VMS Help  —  TCPIP Services, Command Syntax
    Use the following rules when you type a command line:

    o  OpenVMS and UNIX command syntax

       Most command descriptions specify both a DCL syntax and a
       UNIX syntax. You can, therefore, use command lines in either
       syntax. For example, the following two command lines achieve
       the same results:

       TELNET> CONNECT BENTLEY
       TELNET> open bentley

    o  Keyword abbreviations

       You can abbreviate commands and qualifiers to the fewest
       number of characters, usually three, that uniquely identifies
       the keyword. For example, the following two command lines
       achieve the same results:

       $ RL RENT /USE=BUNNINGS
       $ RLOGIN RENT /USER_NAME=BUNNINGS

    o  Quotation marks

       Due to differences in OpenVMS and UNIX command syntax, some
       commands require quotation marks for selected keywords. These
       requirements apply to case sensitivity, slashes, and certain
       special characters (such as &, =, and \).

       UNIX is case sensitive; UNIX host names, user names, and
       passwords are usually lowercase. Enclosing them in quotation
       marks preserves the correct casing.

       Refer to each individual component for its specific command
       syntax.

    o  Names and addresses

       Unless otherwise stated, whenever you specify a host on a
       command line, you can use its host name, a fully qualified
       domain name, or its IP address. The following examples show
       two ways to enter the TELNET command to connect to host VENDOR
       at IP address 17.22.3.4.

       $ TELNET VENDOR
       Trying...17.22.3.4
       Connected to VENDOR.
       Escape character is '^]'.
       ()
       UNIX V5 (vendor.goods.igcorp.com)
       login:

       or

       $ TELNET 17.22.3.4
       Trying...17.22.3.4
       Connected to 17.22.3.4.
       Escape character is '^]'.
       ()
       UNIX V5 (vendor.goods.igcorp.com)
       login:

    o  File and directory names

       When you specify OpenVMS directory names and file names,
       follow OpenVMS file specification rules, as explained in
       the OpenVMS documentation. Likewise, when you specify UNIX
       directory names and file names, follow UNIX file specification
       rules, as explained in the documentation supplied with the
       UNIX system.

    o  Multiple values for parameters

       To specify multiple values for command parameters, such as
       host names and directories, follow these guidelines:

       -  Separate elements with commas.

       -  Wildcards are valid.

       -  A space between multiple elements is optional.

       The following FTP GET command copies the files PROJ1.TXT and
       GROUP1.TXT, using a comma to separate the file names in the
       command line:

       FTP> GET PROJ1.TXT, GROUP1.TXT

       The following FTP GET command uses the asterisk (*) wildcard
       to copy all files starting with the letters "PROJ1":

       FTP> GET PROJ1*.*

    o  Multiple values for qualifiers

       To specify multiple values for qualifiers, enclose them in
       parentheses as follows:

       /qualifier=(value1,value2, value3)

       For example, the following LPRM command deletes three jobs
       from a remote print queue:

       $ LPRM EST_4_1997_Q /ENTRY=(555,556,558)

    o  Numeric values

       Unless stated otherwise, all values are decimal.

    o  Braces and brackets Command format descriptions include braces
       and brackets. You should understand the meaning of the braces
       and brackets:

       -  Braces ( { } ) - Indicate that you must specify at least
          one of the enclosed values. Each element is either listed
          on a separate line or separated by vertical bars (|).
          Occasionally, you may need to specify all of the enclosed
          values (this case is always noted).

          Example:

          The command SET MODE requires you to specify either CHAR or
          LINE.

          SET MODE  {CHAR}| {LINE}

       -  Brackets ( [ ] ) - Indicate that the enclosed values are
          optional.

          Example 1:

          The last two parameters for the TELNET CONNECT command are
          enclosed in brackets, which means they are optional. In
          this example, the port can be specified without a terminal
          type, and the host without a port.

          CONNECT  host [ port [terminal_type ] ]

          Example 2:

          The format of the RSH command shows that all the qualifiers
          and the remote_command parameter are optional.

          RSH  host
               [ /EIGHTBIT ]
               [ /ESCAPE_CHARACTER=character ]
               [ /LOG_FILE=file ]
               [ /[NO]LOWERCASE ]
               [ /PASSWORD=password ]
               [ /[NO]SYSERROR ]
               [ /TERMINAL_SPEED=n ]
               [ /TERMINAL_TYPE=type ]
               [ /[NO]TRUNCATE_USER_NAME ]
               [ /USER_NAME=remote_user_name ]
               [ remote_command ]
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