How to send an email via mutt in a bash script on a recurring basis with crontab.

HowTo.md

How to send an email via mutt in a bash script on a recurring basis with crontab.

This was suprisingly difficult for me, so I'm making this quick guide so I have it handy in the future.

Steps

1. Set up mutt using this guide
2. Create your bash script that will be sending emails using mutt.
3. When creating your bash script, add the following line to your mutt command:

   mutt -F /home/user/.muttrc ...

   Where /home/user/ is the path to your own configured .muttrc file in your home folder.
4. Add your crontab:

   sudo crontab -e

   Using the following syntax:

   * * * * * /bin/bash /path/to/your/bash/script.bash >> /desired/path/to/logs/crontab_log.log 2>&1

5. Reboot your machine.
6. Check your crontab_log.log file to ensure everything went alright.

Resources

• Crontab Syntax
  • Crontab Guru
  • Crontab Generator
• The StackOverflow answer that saved my bacon