Jobs
Jobs is a standard configuration interface for adding, editing, and removing jobs. A Job is an application that can be run at scheduled times, using a cron-like syntax. You can customize the Job by choosing which program to run, any arguments, and if applicable, the configuration that the scheduled job uses to gather additional options and features. The job section also can be used to create primary and backup jobs and determine the failover state.
Refer to the Standard Configuration Interface guide for details on interacting with the grid and form. The additional controls are explained in the Grid Details section.
This user interface calls REST methods from api/broker/jobs.
The UI path for this interface is Configuration -> Broker Control -> Jobs.
Grid Details
The interface displays the standard Unified Assurance buttons as well as the following:
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Start - After an existing job has been selected, click Start to start the job immediately.
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Advanced Start - After an existing job has been selected, click Advanced Start to have a pop up shown, and any values entered will be passed along as job arguments.
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Help - After an existing job has been selected, click Help to show the help text for the application to be used.
In the main grid, click the - icon next to a server name to collapse that server's jobs and hide those entries. Click the + icon next to a server name to expand the jobs and show those entries.
Form Fields
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Server - The Unified Assurance server that will execute the application.
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Package Name - The package for the application. The documentation for each application provides the correct package to be selected.
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Job Name - The name of the job.
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Job Program - The application that will be executed. Path to the application is relative to the Unified Assurance install directory.
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Job Arguments - These are any command line options to be passed when executing the application. Each application documentation page lists the correct arguments that can be used, if any are available.
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Job Description - The description of the job's function.
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Failover Type - The failover type for the job.
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Primary Service - If Failover Type is set to Redundant/Backup, the local broker will check to see if the partner broker is running, and if not, the backup will be started.
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Status - The status of the job.
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Privileged - Whether or not to run the job as the "root" user account. Many Unified Assurance applications will need this to be checked to ensure proper functionality.
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Scheduled - If checked, the time fields will be displayed below so a schedule can be set for the job to be run automatically. Refer to the Configuring Scheduled Job Times section for additional information. If unchecked, the job will never run automatically, but the job can still be called via the broker for custom processing.
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Minutes - The minutes when the job will be run. Valid entries are "*" which means every minute, numbers between 0 and 59 to run at that minute, or "*/
" can be used to indicate "Every number of minutes". Refer to the Configuring Scheduled Job Times section for additional information. -
Hours - The hours when the job will be run. Valid entries are "*" which means every hour, numbers between 0 and 23 to run at that hour, or "*/
" can be used to indicate "Every number of hours". Refer to the Configuring Scheduled Job Times section for additional information. -
Days - The day of the month when the job will be run. Valid entries are "*" which means every day, numbers between 1 and 31 to run on that day of the month, or "*/
" can be used to indicate "Every number of days". Refer to the Configuring Scheduled Job Times section for additional information. -
Months - The month when the job will be run. Valid entries are "*" which means every month, numbers between 1 and 12 to run at that minute, or "*/
" can be used to indicate "Every number of months". Refer to the Configuring Scheduled Job Times section for additional information. -
WeekDays - The day of the week when the job will be run. Valid entries are "*" which means every day of the week, numbers between 0 and 7 (0/7 = Sunday, 1 = Monday, 2 = Tuesday, 3 = Wednesday, 4 = Thursday, 5 = Friday, 6 = Saturday), or "*/
" can be used to indicate "Every number of days". Refer to the Configuring Scheduled Job Times section for additional information. -
Configuration - This section contains the additional settings that are needed for most applications to function, including rules files, number of threads, etc. Not every job will require or support a configuration. Each application documentation page lists the correct configuration options that are supported, if any.
Configuring Scheduled Job Times
Jobs use a cron-like syntax to determine when the job is run. The scheduled time definition has a field for Minutes, Hours, Days, Months, and Days of Week. Each of these fields can be set to one or more literal value in a comma-separated list, or "*" which is interpreted as Every. The job executes when the current time elements match the job's scheduled time elements.
At its simplest, with every time period set to "*" (every), the job will be executed every minute, because the current time will always match the job's scheduled time.
However, imagine every time period is set to "*" (every) except Minutes, which are set only to 30. In this case, the current time will match the scheduled time and the application will be executed once every hour, at x:30.
It is possible to be overly complex, creating time criteria that very seldom match. Imagine a job with time criteria set to Minutes="*", Hours="*", Days=26, Months=1, and WeekDay=1. That job will not run until January 26, 2026 which is the next time since 2015 that January 26th will be on a Monday.