acctdisk(8) System Manager's Manual acctdisk(8)
NAME
acctdisk, acctdusg - Perform disk-usage accounting
SYNOPSIS
acctdisk
acctdusg [-u file] [-p file]
FLAGS
Searches file as the alternate file for login names and numbers, instead of searching /etc/passwd. Writes records of file names for which
it does not charge into file.
DESCRIPTION
Normally the acctdisk and acctdusg commands are called from the dodisk shell procedure to do disk-usage accounting. The dodisk shell proce-
dure is invoked when the cron daemon executes commands in the /usr/spool/cron/crontabs/[filename] file. In the usual case, the output of
the diskusg command is the redirected input to the acctdisk command. When a more thorough, but slower, version of disk accounting is
needed, specify the -o flag with the dodisk command. This is not normally done in the /usr/spool/cron/crontabs/[filename] file. When the
-o flag is used, the acctdusg command replaces the diskusg command.
acctdisk
Normally, the acctdisk command reads a temporary output file produced by the diskusg or the acctdusg command from standard input, converts
each record into a total disk-accounting record, and writes it to standard output. These records are merged with other accounting records
with the acctmerg command to produce a daily accounting report.
acctdusg
The acctdusg command is called when the -o flag is used with the dodisk command. This produces a more thorough, but slower, version of
disk-accounting records. Otherwise, the dodisk shell procedure invokes the diskusg command.
The acctdusg command reads a list of files from standard input (usually piped from a find / -print command), computes the number of disk
blocks (including indirect blocks) allocated to each file divided by the number of hard links then writes an individual record for each
user to standard output.
To find the user who is charged for the file, compare each file pathname with the login directories of the users. The user who has the
longest pathname component match is charged for the file. Therefore, the relevant information for charging users is not ownership of a file
but the directory where it is stored.
The acctdusg command searches the /etc/passwd file, or the alternate password file specified with the -p flag, for login names, numbers and
login directories. Each output record has the following format:
uid login #blocks
EXAMPLES
To start normal disk-accounting procedures, add a line similar to the following to the /usr/spool/cron/crontabs/[filename] file:
0 2 * * 4 /usr/sbin/acct/dodisk
The foregoing example is a typical, periodically invoked command that the cron daemon reads and executes. The period is expressed by
a 6-field entry having the format: mm hh daymon monyr wkday cmd. For any field requiring digits, numbers are integers.
These six fields have the following significance: Purpose Time variable that has the value 0 through 59 expressing minutes past the
hour. Time variable for the hour of the day in 24-hour clock notation. Time variable for the day of the month. Time variable for
month of the year. Time variable for the day or days of the week, where 0 is Sunday and inclusive days are separated with a hyphen
(-). Command the cron daemon must execute.
Whenever you write any of the time variables described in the foregoing table, an unspecified value must be noted with an * (aster-
isk) to define an empty field.
In the foregoing example, the dodisk shell procedure runs at 02:00 hours (2) every Thursday (4). The dodisk shell procedure calls
the acctdusg command to redirect its input to a temporary file and then calls the acctdisk shell procedure to redirect disk-usage
records from the temporary file as input to a /var/adm/acct/nite/[filename] file as output. The file stored in the
/var/adm/acct/nite subdirectory is a permanent binary record of disk usage for the specified period. To initiate a slower, more
thorough disk-accounting procedure, add a line similar to the following to the /usr/spool/cron/crontabs/[filename] file.
0 2 * * 0-4 /usr/sbin/acct/dodisk -o
The dodisk shell procedure calls the acctdusg command and the acctdisk command to write disk-usage records to the
/var/adm/acct/nite/[filename] file just as in the previous example. The dodisk procedure runs at 2 a.m. every day (0-6) including
Sunday.
FILES
Specifies the command path. Specifies the command path. User database file. The active login/logout database file. Accounting header
files that define formats for writing accounting files.
RELATED INFORMATION
Commands: acct(8), acctmerg(8), cron(8), diskusg(8), dodisk(8), runacct(8)
Functions: acct(2) delim off
acctdisk(8)