Traditional Locations
In MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows, the temporary directory is set by the environment variable TEMP. Originally, the default was c:\Temp, then %Windows%\Temp. In the XP era, the temporary directory was set per-user as Local Settings\Temp, although still user-relocatable. For Windows Vista, 7 & 8 the temp location has moved again to within the AppData section of the User Profile typically C:\Users\User Name\AppData\Local\Temp. In all versions of Windows the temp location can be accessed, for example in Explorer, Run... boxes and in application's internal code by using %temp%, as with other environmental variables it is synonymous with the full path.
In Unix and Linux, the global temporary directories are /tmp and /var/tmp. Web browsers periodically write data to the tmp directory during page views and downloads. Typically, /var/tmp is for persistent files (as it may be preserved over reboots), and /tmp is for more temporary files. See Filesystem Hierarchy Standard. In addition, a user can set their TMPDIR environment variable to point to a preferred directory (where the creation and modification of files is allowed).
Read more about this topic: Temporary Folder
Famous quotes containing the word traditional:
“The traditional American husband and father had the responsibilities—and the privileges—of playing the role of primary provider. Sharing that role is not easy. To yield exclusive access to the role is to surrender some of the potential for fulfilling the hero fantasy—a fantasy that appeals to us all. The loss is far from trivial.”
—Faye J. Crosby (20th century)