File: //proc/thread-self/root/usr/share/doc/maildrop/maildirwatch.html
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Copyright 1998 - 2009 Double Precision, Inc. See COPYING for distribution
information.
--></head><body><div class="refentry"><a id="maildirwatch" shape="rect"> </a><div class="titlepage"/><div class="refnamediv"><h2>Name</h2><p>maildirwatch — wait for changes to a maildir</p></div><div class="refsynopsisdiv"><h2>Synopsis</h2><div class="cmdsynopsis"><p><code class="command">maildirwatch</code> {<em class="replaceable"><code>maildir</code></em>} {<em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em>} [<em class="replaceable"><code>argument</code></em>...]</p></div></div><div class="refsect1"><a id="maildirwatch_description" shape="rect"> </a><h2>DESCRIPTION</h2><p>
<span class="command"><strong>maildirwatch</strong></span> repeatedly invokes the
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span>, with any optional
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>argument</code></em></strong></span>s, an external
command, as follows:
</p><div class="itemizedlist"><ul class="itemizedlist" style="list-style-type: disc; "><li class="listitem"><p>
The first time the
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span> gets executed
is immediately after
<span class="command"><strong>maildirwatch</strong></span> starts.
</p></li><li class="listitem"><p>
Subsequent invocatons of
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span> occur whenever
there <span class="emphasis"><em>may</em></span> be some kind of a change
to the contents of the
<code class="filename"><em class="replaceable"><code>maildir</code></em></code>.
</p><p>
<span class="command"><strong>maildirwatch</strong></span> does not determine what, if anything,
changed in the
<code class="filename"><em class="replaceable"><code>maildir</code></em></code>.
<span class="command"><strong>maildirwatch</strong></span>
might
occasionally raise a false alarm and run the
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span> even though
nothing changed, but that's rare. It's also possible that by
the time <span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span>
actually runs, then whatever was changed in the
<code class="filename"><em class="replaceable"><code>maildir</code></em></code> is no longer
changed; it became what it was before it was changed (a mystery
that will remain unsolved forever).
It's up to the
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span> to
intelligently figure out
if it needs to do something about whatever it finds in the
<code class="filename"><em class="replaceable"><code>maildir</code></em></code>.
</p></li></ul></div><p>
<span class="command"><strong>maildirwatch</strong></span> is a rudimentary mechanism for writing
shell scripts that deal with newly-delivered mail, in
some form or fashion.
</p></div><div class="refsect1"><a id="maildirwatch_exit" shape="rect"> </a><h2>EXIT CODE</h2><p>
A non-zero exit code indicates that the specified
<code class="filename"><em class="replaceable"><code>maildir</code></em></code> does not
exist or is corrupted.
</p><p>
Otherwise
<span class="command"><strong>maildirwatch</strong></span> runs until the
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span> exits with a
non-zero exit code.
<span class="command"><strong>maildirwatch</strong></span> prints
<span class="command"><strong><em class="replaceable"><code>command</code></em></strong></span>'s exit code on
standard output, and terminates with an exit code of 0.
</p></div><div class="refsect1"><a id="maildirwatch_see_also" shape="rect"> </a><h2>SEE ALSO</h2><p>
<a class="ulink" href="maildirmake.html" target="_top" shape="rect"><span class="citerefentry"><span class="refentrytitle">maildirmake</span>(1)</span></a>.</p></div></div></body></html>