ATD(8)

📦
version 3.2.5 · 7 versions
, in debian bookworm, debian trixie, ubuntu jammy, ubuntu noble, ubuntu questing, ubuntu resolute, ubuntu stonking

💖 ATD(8) — like, the manual page for atd, bestie 💖

System Manager's Manual ✨ so you know it's giving official. This is the atd page, section 8, and we're gonna get you fluent, no cap. 🫶

🌸 NAME 🌸

atd — run jobs queued for later execution. She's the girl who actually shows up and does the thing later. ⏰

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

atd [-l load_avg] [-b batch_interval] [-d] [-f] [-s]

Look at her, five little flags, all optional, all iconic. 💅

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

atd runs the jobs that were queued up by at(1). That's it. That's the whole job description. She's the backstage crew for your future self. 🌟

💅 OPTIONS 💅

  • -l — Sets a limiting load factor, bestie. Once the load goes over this number, batch jobs should not be run. It replaces the compile-time choice of 1.5. And if you're on an SMP system with n CPUs, you'll probably want to set this higher than n-1. Do the math, queen. 🧮
  • -b — Sets the minimum interval, in seconds, between the start of two batch jobs. Default is 60. Spacing them out like a good playlist. 🎧
  • -d — Debug mode: prints error messages to standard error instead of using syslog(3). Also, heads up, this option implies -f. Two for one, slay. 🔥
  • -f — Runs atd in the foreground. She's not hiding, she's present. 👑
  • -s — Processes the at/batch queue only once. This is mainly for compatibility with old versions of at — atd -s is equivalent to the old atrun command. Vintage vibe, we love a throwback. 🎀

🚨 WARNING 🚨

Real talk: atd won't work if its spool directory is mounted via NFS — even if no_root_squash is set. Nope. Not happening. Don't try it, bestie. 😭

📂 FILES 📂

  • /var/spool/cron/atjobs — the directory for storing jobs; this should be mode 700, owner daemon. 🔐
  • /var/spool/cron/atspool — the directory for storing output; this should be mode 700, owner daemon. Same energy, different folder. 🗂️
  • /etc/at.allow, /etc/at.deny — these determine who can use the at system. The bouncers at the door. 🚪

👀 SEE ALSO 👀

at(1), at.deny(5), at.allow(5), cron(8), crontab(1), syslog(3). Go read your siblings' pages, iykyk. 📚✨

💀 BUGS 💀

The functionality of atd should be merged into cron(8). That's it, that's the bug report. Somebody said it. 🙈

Okay that's the whole page, you ate that. 💖 This little masterpiece is dated 2009-11-14 and lives in ATD(8), so if you're citing it, that's the receipt. Now go queue something and forget about it, the main character way. ✨🌸🦋

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