关于使用mutt实现特定主题邮件自动回复的技术问询

Absolutely, you can set up an automated reply system using mutt combined with basic shell scripting and email parsing tools. Here's a practical, step-by-step approach to make this work:

Step 1: Prepare your auto-reply template #

First, create a plain text file with your standard reply content. Save it somewhere easy to access, like ~/auto_reply_template.txt:

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out! I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.

Best regards,
Your Name

Step 2: Write the automation script #

Create a bash script (let’s call it ~/auto_reply_handler.sh) that scans your incoming emails, filters for matching subjects, and sends replies via mutt. This script uses formail (from the procmail package) to parse email headers cleanly:

#!/bin/bash

# Configure these paths/settings to match your setup
REPLY_TEMPLATE="$HOME/auto_reply_template.txt"
# Match subjects starting with hello/hi/welcome (case-insensitive)
MATCH_PATTERN="^hello|^hi|^welcome"
MAIL_SPOOL="/var/mail/$USER"  # Adjust if using Maildir instead of mbox
TEMP_DIR="$HOME/.auto_reply_temp"

# Create temp directory and lock file to avoid duplicate runs
mkdir -p "$TEMP_DIR"
LOCK_FILE="$TEMP_DIR/script.lock"
if [ -f "$LOCK_FILE" ]; then
    echo "Script is already running. Exiting."
    exit 1
fi
touch "$LOCK_FILE"

# Process each email in the mail spool
formail -s sh -c '
    # Extract key email headers
    SUBJECT=$(formail -x Subject: <<< "$0")
    SENDER=$(formail -x From: <<< "$0" | sed -E "s/.*<([^>]+)>.*/\1/")
    MESSAGE_ID=$(formail -x Message-ID: <<< "$0" | tr -d "<>")

    # Check if subject matches our keywords (case-insensitive)
    if echo "$SUBJECT" | grep -qiE "'"$MATCH_PATTERN"'"; then
        # Avoid replying to the same email multiple times
        REPLIED_MARKER="$TEMP_DIR/replied_$MESSAGE_ID"
        if [ ! -f "$REPLIED_MARKER" ]; then
            # Send reply with mutt
            mutt -s "Re: $SUBJECT" "$SENDER" < "$REPLY_TEMPLATE"
            # Mark this email as replied to
            touch "$REPLIED_MARKER"
            echo "Sent auto-reply to $SENDER (Subject: $SUBJECT)" >> "$TEMP_DIR/reply_log.txt"
        fi
    fi
' < "$MAIL_SPOOL"

# Clean up lock file
rm "$LOCK_FILE"

Step 3: Make the script executable and test it #

Run these commands to make the script usable and test it manually:

chmod +x ~/auto_reply_handler.sh
~/auto_reply_handler.sh

Check the log file at ~/.auto_reply_temp/reply_log.txt to confirm it worked.

Step 4: Set up periodic checks with cron #

To make this run automatically, add a cron job to execute the script at regular intervals (e.g., every 5 minutes):

1. Open your crontab editor: crontab -e
2. Add this line (replace your_username with your actual username):

*/5 * * * * /home/your_username/auto_reply_handler.sh >> /home/your_username/auto_reply_cron_log.txt 2>&1

3. Save and exit the editor. The cron job will now run every 5 minutes.

Important Notes: #

• Dependencies: Install required tools if you don’t have them:
  On Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt install mutt procmail
  On RHEL/CentOS: sudo dnf install mutt procmail
• Maildir Adjustment: If you use Maildir instead of mbox, replace the MAIL_SPOOL line with a loop through ~/Maildir/new/* files instead of reading from /var/mail/$USER.
• Loop Prevention: The script uses message IDs to avoid replying to the same email multiple times, which prevents infinite loops if your auto-reply gets sent back to you.

备注：内容来源于stack exchange，提问作者Damien