Where Are Cron Jobs Stored on Linux?
Per user crontabs under /var/spool/cron plus system /etc/cron.d, cron.hourly and friends.
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User cron jobs live as per user files under /var/spool/cron/crontabs (Debian family) while system jobs split across /etc/crontab, cron.d and the hourly/daily/weekly/monthly dirs.
Edit with crontab -e, never by hand in the spool. The daemon notices spool changes, but syntax checkers in the edit flow catch mistakes first.
Where Linux stores this, by platform
/var/spool/cron/crontabs
One file per user, root owned. RHEL family uses /var/spool/cron instead. System jobs: /etc/crontab and /etc/cron.d with user fields.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my cron job never run?
Missing newline at end of file, wrong PATH inside minimal cron env, or percent signs unescaped in the command. Logs land in syslog or mail.
Where does cron mail job output?
To the local mailbox of the crontab owner (or MAILTO address). Install a local MTA or redirect output to files to see it.
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