title: Should linux cron jobs be specified with an "&" to indicate to run in background?
body: <p>In a crontab file, should commands be specified with a trailing "&amp;", or will the command run in the background anyway?</p>
  
  <p>I have:</p>
  
  <pre><code>*/20 * * * * /home/me/monitor/check.sh /home/me/monitor/check.properties  &gt;&gt; /home/me/monitor/check.log 2&gt;&amp;1 &amp;
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>I've seen contradictory answers to this question in various places. Some say no need to put an "&amp;", others that without the ampersand cron waits for output from the command, even though all output is redirected.</p>