xref: /openbsd/usr.bin/uuencode/uuencode.5 (revision 73471bf0)
1.\"	$OpenBSD: uuencode.5,v 1.10 2007/05/31 19:20:19 jmc Exp $
2.\"	$NetBSD: uuencode.format.5,v 1.3 1994/11/17 07:39:45 jtc Exp $
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31.\"	@(#)uuencode.format.5	8.2 (Berkeley) 1/12/94
32.\"
33.Dd $Mdocdate: May 31 2007 $
34.Dt UUENCODE 5
35.Os
36.Sh NAME
37.Nm uuencode
38.Nd format of an encoded uuencode file
39.Sh DESCRIPTION
40Files output by
41.Xr uuencode 1
42consist of a header line,
43followed by a number of body lines,
44and a trailer line.
45The
46.Xr uudecode 1
47command
48will ignore any lines preceding the header or
49following the trailer.
50Lines preceding a header must not, of course,
51look like a header.
52.Pp
53The header line is distinguished by having the first
546 characters
55.Dq begin\ \&
56(note the trailing space).
57The word
58.Em begin
59is followed by a mode (in octal),
60and a string which names the remote file.
61A space separates the three items in the header line.
62.Pp
63The body consists of a number of lines, each at most 62 characters
64long (including the trailing newline).
65These consist of a character count,
66followed by encoded characters,
67followed by a newline.
68The character count is a single printing character,
69and represents an integer, the number of bytes
70the rest of the line represents.
71Such integers are always in the range from 0 to 63 and can
72be determined by subtracting the character space (octal 40)
73from the character.
74.Pp
75Groups of 3 bytes are stored in 4 characters, 6 bits per character.
76All are offset by a space to make the characters printing.
77The last line may be shorter than the normal 45 bytes.
78If the size is not a multiple of 3, this fact can be determined
79by the value of the count on the last line.
80Extra garbage will be included to make the character count a multiple
81of 4.
82The body is terminated by a line with a count of zero.
83This line consists of one
84.Tn ASCII
85\` (opening single quote) character.
86.Pp
87The trailer line consists of
88.Dq end
89on a line by itself.
90.Sh SEE ALSO
91.Xr mail 1 ,
92.Xr uudecode 1 ,
93.Xr uuencode 1
94.Sh HISTORY
95The
96.Nm
97file format appeared in
98.Bx 4.0 .
99.\" It was named uuencode.5 prior to 4.3
100