What Does Temporary File Mean?
Temporary files, as the name suggests, are files that are created to hold data temporarily while a more permanent option is still in the process of being created. These files are often created for backup purposes by various programs in case the user has not explicitly saved and the computer unexpectedly loses power or crashes.
Techopedia Explains Temporary File
A temporary file is any file created by a program that serves a temporary purpose and is created due to various reasons such as temporary backup, when a program is manipulating data larger than the architecture’s address space capacity or to break up large chunks of data into more manageable pieces, or simply as a dated way of performing inter-process communication. Most temporary files are easily recognizable with their “.tmp” extensions, but this may differ depending on the program that created them.