Spitfire Command Shell for Synchronet BBS

A Spitfire BBS-inspired command shell for Synchronet BBS, recreating the classic Spitfire look and feel with authentic SF-styled ANSI menus while using the full Synchronet command set underneath.

Features

• Spitfire BBS-styled ANSI menus for all sections including Chat, E-Mail, and QWK
• Full Synchronet command set — nothing removed or dumbed down
• Expert mode toggle (X) suppresses menus system-wide
• Respects sysop loadable module choices (SCFG -> System -> Loadable Modules)
• Linux and Windows compatible
• Drop-in install — no modifications to existing Synchronet files

Sections

Section	Key	Notes
Message	M	Full msg commands including QWK, E-Mail, polls
File	F	Full file transfer commands
Doors	D	Direct pass-through to Synchronet external programs
Chat	C	SF-styled menu
E-Mail/NetMail	E (from Message)	SF-styled menu
QWK	K (from Message)	SF-styled menu
Bulletins	B	Requires bullseye.js
Text Files	G	Synchronet text file section

Requirements

• Synchronet BBS v3.19 or later
• bullseye.js in your exec/ directory (for Bulletins)

Installation

Windows

1. Copy spitfire.js to \sbbs\exec\
2. Create folder \sbbs\text\menu\spitfire\
3. Copy all .msg files to \sbbs\text\menu\spitfire\
4. In SCFG → Command Shells → Add new entry:
   • Name: Spitfire
   • Internal Code: SPITFIRE
5. Recycle the Terminal Server or restart Synchronet

Linux

1. Copy spitfire.js to /sbbs/exec/
2. Create folder /sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/
3. Copy all .msg files to /sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/ (filenames are already lowercase)
4. In SCFG → Command Shells → Add new entry:
   • Name: Spitfire
   • Internal Code: SPITFIRE
5. Recycle the Terminal Server or restart Synchronet

Assigning the Shell

Users can select the Spitfire shell from their user config (Y key), or you can set it as the default for all nodes in SCFG.

Files

File	Destination	Description
spitfire.js	sbbs/exec/	Command shell
main.msg	sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/	Main menu
msg.msg	sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/	Message menu
file.msg	sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/	File menu
chat.msg	sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/	Chat menu
e-mail.msg	sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/	E-Mail/NetMail menu
qwk.msg	sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/	QWK menu
multchat.msg	sbbs/text/menu/spitfire/	Multinode chat menu

Version History

Version	Date	Notes
1.4	2026-05-27	Code review cleanup per Digital Man. Removed unnecessary wrappers and menu_dir manipulations. ASCII-only comments.
1.3	2026-05-27	Added multchat.msg for Spitfire-styled multinode chat. Fixed chat section menu_dir handling.
1.2a	2026-05-27	Bug fixes: menu_dir handling for all sections. Fixed logoff and various section display issues.
1.1	2026-05-26	Rewrote using bbs.menu_dir per Digital Man feedback. All sections now display SF menus including QWK.
1.0	2026-05-26	Initial release

Credits

Developed by Xbit / x-bit.org
Co-authored with Claude Sonnet 4.6
Tested on X-Bit BBS and Unix-Bit BBS
Thanks to Digital Man for bbs.menu_dir guidance

Inspired by the original Spitfire BBS by Buffalo Creek Software.

A big thank you to the sysops and BBS community members who have helped test and provide feedback during development — your input is what makes this better!

See Also

• Synchronet BBS
• Synchronet Wiki - Command Shells
• x-bit.org BBS Network