rwall(8) on Solnix vs Linux and the BSDs
On Solnix, rwall is the illumos /usr/sbin/rwall (section 8). It reads the message from standard input only and can target network groups with -n. The FreeBSD, OpenBSD and NetBSD rwall(1) take one host and an optional message file, and have no -n or -h.
The manual pages
- Solnix: rwall(8) from
pkgs.solnix.illumos-world-man· illumos.org - FreeBSD: rwall(1) 15.1-RELEASE
- OpenBSD: rwall(1) 8.0
- NetBSD: rwall(1) 11.0
What Solnix runs
A default Solnix system runs the illumos rwall at /usr/sbin/rwall. No other variants are shipped. The page is published in section 8 by pkgs.solnix.illumos-world-man; the BSD counterparts are section 1 pages.
Differences
| Compared with | Topic | What differs |
|---|---|---|
| FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD | message source | Solnix rwall reads the message from standard input until EOF and has no file argument. The BSD rwall takes an optional file after the host, and the message can instead be typed in and ended with EOF. Source: Solnix rwall(8) DESCRIPTION; FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD rwall(1) SYNOPSIS and DESCRIPTION |
| FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD | number of hosts | Solnix rwall accepts one or more hostnames (hostname...). The BSD synopsis shows a single host. Source: Solnix rwall(8) SYNOPSIS; FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD rwall(1) SYNOPSIS |
| FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD | network groups (-n) | Solnix rwall -n netgroup sends the broadcast to the named network groups. The BSD pages document no options and no netgroup support.Source: Solnix rwall(8) OPTIONS -n; FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD rwall(1) SYNOPSIS |
| FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD | -h option | Solnix rwall -h hostname names the host, and the synopsis allows it together with -n. The BSD pages have no -h, so the host is a positional argument.Source: Solnix rwall(8) SYNOPSIS, OPTIONS -h; FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD rwall(1) SYNOPSIS |
| FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD | man section and path | Solnix documents rwall as an administration command, rwall(8), at /usr/sbin/rwall. The BSD pages are user commands, rwall(1). Scripts that rely on PATH may not find /usr/sbin.Source: Solnix rwall(8) SYNOPSIS (/usr/sbin/rwall); FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD rwall(1) NAME |
| FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD | message header and delivery | The Solnix page says the message is preceded by the line "Broadcast Message ...", and that the short timeout means it may not reach a heavily loaded machine. The BSD pages document neither the header nor the timeout. Source: Solnix rwall(8) DESCRIPTION, NOTES; FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD rwall(1) DESCRIPTION |
| FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD | related daemon | The BSD pages point to rpc.rwalld(8) as the receiving daemon, plus rpcbind(8) on FreeBSD and NetBSD or portmap(8) on OpenBSD. The Solnix SEE ALSO lists inetd(8), listen(8), pmadm(8), sacadm(8) and wall(8), not rpc.rwalld. Source: Solnix rwall(8) SEE ALSO; FreeBSD rwall(1) SEE ALSO; OpenBSD rwall(1) SEE ALSO; NetBSD rwall(1) SEE ALSO |
| FreeBSD | BUGS note | The FreeBSD page says the sorting options are not implemented, though its synopsis shows no options. The Solnix page has no such note. Source: FreeBSD rwall(1) BUGS; Solnix rwall(8) OPTIONS |
Standards
- POSIX: rwall is not a POSIX.1-2024 utility.
- FreeBSD: The HISTORY section says rwall appeared in Sun-OS.
- OpenBSD: The HISTORY section says rwall appeared in SunOS.
- NetBSD: The HISTORY section says rwall appeared in SunOS.
Writing portable scripts
- Use only the form rwall host, with the message on standard input, if you need to work on both Solnix and the BSDs. Do not use
-nor-h, and do not pass a file argument. - Call rwall by full path or add
/usr/sbinto PATH, since it is a section 8 command on Solnix.
Every difference here is taken from the manual pages linked above: Solnix's published page, Linux (man-pages and the GNU and util-linux manuals), FreeBSD, OpenBSD and NetBSD. Each row names its source. Where a manual is silent, this page is too. Compiled 2026-10-26. Found a mistake? Mail hackers@lists.solnix.io.