---
name: "archive.inn"
section: "8"
platform: "linux"
package: "inn"
version: "2.7.4-4"
release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/archive.inn"
---

# archive.inn(8)

Usenet article archiver

## NAME

archive - Usenet article archiver

## SYNOPSIS

**archive** \[**-cfr**\] \[**-a** *archive*\] \[**-i** *index*\] \[**-p** *pattern*\] \[*input*\]

## DESCRIPTION

**archive** makes copies of files specified on its standard input.  It is normally run either as a channel feed under **innd** or by a script before **news.daily** is run.

**archive** reads the named *input* file, or standard input if no file is given.  The input is taken as a sequence of lines; blank lines and lines starting with a number sign (`"#"`) are ignored.  All other lines should specify the token of an article to archive.  Every article is retrieved from a token, and the Xref header field is used to determine the target file in the archive directory.  You can limit the targets taken from the Xref header field with the **-p** option.

Files are copied to a directory within the archive directory, *patharchive* in *inn.conf* (or some other directory given with **-a**). The default is to create a hierarchy that mimics a traditional news spool storage of the given articles; intermediate directories will be created as needed.  For example, if the input token represents article 2211 in the newsgroup comp.sources.unix, **archive** will by default store the article as:

```
    comp/sources/unix/2211
```

in the archive area.  This can be modified with the **-c** and **-f** options.

## OPTIONS

- **-a** *archive*

  If the **-a** flag is given, its argument specifies the root of the archive area, instead of *patharchive* in *inn.conf*.

- **-c**

  If the **-c** flag is given, directory names will be flattened as described under the **-f** option.  Then, additionally, all posts will be concatenated into a single file, appending to that file if it already exists.  The file name will be `"YYYYMM"`, formed from the current time when **archive** is run.  In other words, if given an article in comp.sources.unix on December 14th, 1998, the article would be appended to the file:

  ```
      comp.sources.unix/199812
  ```

  in the archive area.

  Articles will be separated by a line containing only `"-----------"`.

- **-f**

  If the **-f** flag is used, directory names will be flattened, replacing the slashes with the periods.  In other words, article 2211 in comp.sources.unix will be written to:

  ```
      comp.sources.unix/2211
  ```

  in the archive area.

- **-i** *index*

  If the **-i** flag is used, **archive** will append one line to the file *index* for each article that it archives.  This line will contain the destination file name, the Message-ID header field, and the Subject header field of the message, separated by spaces.  If either header is missing (normally not possible if the article was accepted by **innd**), it will be replaced by `"<none>"`.  The headers will be transformed using the same rules as are used to generate overview data (unfolded and then with tabs, CR, and LF replaced by spaces).

- **-p** *pattern*

  Limits the targets taken from the Xref header field to the groups specified in *pattern*.  *pattern* is a *uwildmat* pattern matching newsgroups that you wish to have **archive** handle.

- **-r**

  By default, **archive** sets its standard error to *pathlog*/errlog.  To suppress this redirection, use the **-r** flag.

## RETURN VALUE

If the input is exhausted, **archive** will exit with a zero status.  If an I/O error occurs, it will try to spool its input, copying it to a file. If there was no input filename, the standard input will be copied to *pathoutgoing*/archive and the program will exit.  If an input filename was given, a temporary file named *input*.bch (if *input* is an absolute pathname) or *pathoutgoing*/*input*.bch (if the filename does not begin with a slash) is created.  Once the input is copied, **archive** will try to rename this temporary file to be the name of the input file, and then exit.

## EXAMPLES

A typical [newsfeeds(5)](/newsfeeds/5.md) entry to archive most source newsgroups is as follows:

```
    source-archive!\
        :!*,*sources*,!*wanted*,!*.d\
        :Tc,Wn\
        :<pathbin>/archive -f -i <patharchive>/INDEX
```

Replace \<pathbin\> and \<patharchive\> with the appropriate paths.

## HISTORY

Written by Rich $alz \<rsalz@uunet.uu.net\> for InterNetNews.  Converted to POD by Russ Allbery \<eagle@eyrie.org\>.

## SEE ALSO

[inn.conf(5)](/inn.conf/5.md), [libinn\_uwildmat(3)](/libinn_uwildmat/3.md), [newsfeeds(5)](/newsfeeds/5.md).