What should i find in /tmp directory in Etch amd64?

the trooper · 05-26-2008, 04:29 AM

Hello All,
I periodically remove unwanted files form the /tmp directory,pdf's etc.
On checking this directory today i see some files i don't recognize.
The following is the current contents of that directory:

ade@debian:~$ cd /tmp
ade@debian:/tmp$ ls
gconfd-ade ksocket-ade orbit-ade virtual-ade.wOVBip
kde-ade mapping-ade ssh-fXzMlD5057
ade@debian:/tmp$

My question is what of the above should be there and what can be safely removed?

Thanks in advance.
The trooper.

Agrouf · 05-26-2008, 04:35 AM

Hello trooper,
You can safely remove anything in /tmp, but it's better to do that just before shutdown or at boot.
Applications don't rely on the persistance of /tmp (or if they do, they really shouldn't).
Some distros put /tmp in RAM, so it isn't persistant at all.

unSpawn · 05-26-2008, 05:35 AM

Also note there is a utility called 'tmpwatch' that can take are of cleaning out temp dirs.

the trooper · 05-26-2008, 06:36 AM

Thanks for the replies!
Just thought it better to check first.
Regards.
The Trooper.