etccronhourly

etccronhourly refers to the /etc/cron.hourly directory on many Unix-like systems. This directory is used to store executable scripts that the system cron daemon runs automatically once per hour. The scripts are intended for hourly maintenance tasks, such as log rotation, temporary file cleanup, or other routine housekeeping.

How it runs: In traditional cron setups, an entry in /etc/crontab or a file in /etc/cron.d triggers the run-parts utility to execute all regular files in /etc/cron.hourly every hour. A common configuration runs run-parts at roughly the top of each hour (often at minute 59). Any files that are not regular executables are ignored by run-parts, and the order of execution is typically alphabetical.

Writing scripts for /etc/cron.hourly: Place an executable script with a proper shebang at the top, for example #!/bin/sh or #!/usr/bin/env python3. The scripts should be self-contained and robust to partial failures, and it is advisable to log output to syslog or a dedicated log file. Ensure the script has appropriate permissions and ownership (typically owned by root). Keep scripts idempotent where possible, since a missed or repeated run may occur.

Security and portability: Since these scripts may run with elevated privileges, they should be simple, auditable, and free of sensitive hard-coded data. Test scripts in non-production environments and minimize dependencies on user-specific environments. Some systems use different schedulers, such as systemd timers, and may not rely on /etc/cron.hourly, but the directory convention remains a common compatibility point across many distributions.