H-Sphere 3.x end-user series

5. How to set up Cron Jobs in H-Sphere

This tutorial assumes that you've already logged into your H-Sphere control panel

Let's learn how we can set up Cron Jobs from within H-Sphere control panel. This functionality is available for Unix accounts only

Cron Jobs are actually called 'cron daemons'. They are used for doing some tasks at specific intervals without your intervention every time. You set the clock and the cron daemon runs the work for you

Let's see how we can set up a cron job from H-Sphere

1) Scroll over FTP/User Account...

2) ...then click FTP User

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3) To enable Crontab option click OFF button here

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4) Now click the Edit button here to set up a new cron job for your account

This Mail-To option specifies email address used for  your cron job to report errors and malfunctions

Now let's set up a simple cron example...

Let's assume that we have installed a cgi script in our cgi-bin directory and want this program to be run every night at 11:30PM. This script will send out a newsletter to our members

5) Let's fill out these parameters in the following order: Minutes, Hours, Day of Month, Month, Day of the week

6) Now enter the actual cron command, its syntax may differ depending on the server's setup

7) When finished click Submit Query

That's it! The cron job has been successfully set up...let's go take a look

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Here you may add a new cron or delete the existing one. It is recommended to always remove the cron jobs that are not used in order to prevent the server from running the unnessary processes

8) To delete this cron click here

9) Then click Submit Query

The cron job has been deleted while Crontab option is still enabled and you may add new crons here

This is the end of the tutorial. You now know how to set up a scheduled cron task from your H-Sphere control panel. You should always remember to remove the unnecessary crons so that there is no additional load on the server