System

Periodic scripts

Mac OS X includes a tool used for executing maintenance scripts with different periods. The name of this tool is "periodic". The tool periodic runs scripts with three periods (daily,weekly and monthly). The periodic program is called by the daemon cron and runs executable files located in periodic's directories. Please be advised that under certain circumstances the weekly script is known to take up to 15 minutes to complete.

Default daily scripts:

  1. Removing old log files
  2. Removing old temporary files
  3. Cleaning out old system announcements
  4. Read local system status or if available local network system status
  5. Removing scratch and junk files.
  6. Removing scratch fax files
  7. Gathering accounting statistics
  8. Checking subsystem status
    1. Disks
    2. Network
  9. If available running local daily.local script
  10. If available running security

Default weekly scripts:

  1. Rebuilding locate database
  2. Rebuilding whatis database
  3. If available running local weekly.local script

Default monthly script:

  1. Doing login accounting
  2. Rotating fax log files
  3. If available running local monthly.local script

How periodic is the periodic program?

The daily script is usually executed early in the mornings. Weekly maintenance is planned to Sunday mornings and the monthly script at the first day of a new month.