{"categories":[{"label":"Utilities","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/utilities/4"}],"enrichment":{"capability":"Parses crontab schedule expressions and calculates the delay in seconds until the next scheduled execution time.","skillfed_tags":["scheduling","cron-parser","time-calculation"],"use_cases":["Calculate next execution time for a cron job in a Python scheduler or task queue","Validate and parse user-supplied crontab expressions in a web application","Determine when a recurring background task should run next given a cron schedule","Build a cron-based job runner that needs to compute delays between executions","Convert crontab syntax to human-readable descriptions of when tasks will run"],"what_it_does":"This package provides a Python interface to parse standard crontab schedule syntax and compute when a scheduled task should next run. It accepts 5\u20137 field crontab entries (seconds, minutes, hours, day of month, month, day of week, year) and supports common cron syntax including wildcards, ranges, step values, lists, and day/month abbreviations. It also recognizes convenience aliases like @hourly and @daily.\n\nThe main use case is determining the delay in seconds from the current time (or a specified datetime) until the next scheduled execution. The package has no runtime dependencies, making it lightweight for embedding in scheduling systems or task runners that need to calculate cron-based execution times without external service calls.","worth_installing":"Yes, with conditions. The package is stable, has no dependencies, and solves a specific problem well for applications that need to parse and schedule tasks using standard cron syntax. However, the aging maintenance status (no active development in over a year) and high install friction (source distribution) mean you should verify compatibility with your target Python version before relying on it for new projects. If you need active maintenance or additional scheduling features, consider alternatives."},"id":"crontab","links":{"html":"https://skillfed.io/packages/crontab","md":"https://skillfed.io/packages/crontab.md","pypi":"https://pypi.org/project/crontab/"},"maintenance":{"status":"aging"},"meta":{"latest_release":"2025-07-09","license_spdx":null,"license_treatment":"copyleft","name":"crontab","python_support":"unspecified","summary":"Parse and use crontab schedules in Python"},"popularity":{"monthly_downloads":1294223,"position":4095,"tier":"top_5000"},"security":{"n_vulnerabilities":0},"version":"1.0.5"}