motd
TLDR
Edit static MOTD
$ sudo nano /etc/motd
View MOTD$ cat /etc/motd
Add dynamic MOTD script$ sudo nano /etc/update-motd.d/[99-custom]
Make dynamic script executable$ sudo chmod +x /etc/update-motd.d/[99-custom]
Regenerate dynamic MOTD$ run-parts /etc/update-motd.d/
SYNOPSIS
/etc/motd
DESCRIPTION
motd (Message of the Day) is displayed to users upon login. It can be a static text file or dynamically generated from scripts.
On systems with PAM, /etc/motd is displayed after successful authentication. Dynamic MOTD systems run scripts from /etc/update-motd.d/.
STATIC MOTD
$ # /etc/motd
Welcome to myserver
Authorized users only
Welcome to myserver
Authorized users only
DYNAMIC MOTD
$ #!/bin/bash
# /etc/update-motd.d/10-sysinfo
echo "System: $(uname -n)"
echo "Uptime:$(uptime -p)"
echo "Users: $(who | wc -l)"
# /etc/update-motd.d/10-sysinfo
echo "System: $(uname -n)"
echo "Uptime:$(uptime -p)"
echo "Users: $(who | wc -l)"
FILE LOCATIONS
$ /etc/motd - Static message
/etc/update-motd.d/ - Dynamic scripts
/run/motd.dynamic - Generated output
/etc/update-motd.d/ - Dynamic scripts
/run/motd.dynamic - Generated output
CAVEATS
Dynamic MOTD requires update-motd package. Scripts must be executable. SSH may have separate banner. PAM configuration affects display.
