Cron Scheduler Skill

Cron Scheduler Tool

Schedule recurring tasks using cron expressions.

How It Works

This skill provides instructions for the Cron Scheduler tool node. Connect the Cron Scheduler node to Zeenie's input-tools handle or use as a workflow trigger.

cron_scheduler Tool

Create recurring schedules using cron expressions.

Schema Fields

Cron Expression Format

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* * * * *
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ │ │ └── Day of week (0-7, Sun=0 or 7)
│ │ │ └──── Month (1-12)
│ │ └────── Day of month (1-31)
│ └──────── Hour (0-23)
└────────── Minute (0-59)

Special Characters

Common Patterns

Examples

Every day at 9 AM:

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{
  "expression": "0 9 * * *",
  "timezone": "America/New_York"
}

Every 30 minutes:

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{
  "expression": "*/30 * * * *"
}

Weekdays at 6 PM:

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{
  "expression": "0 18 * * 1-5",
  "timezone": "Europe/London"
}

Every Monday at 10 AM:

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{
  "expression": "0 10 * * 1",
  "timezone": "Asia/Tokyo"
}

First day of each month:

jsonCopy code
{
  "expression": "0 0 1 * *"
}

Response Format

Schedule created:

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{
  "success": true,
  "message": "Cron schedule created",
  "expression": "0 9 * * *",
  "timezone": "America/New_York",
  "next_run": "2025-01-31T09:00:00-05:00",
  "description": "At 09:00 AM, every day"
}

Schedule triggered:

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{
  "success": true,
  "triggered": true,
  "message": "Cron schedule triggered",
  "expression": "0 9 * * *",
  "triggered_at": "2025-01-30T09:00:00Z"
}

Error Response

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{
  "error": "Invalid cron expression: too few fields"
}

Timezone Reference

Use Cases

Common Workflows

Daily notification

1. Set cron for desired time (e.g., 0 9 * * *)
2. Cron triggers → workflow runs
3. Send notification to user

Scheduled data sync

1. Set cron for sync interval (e.g., 0 * * * *)
2. Cron triggers → fetch data
3. Process and store data

Weekly report

1. Set cron for weekly (e.g., 0 10 * * 1)
2. Cron triggers → generate report
3. Send report via email/WhatsApp

Workflow-Based Scheduling

In this system, scheduling works through:

1. Trigger Node: Use Cron Scheduler as workflow start
2. Deployment: Deploy workflow to activate schedule
3. Cancellation: Undeploy workflow to stop schedule

Each trigger creates independent workflow runs.

Best Practices

1. Use UTC for global: Avoid timezone confusion
2. Consider load: Don't schedule many jobs at :00
3. Stagger jobs: Use :05, :10 instead of all at :00
4. Test expressions: Verify with online cron tools
5. Document schedules: Keep track of what runs when

Limitations

• Requires workflow deployment to activate
• Cannot schedule past events
• Minimum granularity is 1 minute
• Complex conditions need multiple schedules

Setup Requirements

1. Connect the Cron Scheduler node to Zeenie's input-tools handle
2. Or use as workflow trigger (first node)
3. Deploy workflow to activate the schedule
4. Undeploy to cancel the schedule