How to Use Scheduled Tasks to Manage Cloud Desktop Computers on a Timer
Console → Scheduled Tasks
Create a New Scheduled Task
Task name: Identifier for the scheduled task.
Execution period: Can be set to daily/weekly. When editing, this field is converted to a cron expression for more flexible configuration.
Target: Batch select the groups to manage.
Force execute: When not forced, if a group has a machine in Learning Mode, Update Mode, Read-Write Mode, or if any machine is currently downloading, the execution is skipped. When forced, these conditions are ignored and the command is executed regardless.
Command: Restart, shutdown, send message, etc.
After Creation, the Task Uses Cron Rules Automatically When Editing — This Provides Greater Flexibility
Cron Syntax Explanation and Usage
A cron expression consists of 5 (or 6) fields in order: minute, hour, day-of-month, month, day-of-week (and an optional second). The meaning and value range of each field are as follows:
| Position | Field Name | Value Range | Allowed Special Characters | Description & Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Minute | 0–59 | * , - / | The minute within the hour to execute. Example: 30 means the 30th minute of every hour. |
| 2nd | Hour | 0–23 | * , - / | The hour of the day to execute. Example: 14 means 2:00 PM. |
| 3rd | Day of month | 1–31 | * , - / ? L W | The day of the month. Example: 1 for the 1st of every month; 1-5 for the 1st through 5th. |
| 4th | Month | 1–12 or JAN–DEC | * , - / | The month. Example: * for every month; 1,6 for January and June only. |
| 5th | Day of week | 0–7 (0 and 7 both represent Sunday) or SUN–SAT | * , - / ? L # | The day of the week. Example: 1-5 for Monday through Friday; 0 or 7 for Sunday. |
Common Special Characters:
| Character | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
* | Any / Every | * in the minute field means every minute. |
, | List | 1,15,30 means at 1, 15, and 30. |
- | Range | 1-5 means 1 through 5. |
/ | Step | */5 means every 5 units; 0/15 means every 15 units starting from 0. |
? | Unspecified (day/week only) | Only one of day-of-month and day-of-week is usually specified; the other uses ?. |
Usage Examples:
| Cron Expression | Meaning |
|---|---|
0 9 * * * | Execute every day at 9:00 |
0 18 * * 1-5 | Execute at 18:00 every Monday through Friday |
30 8 1 * * | Execute at 8:30 on the 1st of every month |
0 */2 * * * | Execute once every 2 hours on the hour |
0 0 * * 0 | Execute every Sunday at 0:00 |
After successful execution, the last execution time is recorded.
Before a shutdown task (e.g., 22:00), a message-sending task can be added at 21:55 to notify users that all computers will be shut down — please save your personal files.
