---
name: "chkmail"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "uw-imapd"
version: "4:2001adebian-6"
release: "Debian 3.0 (Woody)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/chkmail"
---

# chkmail(1)

check for new mail

## NAME

chkmail - check for new mail

## SYNTAX

**chkmail** *\[-debug\] \[-verbose\] mailbox*

## DESCRIPTION

*chkmail* determines whether new mail exists in the given mailbox.  The number of new messages is defined as the number of messages that have "Recent" status set.

If the mailbox contains no new messages,  *chkmail* will indicate that no new mail is present; otherwise, it will report the number of new messages.  In either case, it will also indicate the canonical form of the name of the mailbox.

The **-debug** flag prints full debugging telemetry including protocol operations.  The **-verbose** flag prints verbose (non-error) telemetry.

The mailbox name argument is a standard c-client mailbox name.  A variety of mailbox name formats and types of mailboxes are supported by c-client; examples of the most common forms of names are:

- Name

  *Meaning*

- INBOX

  *primary incoming mail folder on the local system*

- archive/tx-project

  mail folder named "tx-project" in "archive" subdirectory of local filesystem home directory

- {imapserver.foo.com}INBOX

  primary incoming mail folder on IMAP server system "imapserver.foo.com"

- {imapserver.foo.com}archive/tx-project

  mail folder named "tx-project" in "archive" subdirectory on IMAP server system "imapserver.foo.com"

- \#news.comp.mail.misc

  newsgroup "comp.mail.misc" on local filesystem

- {newserver.foo.com/nntp}comp.mail.misc

  newsgroup "comp.mail.misc" on NNTP server system "newserver.foo.com"

- {popserver.foo.com/pop3}

  mail folder on POP3 server system "popserver.foo.com"

See your system manager for more information about the types of mailboxes which are available on your system.

## RESTRICTIONS

You must surround a *{host}mailbox* form mailbox name with quotation marks if you run *chkmail* from [*csh*(1)](/csh/1.md) or another shell for which braces have special meaning.

## AUTHOR

Mark Crispin, MRC@CAC.Washington.EDU

## SEE ALSO

imapcopy (1)\
 mbxcopy (1)\
 mbxcvt (1)