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Shell

With signageOS, you can use the Shell tab to run an ad-hoc shell script directly on a single Linux device and review the history of previous executions. It is intended for quick, one-off commands and troubleshooting, where writing the script inline is faster than uploading a reusable Custom Script. Scripts run from the Shell tab are always executed once and are not persistent.

info

Looking for reusable, versioned scripts?​

Use Custom Scripts when you want to upload a script once and run it repeatedly across many devices, via Box, policies, or the REST API.

Availability​

The Shell tab is available when:

  • The device is a Linux device.
  • Your organization has the Custom Scripts feature enabled.
  • Your user role has permission to read and execute scripts on the device.

If the Custom Scripts feature is disabled for the device, the tab is shown as locked. For a comparison of Custom Scripts, Plugins, and Runners, see Using Custom Scripts, Plugins, and Runners.

Running a script​

  1. Open the device detail page for the Linux device you want to manage.
  2. Open the Shell tab.
  3. Enter your script in the editor. The editor uses the device's shell runtime.
  4. Click Execute script to run it on the device.
warning

Always thoroughly test your script in a local environment before running it on a remote device. Improper or untested scripts can cause significant issues to the device.

Execution history​

Below the editor, the Shell tab lists previous executions for the device, including the script that was run, when it started and finished, and any output it returned. Use the refresh action to load the latest results.