.TH GETACTIVE 1 "1 September 1985"
.UC 4
.SH NAME
getactive \- retrieve the active file from the remote news server
.SH SYNOPSIS
.B /usr/local/lib/rn/getactive filename
.SH DESCRIPTION
.I Getactive
retrieves the newsgroup ``active file'' (which contains
the list of all known newsgroups and their high/low message
numbers) from the news server on a remote machine and
places it in
.I filename.
.PP
The normal use is in support of shell scripts (such as
.I newsgroups
or
.IR newsetup )
which have been taken from existing software, such
as
.I rn.
When used, the file the active file is retrieved into is
usually something like
.IR /tmp/active.$$ ,
and should be deleted before the shell script exits.
.SH BUGS
The pathname shown in the synopsis is system-specific
and will depend on how you install
.I rn.
.SH AUTHOR
Phil Lapsley