How to set up scheduled tasks in Plesk

What is a scheduled task?

A scheduled task is like an alarm clock that does a job for you. Every night at 2 a.m. it may clean old files, or send a report, or run a PHP script. On Linux servers, it is also called a cron job. Cron is the Linux tool that runs jobs on a timer.

Scheduled tasks may be limited on some plans. Ask Hostvento support if you do not see the feature.

Steps

1. Log in to Plesk.
2. Click Websites & Domains.
3. Find your domain and click Scheduled Tasks. On some versions, it is under Tools & Settings.
4. Click Add Task.
5. Choose the task type:
   • Run a command: for shell commands.
   • Run a PHP script: for a PHP file in your site.
   • Fetch a URL: opens a web address, like a visitor would.
6. Type the command, script path or URL.
7. Pick when it runs. Use the simple choices such as Daily or Hourly, or fill the time boxes for minute, hour, day and month.
8. Add an email address in the notify box if you want a message after each run.
9. Click OK.

Example

To run a PHP file every day at 3:30 a.m., you could use these time values:

30 3 * * *

The five fields mean minute, hour, day of month, month, and day of week. A star means "every". So this runs at minute 30 of hour 3, every day.

Test the task

1. In the task list, click Run Now next to your task.
2. Check that it did its job, or read the email report.

Warning: a wrong command can delete files. Test with a small job first. Take a backup before you schedule anything that deletes or changes data.

Edit or remove a task

Click the task name to change it. To remove it, tick the box and click Remove.

Need help? Open a support ticket.

Quick recap

• A scheduled task, or cron job, runs a job on a timer.
• Add it under Scheduled Tasks.
• Choose the type, the command and the time.
• Test with Run Now, and back up first.