Scheduled Tasks are used to set tasks for execution at certain dates and times within Aptify. This could include sending out scheduled email reminders about a particular appointment or scheduling the expansion of scheduled transactions. At the time that the task is scheduled to occur, the Windows Scheduler triggers a Process Flow Run, which is then executed by the specified Application Server.

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Name

The name of the Scheduled Task; all Scheduled Tasks must have unique names. Note that each Scheduled Task within Aptify corresponds to a scheduled task in the Windows Scheduler on the specified Application Server. The Windows Scheduler is available in the Windows Control Panel.

Job Description

The description of the task being scheduled.

Process Flow (required)

Defines the Process Flow that is run when the Scheduled Task executes. The Process Flow selected in this field determines the list of input maps that are displayed in the Process Flow Input Map tab. This field links to a Process Flows record.

Priority

Indicates the priority of the scheduled task. Possible values are High, Medium, and Low. By default, Medium is selected.

Application Server (required)

Defines the Application Server used for the task. Links to an Application Servers record.

Service (required)

Defines the service used for the task. Links to a Scheduled Task Service record. By default, there is one Scheduled Task Service provided for the Windows Scheduler.

Category (required)

Defines the category for the task. Links to a Scheduled Task Category record.

Last Run Time (read-only)

Displays the date and time at which the task was last executed. This field is updated automatically by the system.

Last Run Status (read-only)

The status of the last run for the task. This field is updated automatically by the system.

Process Flow Input Tab

Fields within the Process Flow Input tab flow down automatically from a Process Flow when a Process Flow is added to the Process Flow field.

Input Property (read-only)

The name of the input property, inherited from the input properties defined on the Process Flow selected in the Process Flow field on the top level of the Scheduled Tasks form.

Default Value (read-only)

If the input property has a default value, it appears in this column.

Required (read-only)

Indicates whether the input property is required. Values are Yes or null.

Source Type

Source Type indicates the method to obtain data to fulfill the input property. The value selected in Source Type drives how the Source field is populated. Standard values are Static Value, Entity Field, SQL Statement, and GE Object.

Source

This field holds the actual source of the data for the Input Map and is dependent on the value chosen in the Source Type field.

• Source Type = Static Value — Source is set to an alphanumeric string which indicates a permanent and static value to fulfill the input property. This string may include field tags, as long as the field name is enclosed in <% %>.
• Source Type = Entity Field — Source is set to a field on the Scheduled Tasks entity.
• Source Type = SQL Statement — Source is set to an SQL statement that extracts the data from the database.
• Source Type = GE Object — Source information is already populated with the Generic Entity (GE) object.

Comments

The Comments field contains any additional details relevant to the input map.

Run History Tab

This tab lists all Process Flow Runs that have occurred for the Scheduled Task. These records are created automatically by the system each time the Scheduled Task runs.

Schedule Tab

The Schedule Tab contains fields that define how often the scheduled task is to run and the account information about the user that runs the task. The fields that display depend on value of the Frequency Type field.

Frequency Type

The frequency of how often the task is scheduled to run. The layout of the Schedule tab is dependent on the Schedule Task option selected. Options include:

• Once: The task is scheduled to run one time only, at the date and time specified.
  
  

• Daily: The task is run every XX days, where XX is the frequency interval selected. For example, a task may be scheduled to run every 3 days.
  
  

• Weekly: The task is scheduled to run weekly, on the days specified.
  
  

• Monthly: The task is scheduled to run once per month, in the months specified, at the time specified. Numeric day of month may also be specified (for example, a task could be scheduled to run in May and August, on the 10th day of each month selected).
  
  

• Monthly Relative: The task is scheduled to run once per month, in the months specified. Time of day and day of month (such as the first Monday of the month) may be specified. The layout of the Schedule tab is similar to the tab's layout when Monthly is selected.
• Run when service starts: The Scheduled Task is run whenever the scheduling service is started.
  
  

• Run when computer is idle: The scheduled task is run whenever the computer is idle for at least ten minutes. The layout of the Schedule tab is identical to the tab's layout when Run when service starts is selected.

Is Enabled

By default, this option is selected, indicating that the scheduled task is enabled.

Start Date

The date the task is scheduled to start.

Start Time

The time the task is scheduled to start.

End Date

The date past which the Scheduled Task should no longer be run. This field is only available if the Scheduled Task is set to Daily, Weekly, Monthly, or Monthly Relative.

Repeat Task

If this option is selected, the Every xx hours/minutes until xx fields become available. Selecting this option indicates that the Scheduled Task will be repeated on the basis defined until the time specified.

Every xx until xx

This set of fields is only available when the Repeat Task option is selected. If the task is to be run repeatedly, these fields define the interval between each task, as well as indicate the time at which the task ends.

Month-of-Year Fields

Includes the twelve month options, as well as the list of either numeric days in the month or days of the week (to set the first Monday, and so on). These fields are only available when Schedule Task is set to Monthly or Monthly Relative.

Day-of-Week Fields

Includes the day-of-week options, as well as the list of Every xx week options, which allows the user to select how often the task should run on a weekly basis. Weekly intervals may be set for every 1 to 52 weeks. These fields are only available when Schedule Task is set to Weekly. By default, the interval is set to 1, and the Mon option is selected.

Every xx Days

This field is only available when Schedule Task is set to Daily. By default, the interval is set to 1.

Delete the task if it is not scheduled to run again

When this option is selected, once the time in which the task should run has expired (the trameframe in which the scheduled task should no longer run is past), the task is deleted from the Windows Scheduler on the application server. Note that the Scheduled Tasks and associated Process Flow Runs records are not deleted in the Aptify database and the task can be re-activated at a later date by modifying the frequency information on the Scheduled Tasks record in Aptify.

Job Account Name

The Aptify trusted user account that runs the scheduled task on the Application Server and creates the Process Flow Runs record. This is the user that appears in the Scheduled Task's Run as: as field. The Job Account user must have a trusted user account in Aptify with the appropriate privileges to read and edit Scheduled Tasks records, read and create permissions for Process Flow Runs and its sub-type, and execute the process flow. You can specify the same user account that is running the Application Server's Aptify Asynchronous Processor or a different user account.

Note that the Job Account Name and Password are required when using the Windows Scheduler or Remote Scheduler service.

Password

The password for the specified Job Account Name user. Note that this field is encrypted by default using the Generic Entity Encryption Key. By default, the sa user and members of the supplied Accounting, Administrators, and/or Users groups have access to this key.

Only users who have access to the key can enter a value in this field. Also, any user who will create a Scheduled Task (manually, via View Scheduling, or via Delayed Message Delivery) needs access to this key to successfully save the record and create the Windows Scheduled Task.

Depending on the security model that your organization has implemented, you may want to create a new key to encrypt this field and allow only designated users access to that key. This is the recommended approach but you should use the same key to encrypt this field that you use to encrypt the Default Job Account Password field in the Application Servers entity. See About the Application Servers Form.

See Managing Field Level Encryption for information on using Field Level Encryption. See Scheduling Messages for Future Delivery for information on Delayed Message Delivery and Enabling View Scheduling for information on View Scheduling.