Inspect the body of a queued Exim message
Build a paste-ready command, then review its compatibility and effects before running it.
exim -Mvb <message-id>Complete required fields to copy the generated command.
read-onlyno known side effects Compatibility
LinuxVerified for Linux using posix, bash, zsh syntax.
Operational knowledgereview due 2027-01-19
Requirementseximexim must be installed and available on PATH.
Version supportexim Current supported releasesVerified for linux using posix, bash, zsh syntax; consult compatibility notes for platform-specific differences.
Expected signalsThe nightly backup completed successfully.Representative successful output; values vary with the selected target and system state.
Known errorsexim: command not foundexim is missing or is not available on PATH.
Verifyexim -Mvb {{messageId}}The output matches the expected target and exits without an error.Rollback noteNot required: this command is read-only and does not change system state.
Command breakdown
01eximExim executableStarts Exim’s command-line interface.
02MMessage operationSelects an administrative operation on an existing queued message.
03vViewRequests a read-only view of the selected message data.
04bBodyChooses the message body as the content to display.
05<message-id>Queue identifierReplace this placeholder with the Exim ID of the queued message.
The letters M, v, and b form the single Exim option -Mvb.
Example input
exim -Mvb 1tC7Kg-0003Yp-NC
Example output
The nightly backup completed successfully.
Files: 18,420
Duration: 00:18:32
Illustrative output — exact values vary by system and data.
Runbooks
Official sources