Key Steps: Schedules

• Execution packages can be scheduled to be run with the Scheduler Service. Packages may be scheduled to run at specific times (and under specific conditions), even alerting you if an execution fails.
• Make sure to schedule packages so that start times are at least two (2) minutes apart, because...
  • Scheduler service only runs one execution package per project per check
  • Scheduler service will not start an execution package if a previously scheduled execution of that package, or any package in that project is still running.
• An execution package will only execute the objects in the package, not deploy them. A scheduled execution package will likely fail when changes have been made to the project, but the changes have not been successfully been deployed.

Key Steps: Schedules

Adding an Execution Schedule

1. Select Add Schedule on an Execution Package under Execution
2. Choose the details and frequency of your schedule execution
3. Make sure Enabled is selected to apply the schedule

Adding a Notification

1. Open the Notifications under Execution and select Add Notification
2. Provide a name, type, and required details for your notification
3. You can verify your work with Test Notification

For more detailed instructions, please see Scheduled Execution.

Understanding Schedules

When your project is ready, you would typically like the entire project, or part of it, to be executed according to a schedule. One common scenario is to execute the project every night to ensure that the business users have updated numbers in the morning.

No matter what you needs are, the answer in TimeXtender is the execution package. An execution package contains tables, cubes and other objects that will be executed when the package is run. An execution package will only execute the objects in the package, not deploy them.

Note: An execution package will only execute the objects in the package, not deploy them. If changes have been made to the project, but have not been successfully deployed, the scheduled execution package will most likely fail.

Execution packages can be scheduled to be run with the Scheduler Service. Packages may be scheduled to run at specific times (and under specific conditions), even sending notifications to you, if an execution fails.

Three type of Notifications:

• Mail creates an email notification
• Event Log writes a notification to the event log
• Both creates both an email notification and writes to the event log

The TimeXtender Scheduler Service checks for scheduled execution packages for every project in its environment every two (2) minutes. When it makes this check, it applies two restrictions:

1. The service only runs one execution package per project per check
2. The service will not start an execution package if a previously scheduled execution of that package, or any package in that project is still running.

If multiple execution packages are scheduled to run in a single project at a specific time, only one of the packages will start. There is no way to reliably control which package will run in this situation. For this reason, we recommend not scheduling packages to run at exactly the same time. If you want to schedule multiple packages in a single project to run in parallel, you must solve the conflict and put them in different projects.

How the Scheduler Service works

Since the TimeXtender application is generally not running when these executions begin, a the Scheduler service or command line call starts a new instance of the timextender.exe application in the background. This instance can be viewed with the task manager or resource monitor.

This instance runs independently, so stopping the Scheduler service will not stop any running executions, and will only prevent new ones from starting. Stopping or killing the timextender.exe application will cause the execution package to fail.

Troubleshooting Scheduled Executions

A common issue seen in scheduled executions is the following, "You had no new data after the nightly execution, but also received no failure notification in email." There are two likely causes for this issue.

1. The scheduled execution didn't start because it never got an end date.
2. The scheduled execution is still running.
   

To check if a scheduled execution is still running, go to the Execution pane and there will be a note about a execution packages last run time. Right click on that and go to the execution overview. This will show the start time and the end time. It is running if the End is equal Unknown/Running, total time is empty and the succeeded equal Unknown.

For more detailed information and debugging steps, please see Scheduled Execution issues.