Synopsis
tty [-s]
Description
The tty utility writes the name of the terminal attached to standard input to standard output. The name that is written is the string returned by ttyname(3). If the standard input is not a terminal, the message “not a tty” is written. The options are as follows:
-s: Do not write the terminal name; only the exit status is affected when this option is specified. The -s option is deprecated in favor of the “test -t 0” command.
Exit Status
The tty utility exits 0 if the standard input is a terminal, 1 if the standard input is not a terminal, and >1 if an error occurs.
See Also
test(1), ttyname(3)
Standards
The tty utility is expected to be IEEE Std 1003.2 (“POSIX.2”) compatible.
History
A tty command appeared in Version 1 AT&T UNIX.
macOS 26.4 June 6, 1993 macOS 26.4