They are used to identify a command for partial updates.

Entries

Item Description
VariableName Identifies the variable used in the distribution file.
NameList Specifies a list of files and directories, hosts, or subcommands.
SourceList Specifies files and directories on the local host for the rdist command to use as the master copy for distribution.
DestinationList Indicates hosts to receive copies of the files.
SubcommandList Lists distribution file subcommands to be executed.

The rdist command treats newline characters, tabs, and blanks as separators. Distribution file variables for expansion begin with a dollar sign followed by a single character or a name enclosed in braces.

Comments begin with a pound sign and end with a newline character.

Source and Destination List Format

The distribution file source and destination lists comprise zero or more names separated by blanks, as shown in the following format:
[Name1] [Name2] [Name3] ...
The rdist command recognizes and expands the following shell metacharacters on the local host in the same way as for the csh command.
  • [ left bracket
  • ] right bracket
  • { left brace
  • } right brace
  • ( left parenthesis
  • ) right parenthesis
  • * asterisk
  • ? question mark

To prevent these characters from being expanded, precede them with a backslash. The rdist command also expands the tilde in the same way as for the csh command, but does so separately on the local and destination hosts. When the -o whole option is used with a file name that begins with a tilde, everything except the home directory is appended to the destination name. File names which do not begin with a forward slash or a tilde use the destination user's home directory as the root directory for the rest of the file name.

Distribution File Subcommands

Multiple commands to the shell must be separated by a semicolon. Commands are executed in the user's home directory on the host being updated. The special subcommand can be used to rebuild private databases after a program has been updated.

The distribution file subcommand list may contain zero or more of the following subcommands:
install Options[OptionalDestName];
Copies out-of-date files and directories. The rdist command copies each source file or directory to each host in the destination list.
The available options as specified by the Options variable are the rdist command flags -b, -h, -i, -R, -v, -w, and -y.
These options only apply to the files specified by the SourceList variable.

When you use the -R flag, nonempty directories are removed if the corresponding file name is absent on the master host. The OptionalDestName parameter renames files.

If no install subcommand appears in the subcommand list or the destination name is not specified, the source file name is used. Directories in the path name are created if they do not exist on the remote host.

The login name used on the destination host is the same as the local host unless the destination name is of the format login@host.

notify NameList;
Mails the list of updated files and any errors that may have occurred to the listed names (the NameList parameter).
If no @ (at sign) appears in the name, the destination host is appended to the name (name@host).
except NameList;
Causes the rdist command to update all the files specified by the SourceList entry except for those files specified by the NameList variable.
except_pat NameList;
Prevents the rdist command from updating any files that contain a string that matches a member of the list specified by the NameList variable.
special NameList "String";
Specifies shell commands (the "String" variable) to be executed on the remote host after the file specified by the NameList variable is updated or installed.
If the NameList variable is omitted, the shell commands are executed for every file updated or installed.
The shell variable FILE is set to the current file name before the rdist command executes the "String" variable.
The variable REMFILE will contain the full pathname of the remote file that was just updated and the variable BASEFILE will contain the basename of the remote file that was just updated.
The "String" value must be enclosed in double quotation marks and can cross multiple lines in the distribution file.
cmdspecial NameList "String";
The cmdspecial command is similar to the special command, except it is executed only when the entire command is completed instead of after each file is updated.
The shell variable FILES will contain the list of files. Each file name in the FILES shell variable is separated by a colon.

NFS checks are disabled if a hostname ends in a plus sign. This is equivalent to disabling the -o chknfs option just for this one host.

Exit Status

This command returns the following exit values:

Item Description
0 Successful completion.
>0 An error occurred.

Examples

  1. To indicate which hosts' files to update, enter a line similar to the following:
    HOSTS =( matisse root@arpa )

    In the above example, the HOSTS variable is defined to be matisse and root@arpa. The rdist command updates files on the hosts matisse and root@arpa.

    You could use this variable as a destination list.

  2. To indicate a name to use as a value for a SourceList entry, enter a line similar to the following:
    FILES = ( /bin /lib/usr/bin /usr/games
        /usr/include/{*.h,{stand,sys,vax*,pascal,machine}/*.h}
           /usr/lib /usr/man/man? /usr/ucb /usr/local/rdist )

    In the above example, the FILES value is defined to be the files to be used for the SourceList entry.

  3. To indicate which files to exclude from the updating process, enter a line similar to the following:
    EXLIB = ( Mail.rc aliases aliases.dir aliases.pag crontab dshrc
        sendmail.cf sendmail.fc sendmail.hf sendmail.st uucp vfont)

    In the above example, the EXLIB value is defined as a list of files to exclude from the updating process.

  4. To copy all files from /usr/src/bin to arpa expanding the namelist variable so that all files except those present in the namelist variable and having .o as an extension are copied:
    /usr/src/bin ->arpa
    except_pat(\e\e.o\e ${<namelist> /SCCS\e ${<namelist>}

    or

    /usr/src/bin ->arpa
    except_pat(\\.o\e ${<namelist> /SCCS\e ${<namelist>}
  5. To copy all files from /usr/src/bin to arpa except those with an .o extension:
    /usr/src/bin ->arpa
    except_pat(\\.o\$ /SCCS\$

Examples of the Format: [label:] SourceList - DestinationList SubcommandList

  1. To copy a source list of files to a destination list of hosts, enter a line similar to the following:
    ${FILES} ->${HOSTS}
        install -R
        except /usr/lib/${EXLIB}  ;
        except /usr/games/lib  ;
        special /usr/sbin/sendmail "/usr/sbin/sendmail.bz"  ;

    The [Label:] entry of the line is optional and not shown here. Thedollar sign and the braces cause the file names FILES, HOSTS, and EXLIB to be expanded into the lists designated for them in the previous examples.

    The rest of the example comprises the subcommand list.

  2. To use the [Label:] entry, enter the line as follows:
    srcsL:
    /usr/src/bin -> arpa
        except_pat (\e\e.o\e$ /SCCS\e$ ) ;

    The label is srcsL: and can be used to identify this entry for updating. The /usr/src/bin file is the source to be copied and host arpa is the destination of the copy.

    The third line contains a subcommand from the subcommand list.

  3. To use a time-stamp file, enter a line similar to the following:
    ${FILES} :: stamp.cory
        notify root@cory

    The dollar sign and braces cause the name specified by FILES to be expanded into the list designated for it. The time-stamp file is stamp.cory.

    The last line is a subcommand from the subcommand list.

Files

Item Description
/usr/sbin/rdist Contains the rdist command at version 6.1.5.
distfile Contains the input commands.
$ TMPDIR/rdist* The temporary file for update lists.