chronic

Run command silently unless it fails

$ chronic [command]

$ chronic -v [command]

$ chronic -e [command]

$ chronic -ve [command]

$ 0 1 * * * chronic backup

chronic [options] command

chronic runs a command quietly, showing output only if the command fails (non-zero exit or crash). Part of moreutils. Ideal for cron jobs where you want verbose commands but silent success.

-v

Verbose mode: distinguish stdout/stderr, report return value

Stderr triggering: show output if stderr is non-empty

0

Command succeeded with no stderr (in -e mode)

Command failed

Command succeeded but produced stderr (in -e mode)

- Success (exit 0): output discarded
- Failure (exit != 0): output displayed
- With -e: stderr output triggers display even on success

Part of moreutils package. Better than redirecting to /dev/null because you still see errors.

moreutils(1), cron(8), sponge(1)