agetty
Open a terminal and prompt for login
TLDR
Connect stdin to a port with an optional baud rate
$ agetty [tty] [115200]
Set a timeout for the login$ agetty -t [timeout_in_seconds] -
Assume the tty is 8-bit clean and override the TERM variable$ agetty -8 - [term_var]
Skip the login and invoke another login program$ agetty -n -l [login_program] [tty]
Do not display the pre-login issue file$ agetty -i -
SYNOPSIS
agetty [options] port [baudrate...] [term_]
DESCRIPTION
agetty opens a tty port, prompts for a login name, and invokes the /bin/login command. It is normally invoked by init(8). The command provides features useful for hardwired and dial-in connections, including automatic parity detection, baud rate deduction from modem messages, and optional hardware flow control.
PARAMETERS
-8, --8bits
Disable parity detection for 8-bit clean terminals-a, --autologin username
Automatic login without prompting for username-h, --flow-control
Enable RTS/CTS hardware flow control-i, --noissue
Skip displaying /etc/issue-J, --noclear
Don't clear screen before login prompt-l, --login-program program
Use alternative login executable-L, --local-line
Control carrier detect requirement-m, --extract-baud
Extract baud rate from modem status messages-n, --skip-login
Don't prompt for login name-r, --chroot directory
Change the root directory-H, --host hostname
Write a specific fake host into the utmp file-t, --timeout seconds
Terminate if no input within timeout
CONFIGURATION
/etc/issue
Pre-login message displayed before the login prompt. Supports escape codes for system information./etc/os-release
Operating system identification data used by agetty for \S escape in /etc/issue.
INSTALL
sudo apt install util-linux
sudo dnf install util-linux
sudo pacman -S util-linux
sudo apk add agetty
sudo zypper install util-linux
brew install util-linux
nix profile install nixpkgs#util-linux
CAVEATS
The baud rate is the speed of data transfer between a terminal and a device over a serial connection. Default is 9600 for serial terminals.
HISTORY
Part of util-linux package. Alternative to the traditional getty command with additional features for modern Linux systems.
