sleep(C)                        19 June 1992                        sleep(C)


 Name

    sleep - suspend execution for an interval

 Syntax

    sleep time

 Description

    The sleep command suspends execution for time seconds.  It is used to
    execute a command after a certain amount of time as in:

       (sleep 105; command)&

    or to execute a command every so often, as in:

       while true
               do
                       command
                       sleep 37
               done


 See also

    alarm(S), sleep(S)

 Notes

    It is recommended that time be less than 65536 seconds.  If this amount
    is exceeded, time will be arbitrarily set to some value less than 65536
    seconds.

 Standards conformance

    sleep is conformant with:

    AT&T SVID Issue 2;
    and X/Open Portability Guide, Issue 3, 1989.