skulker

PURPOSE

     Cleans up file systems by removing unwanted files.

SYNOPSIS
   skulker

DESCRIPTION

     Warning:  Because  this command file runs  with superuser
     authority and  its whole purpose  is to remove  files, it
     has  the   potential  for  unexpected   results.   Before
     installing a new skulker, test  any additions to its file
     removal criteria  by running it manually  using the xargs
     -p command.  After you have verified that the new skulker
     removes only the files you  want removed, you can install
     it.

     The skulker command  is a shell command  file for period-
     ically  purging  obsolete  or unneeded  files  from  file
     systems.   Candidate files  include those  in /tmp,  .bak
     files older than a specified  age, and files named a.out,
     core, or ed.hup.

     The skulker  command is normally invoked  daily, often as
     part of an  accounting procedure run by  cron during off-
     peak periods.  Individual sites  should modify skulker to
     suit local needs following the patterns shown in the dis-
     tributed version.   Local users  should be made  aware of
     the criteria for automatic file removal.

     The find  and xargs commands form  a powerful combination
     for use in skulker.  Most  file selection criteria can be
     expressed  conveniently   with  find   expressions.   The
     resulting file  list, generated  with the -print  flag of
     the find command, can then be segmented and inserted into
     rm commands using xargs to reduce the overhead that would
     result if each file were deleted with a separate command.

RELATED INFORMATION

     The  following  commands:   "cron,"  "find,"  "rm,"  and
     "xargs."