Important: The content on this page is not complete. The community is actively encouraged to add to, edit, and improve this document. Installation and configuration instructions are documented for Release Candidate 2.0.0.

Using the Scheduler

The Scheduler allows you to create, update, delete, run, suspend, and resume one or more schedules, (private and public*), in the BI Platform. In addition, you can suspend and resume the Scheduler itself. In the context of the BI platform, a schedule is a time (or group of times) associated with an action sequence (or group of action sequences). If you are unfamiliar with action sequences, see Understanding Action Sequences in the Wiki.) In many instances, the output of an action sequence associated with a public schedule is a report; for example, a sales report to which a manager or salesperson can subscribe. As the administrator, the schedule (or schedules) you designate determines when the Scheduler allows the action sequence to run. Regular schedules are ad hoc, non-subscription schedules, which are associated with one action sequence only.

*Note:  Public Schedules were formerly called, "subscription schedules;" private schedules were formerly called, "regular schedules."  To see an example of a regular schedule in the BI Platform, go to the Burst Using Action Sequence Document.

In addition to associating a time (or group of times in the case of a repeating schedule) with an action sequence (or group of action sequences), the public schedule is also associated with a user's My Workspace. When an action sequence runs on its defined schedule, the output of the action sequence (typically a report) is archived in the My Workspace of the user(s) who have subscribed to that action sequence. This allows the subscribers to view the output of the action sequence (the report) at any time following its execution. (For more information about subscriptions and My Workspace see User Subscriptions).

Why not allow BI Platform users to create schedules whenever they want? Allowing that much flexibility may, among other things, overload servers. In most instances, you know when it is most sensible to schedule an action sequence to run; for example, after all stores upload their sales figures. In other instances, sales data may not change for a week or month, so reporting hourly would not make sense. You, or a solution developer, can define as many schedules as needed for a specific action sequence. Users are allowed to choose from schedules that make sense to them and you can schedule the run to occur at a time of minimal load.

Entering Schedules in the Schedule Creator Dialog Box

Enter schedules associated with your action sequences in the Schedule Creator dialog box. The Schedule Creator makes it easy for you to enter schedules without having to learn the arcane syntax of Cron expressions; however, it provides you with the option to enter Cron expressions if that is your preference.

Follow the instructions below to use the Schedule Creator:

1. In the main page of the Pentaho Open Admin Console, click Administration.
    
2. Click the Scheduler tab.
    
3. In the Scheduler, click first icon on the left to open the Scheduler Creator dialog box.
    
4. Under Schedule, enter a Name for the schedule, for example, Monthly Sales.
    
5. Enter a Group associated with the schedule, for example, Sales Schedules.
    
6. Enter a short Description of the schedule. for example, "Schedule runs on the first of each month, schedule runs on Monday of each week."
    
7. Select a Recurrence Type. You can schedule the action sequence to run once at a particular date and time only, or have it recur in seconds, minutes, hours, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or recur based on a Cron string. The options in the Recurrence Editor change depending on the type of recurrence you select.
    
8. Click OK.

   Note: You can use the Schedule Creator to enter a Cron expression manually by selecting Cron from the Recurrence Type list. See CRON Expressions in Detail to learn more about Cron expressions.

Adding the Action Sequences

After you add your schedules, you must associate them with action sequences. Follow the instructions below to enter the paths to the action sequences:

1. Under Scheduled Action, enter the path to each action sequence separated by commas.
    
2. Click OK.
    

Examining the List of Schedules

As you create new schedules, the schedules appear in a list box. By examining the list, you can identify the Name and Group associated with each schedule. You can also determine the status (State) of each schedule and read a brief description of the schedule. In addition, you can determine when the schedule was first run (Fire Time - Last/Next) and when it will run again. The controls on the top corners of the Scheduler page allow you to perform tasks such as: