A command shell is the Synchronet module that draws the BBS's menus and prompts and decides what each key you press does. Every Synchronet user runs a command shell once they've logged on; the shell determines the entire post-logon look-and-feel.
This page is the user-facing index of shells. For the sysop / configuration perspective, see command_shell.
default.js) — emulates the Synchronet v1 user interface; the default for most BBSessimple.bin) — simplified interface for beginnerswwiv.bin)pcboard.bin)wildcat.bin)major.bin)renegade.bin)obv-2.bin)lbshell.js)sdos.bin)
A BBS may also run a third-party or custom shell that isn't listed here. Ask your sysop, or check shell.bin / shell.js in their distribution.
If the BBS makes more than one shell available to you, you can pick which shell to use from the User Settings menu. That menu is itself a loadable module (see User Settings), not part of the shell — so you reach it via whatever key your current shell binds to it. In Classic, that's D from the Main prompt. The BBS remembers your choice across sessions.
If only one shell is available — or if your account is restricted to a specific shell — you won't see a chooser.
Main: and File: prompts and the standard Synchronet menus.DIR, CD MAIL, etc.Some things don't change no matter which shell you're using, because Synchronet itself (or a separate loadable module) handles them rather than the shell: