How to Chat on LAN Using Telnet

Enable the Talk service only on computers protected from the Internet by a firewall.

Use the Telnet command line terminal program to open LAN (Local Area Network) text messaging or "chat" sessions with other users on the network to converse while working if you and other users on the LAN frequently use virtual terminal sessions. Note that Telnet sends messages in clear text so messages are viewable when captured on the network. Open LAN "chat" sessions with others using the Talk command while in a Telnet virtual terminal session.

Things You'll Need

• Microsoft Windows 7 computer with the Telnet client enabled
• Linux/Unix computer with the Telnet service enabled and Talk service and client installed
• IP address of the Linux/Unix computer
• Name of a user account on the Linux/Unix computer with which you want to "chat"
• Credentials of an account that has access to the Linux/Unix computer
• Hostname of the Linux/Unix computer

Instructions

1. Click the "Start" button on the Windows 7 computer desktop taskbar, and click the "Search" box. Type "cmd" in the "Search" box, and tap the "Enter" key. The command line terminal window will appear.

2. Enter "telnet x.x.x.x" at the command prompt except replace the "x.x.x.x" with the IP address of the Linux/Unix computer that has the Talk service enabled. Press the "Enter" key.

3. Type the user name of an account that has permissions to open a Telnet session with the Linux/Unix computer on the command line if prompted, and press the "Enter" key. Enter the password of the account if prompted, and tap the "Enter" key.

4. Enter "talk user_account@linux_unix.net" on the command line except replace the "user_account" with the account name of the user account with which you want to "chat," and replace "linux_unix.net" with the hostname of the Linux/Unix computer. Press the "Enter" key.

5. Wait for the computer screen to split in half horizontally which signifies that the other party has accepted your "chat" invitation. Type a message at the command prompt, and press the "Enter" key to start the conversation.

6. Press the "CTRL" and "C" keys at the same time to leave the "chat" session.

References

• Studio Deluxe International: Telnet
• BrandX: Using Unix Talk
• BrandX: Telnet Basic Manual

Resources

• The Linux Foundation: Netkit