TechTip: disable "press space to see more" in Avaya/Nortel 2300/5000/8600 CLI

If you ever need to export something from a switch CLI, like a list of active ports or the output of a "show tech" command to send to the support representative, you know how frustrating it can be having to press the spacebar over an over again to get rid of those "Press Q to quit or Space to continue" type of messages:

Luckily most switch CLI's will offer a way to disable that and just display the entire output of the command, without breaking it up into single screens/pages. Below is how to do it for a couple of common Avaya switches.

Avaya ERS/BayStack 5500

To disable the "----More (q=Quit, space/return=Continue)----" command in the Avaya Enterprise Routing Switch 5xxx (previously known as the Nortel BayStack series), access the CLI via either Telnet or Serial connection and then enter the configuration mode and issue the following command "terminal length 0":

The terminal length command dictates how many lines will be displayed on the screen at a time - and can have a value of 0-132 (the default value is 24). When set to 0 it will display the entire output of the command, without limiting it to a specific number of lines.

This configuration change command is non-persistent, on other words - you will have to do it every time you connect to the Nortel CLI; at the next connection the more facility will be re-enabled.

Avaya ERS 8600

To disable the "more" facility in the Avaya Enterprise Routing Switch 8600 (previously known as the Nortel Passport series), connect to the CLI via either Telnet or Serial connection and then enter the following command:  "config cli more false":

This configuration change is also non-persistent and applies to the current CLI session only.

Nortel WSS 2380

To disable the more facility in the Nortel Wireless Security Switch 2380 (now decommissioned), access the CLI via either Telnet or Serial connection, issue the "enable" command and then issue the following command "terminal length 0":

On the WSS 2380 the setting also applies to the current session only.