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How to run a script when your computer is idle

 
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Top Forums UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers How to run a script when your computer is idle
# 1  
Old 03-19-2005
MySQL How to run a script when your computer is idle
I am trying to run a script that I made when my computer is idle. How do I go about doing this.

Thanks Smilie
This User Gave Thanks to rehansaeed For This Post:
# 2  
Old 03-19-2005
Cron
Go to a shell type in man cron

For everyone else's benefit here is the description:

cron starts a process that executes commands at specified
dates and times.

You can specify regularly scheduled commands to cron accord-
ing to instructions found in crontab files in the directory
/var/spool/cron/crontabs. Users can submit their own crontab
file using the crontab(1) command. Commands which are to be
executed only once can be submitted using the at(1) command.

cron only examines crontab or at command files during its
own process initialization phase and when the crontab or at
command is run. This reduces the overhead of checking for
new or changed files at regularly scheduled intervals.

As cron never exits, it should be executed only once. This
is done routinely by way of the svc:/system/cron:default
service. The file /etc/cron.d/FIFO file is used as a lock
file to prevent the execution of more than one instance of
cron.

cron captures the output of the job's stdout and stderr
streams, and, if it is not empty, mails the output to the
user. If the job does not produce output, no mail is sent to
the user. An exception is if the job is an at(1) job and the
-m option was specified when the job was submitted.

cron and at jobs are not executed if your account is locked.
Jobs and processses execute. The shadow(4) file defines
which accounts are not locked and will have their jobs and
processes executed.

Setting cron Jobs Across Timezones
The timezone of the cron daemon sets the system-wide
timezone for cron entries. This, in turn, is by set by
default system-wide using /etc/default/init.

If some form of daylight savings or summer/winter time is in
effect, then jobs scheduled during the switchover period
could be executed once, twice, or not at all.

Setting cron Defaults
To keep a log of all actions taken by cron, you must specify
CRONLOG=YES in the /etc/default/cron file. If you specify
CRONLOG=NO, no logging is done. Keeping the log is a user
configurable option since cron usually creates huge log

SunOS 5.10 Last change: 5 Aug 2004 1
# 3  
Old 03-20-2005
Also have a look at the batch command if you're just submitting the odd job here and there....

Quote:
Originally Posted by man batch
Code:
batch   Executes commands when system load levels permit.  In other
        words, when the load average drops below 1.5, or the value speci-
        fied in the invocation of cron(8).

Cheers
ZB
# 4  
Old 03-20-2005
Thanks
Thanks everyone for the help. Its pretty obvious but im new to unix.
# 5  
Old 03-20-2005
You have to learn some how
That's fine, thats the whole point of community.
 
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