Managing time-triggered events with Zeit
Timetable
© Photo by Matthew Smith on Unsplash
Zeit offers a graphic front end for the crontab and at tools, making it easier to manage the time-controlled execution of programs, alarms, and timers.
When it comes to managing the time-controlled execution of programs, you can use the entries in the /etc/crontab file (crontab) for repetitive tasks scheduled at regular intervals, or you can use the at command for a one-time action.
While at uses a kind of order book that stores the commands to be executed at a scheduled time, cron works somewhat differently. The crontab contains the entries for the whole system, while the files in /var/spool/cron/crontabs/ contain user-specific entries. Each line in the crontab fully describes a single job. Care must be taken when specifying the jobs because of the entry format's fairly arcane syntax. You can learn this syntax, but it is by no means a trivial task. If you have an LPIC-1 certificate, you will be familiar with the entry format.
Despite care and attention, you may find out that jobs fail to start or are executed at the wrong time. A graphical user interface (GUI) can help reduce errors, even for experienced users. However, several earlier attempts at a suitable GUI for time-controlled calls (e.g., KCron, Kcrontab, CroMagnon, Gnome Schedule [1], Gnome Task Scheduler [2], and VCron) have fallen short with development coming to a standstill.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
openSUSE Joins End of 10
openSUSE has decided to not only join the End of 10 movement but it also will no longer support the Deepin Desktop Environment.
-
New Version of Flatpak Released
Flatpak 1.16.1 is now available as the latest, stable version with various improvements.
-
IBM Announces Powerhouse Linux Server
IBM has unleashed a seriously powerful Linux server with the LinuxONE Emperor 5.
-
Plasma Ends LTS Releases
The KDE Plasma development team is doing away with the LTS releases for a good reason.
-
Arch Linux Available for Windows Subsystem for Linux
If you've ever wanted to use a rolling release distribution with WSL, now's your chance.
-
System76 Releases COSMIC Alpha 7
With scores of bug fixes and a really cool workspaces feature, COSMIC is looking to soon migrate from alpha to beta.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 6.0 Available for Installation
The latest release of OpenMandriva has arrived with a new kernel, an updated Plasma desktop, and a server edition.
-
TrueNAS 25.04 Arrives with Thousands of Changes
One of the most popular Linux-based NAS solutions has rolled out the latest edition, based on Ubuntu 25.04.
-
Fedora 42 Available with Two New Spins
The latest release from the Fedora Project includes the usual updates, a new kernel, an official KDE Plasma spin, and a new System76 spin.
-
So Long, ArcoLinux
The ArcoLinux distribution is the latest Linux distribution to shut down.