how to test a crontab code example

Example 1: crontab test

service cron status
service cron stop
service cron start

Example 2: how to test crontab job

#!/bin/bash

# crontest
# See https://github.com/Stabledog/crontest for canonical source.

# Test wrapper for cron tasks.  The suggested use is:
#
#  1. When adding your cron job, use all 5 stars to make it run every minute
#  2. Wrap the command in crontest
#        
#
#  Example:
#
#  $ crontab -e
#     * * * * * /usr/local/bin/crontest $HOME/bin/my-new-script --myparams
#
#  Now, cron will run your job every minute, but crontest will only allow one
#  instance to run at a time.  
#
#  crontest always wraps the command in "screen -d -m" if possible, so you can
#  use "screen -x" to attach and interact with the job.   
#
#  If --bashdb is used, the command line will be passed to bashdb.  Thus you
#  can attach with "screen -x" and debug the remaining command in context.
#
#  NOTES:
#   - crontest can be used in other contexts, it doesn't have to be a cron job.
#       Any place where commands are invoked without an interactive terminal and
#       may need to be debugged.
#
#   - crontest writes its own stuff to /tmp/crontest.log
#
#   - If GNU screen isn't available, neither is --bashdb
#

crontestLog=/tmp/crontest.log
lockfile=$(if [[ -d /var/lock ]]; then echo /var/lock/crontest.lock; else echo /tmp/crontest.lock; fi )
useBashdb=false
useScreen=$( if which screen &>/dev/null; then echo true; else echo false; fi )
innerArgs="$@"
screenBin=$(which screen 2>/dev/null)

function errExit {
    echo "[-err-] $@" | tee -a $crontestLog >&2
}

function log {
    echo "[-stat-] $@" >> $crontestLog
}

function parseArgs {
    while [[ ! -z $1 ]]; do
        case $1 in
            --bashdb)
                if ! $useScreen; then
                    errExit "--bashdb invalid in crontest because GNU screen not installed"
                fi
                if ! which bashdb &>/dev/null; then
                    errExit "--bashdb invalid in crontest: no bashdb on the PATH"
                fi

                useBashdb=true
                ;;
            --)
                shift
                innerArgs="$@"
                return 0
                ;;
            *)
                innerArgs="$@"
                return 0
                ;;
        esac
        shift
    done
}

if [[ -z  $sourceMe ]]; then
    # Lock the lockfile (no, we do not wish to follow the standard
    # advice of wrapping this in a subshell!)
    exec 9>$lockfile
    flock -n 9 || exit 1

    # Zap any old log data:
    [[ -f $crontestLog ]] && rm -f $crontestLog

    parseArgs "$@"

    log "crontest starting at $(date)"
    log "Raw command line: $@"
    log "Inner args: $@"
    log "screenBin: $screenBin"
    log "useBashdb: $( if $useBashdb; then echo YES; else echo no; fi )"
    log "useScreen: $( if $useScreen; then echo YES; else echo no; fi )"

    # Were building a command line.
    cmdline=""

    # If screen is available, put the task inside a pseudo-terminal
    # owned by screen.  That allows the developer to do a "screen -x" to
    # interact with the running command:
    if $useScreen; then
        cmdline="$screenBin -D -m "
    fi

    # If bashdb is installed and --bashdb is specified on the command line,
    # pass the command to bashdb.  This allows the developer to do a "screen -x" to
    # interactively debug a bash shell script:
    if $useBashdb; then
        cmdline="$cmdline $(which bashdb) "
    fi

    # Finally, append the target command and params:
    cmdline="$cmdline $innerArgs"

    log "cmdline: $cmdline"


    # And run the whole schlock:
    $cmdline 

    res=$?

    log "Command result: $res"


    echo "[-result-] $(if [[ $res -eq 0 ]]; then echo ok; else echo fail; fi)" >> $crontestLog

    # Release the lock:
    9<&-
fi