Running UNIX commands from within mail

You can execute a shell command from the mail prompt without leaving mail (or while editing a message). When the command finishes executing, you return to where you started the command.

From the mail, precede the command with an exclamation point. For example, !date displays the current date without leaving mail.

While editing a message, you must precede the command with ~! at the start of a new line.

From the mail prompt, you can start a new shell with the command sh (short for shell).

To exit from the new shell, press <Ctrl>D or type exit.