/linux-cron-manager

/linux-cron-manager

Schedule any Linux task with cron — generates a /etc/cron.d/ entry and a production-ready wrapper script with locking, logging, and failure alerting.

Usage

/linux-cron-manager <schedule and task description>

Examples

/linux-cron-manager run /opt/backup.sh every day at 2 AM as root
/linux-cron-manager run /opt/myapp/cleanup.py every 15 minutes as appuser
/linux-cron-manager send a disk usage report by email every Monday at 8 AM
/linux-cron-manager my cron job isn't running — debug it
/linux-cron-manager convert to systemd timer: 0 3 * * * appuser /opt/sync.sh
/linux-cron-manager what cron syntax means "every 10 minutes, Mon–Fri, 9–18h"?
/linux-cron-manager run database backup every 6 hours, skip if previous run is still active

Generates

cron/
  <name>.cron        ← /etc/cron.d/ entry with SHELL, PATH, MAILTO
  <name>-wrapper.sh  ← wrapper: flock locking, timestamped logging, failure trap

Behavior

If the schedule, command, and user are clear, generate immediately. If any of those are missing, ask one question.

Schedule mode — new cron job:

1. Generate the /etc/cron.d/ file (with SHELL, PATH, MAILTO headers)
2. Generate the wrapper script: flock locking to prevent overlapping runs, timestamped log_info/log_error helpers, logrotate-compatible log path, trap on failure
3. Write both files to ./cron/
4. Print: install commands (cp + chmod), verify command (grep -l in cron.d), manual test command

Debug mode — not running / isn't working / debug in the description: Output the step-by-step cron debugging checklist: check cron daemon, /var/log/cron, PATH issues, environment differences, file permissions.

Convert mode — convert to systemd timer in the description: Output the equivalent .service + .timer pair — or suggest /linux-systemd-manager for a full timer unit with sandboxing.

Suggests: /linux-systemd-manager when the job needs resource limits, restart policies, or dependency ordering.

$ARGUMENTS