What scheduled tasks are
A normal Harness session starts when you type a request. A scheduled task is a saved request that starts on its own, at the times you set. Each run is a fresh session that follows the same instructions on whatever files or information are current at that moment. It produces a result, such as a report, a summary, an updated spreadsheet or a list of problems, and saves it where you said.
If you notice yourself doing the same job every week, it's probably a good candidate. Do it once in a normal session until the result is right, then schedule it.
Runs by itself
Hourly, daily, weekly, monthly or a custom schedule.
Consistent results
The same instructions and format every time, on fresh data.
How a scheduled task runs
Create your first scheduled task
- 1Get it right by hand first
Run the job as a normal session in Harness and refine it until the output is exactly what you want.
- 2Turn it into a scheduled task
Save the working instructions as a new scheduled task, give it a clear name, and choose the folder it may use.
- 3Pick when it runs
Choose daily, weekly, monthly or a custom schedule, and set the time. See choosing when it runs.
- 4Run it once now
Trigger a test run immediately and check the result before you leave it to run on schedule.
Choosing when it runs
| Schedule | Good for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Every hour | Monitoring things that change often | Check a product page for a price drop. |
| Every day | Digests, inbox-style summaries, stock checks | 07:30 every morning: a news briefing. |
| Weekdays only | Work routines | Mon–Fri 17:30: list tomorrow's deadlines. |
| Every week | Reports and reviews | Monday 09:00: a sales summary. |
| Every month | Accounts, board packs, clean-ups | 1st of the month: an expense report. |
| Custom | Anything else | Every 15th and last day: payroll check. |
Advanced: cron expressions
Some schedulers, including many developer tools, describe custom schedules with a cron expression: five fields for minute, hour, day of month, month and day of week. If your Harness version accepts one, these are the common patterns:
| Cron | Means |
|---|---|
0 9 * * 1 | Every Monday at 09:00 |
30 7 * * * | Every day at 07:30 |
0 18 * * 1-5 | Weekdays at 18:00 |
0 2 * * * | Every night at 02:00 |
0 8 1 * * | The 1st of every month at 08:00 |
0 * * * * | At the start of every hour |
Scheduled task ideas you can copy
| Task | When | Instructions to start from |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly sales report | Mon 09:00 | "Combine last week's files in /Sales into a dated spreadsheet with totals by branch and a chart." (spreadsheets) |
| Status update | Fri 16:00 | "Summarise this week's notes in /Projects into a one-page update: done, next, blockers." (documents) |
| Nightly tests | Daily 02:00 | "Run the full test suite. If anything fails, write a report with the likely cause." (coding) |
| Dependency check | Weekly | "List outdated packages and any security advisories. Draft upgrades on a new branch." |
| News digest | Daily 07:30 | "Find the top stories on [topics] from the last 24 hours and write a 10-bullet briefing with links." (needs web access) |
| Price or page watch | Hourly | "Check [URL]. If the price is below Rs 50,000 or the page has changed, write an alert note." |
| Downloads tidy-up | Sun 20:00 | "Sort new files in Downloads into folders by type. Move anything older than 30 days to /Archive." |
| Expense report | 1st of month | "Sort last month's transactions into categories and save a summary with a chart." |
| Deadline reminder | Weekdays 17:30 | "Read /Contracts and the tracker, and list anything due in the next 7 days." |
Worked examples
Example 1 - Monday morning sales summary
Combine all files modified in the last 7 days in /Sales/Branches. Create reports/sales_YYYY-MM-DD.xlsx (today's date) with one row per branch, last week's total, the change from the previous week, and a bar chart. At the top, write five bullets on what changed and why it might matter. If no new files are found, create no file and say so in the run summary.
A new dated spreadsheet is ready before your first meeting. The run summary says "12 files combined · West up 8% · Central down 3%", and older reports stay untouched for comparison.
Example 2 - Nightly test run for a project
Every night, Harness pulls the latest code, installs dependencies, runs the tests and, if anything fails, writes a short report explaining the likely cause. It can even draft a fix on a separate branch. You read the report with your morning coffee instead of finding the failures yourself.
Example 3 - Morning news digest
Search the web for the most important news from the last 24 hours on: Sri Lankan economy, AI tools, and cricket. Write digests/news_YYYY-MM-DD.md with 10 bullets (one sentence each) and a source link for every bullet. Prefer major news outlets. Skip anything older than 24 hours.
Web access through a plugin. Developers building the same thing into an app can use the search - fetch API.
Writing instructions that work without you
A scheduled task runs while you're not there to answer questions, so its instructions have to stand on their own. These habits make the difference:
| Do this | Why it helps | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Make it self-contained | Each run starts fresh, with no memory of last week's chat. | Include folders, formats and rules in the instructions. |
| Use relative time | "Last week" is always right; a fixed date goes stale. | "Files modified in the last 7 days." |
| Put the date in the file name | Each run creates a new file instead of overwriting the last one. | report_YYYY-MM-DD.xlsx |
| Say what to do if there's nothing new | Avoids empty or duplicate reports. | "If no new files, create nothing and say so." |
| Set a fixed output format | Results are easy to compare week to week. | "Always: summary, table, chart, in that order." |
| Limit what it may do | Unattended runs should be low-risk. | "Don't delete or overwrite. Only create new files." |
| Ask for a run summary | One line tells you if everything is fine. | "End with one line: what you did and anything unusual." |
Managing your scheduled tasks
Check past runs
See when each task ran, how long it took, and what it produced or reported. This is the first place to look if something seems off.
Adjust anytime
Change the instructions, time or folder. Pause a task while you're away, and resume it when you're back.
Test changes
After editing, run the task once straight away to make sure the new version works before the next scheduled run.
Safety, cost and limits
| Consideration | What to know | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| No one is watching | A wrong instruction repeats every run. | Test with "run once now", and check the first few scheduled results. |
| Risky actions | Deleting, overwriting, sending emails or deploying while no one is checking. | Keep scheduled tasks to creating new files and drafting. Do anything risky yourself. |
| Web content | Pages may contain hidden instructions aimed at the AI. | Never let web results trigger actions. See prompt injection. |
| Cost with an API key | Frequent tasks add up, especially hourly ones or tasks that read many files. | Use V4.1 Flash, keep tasks focused, and check pricing. |
| Computer availability | A desktop app may need the computer on and Harness open. | Schedule for times your computer is usually on, and check the app's behaviour for missed runs. |
| Model choice | Bigger models cost more on every run. | Flash for most tasks. R1 only for runs that need careful reasoning. See all models. |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| The task didn't run | The computer was asleep or off, or Harness was closed. | Keep it awake at that time, and check the run history for missed runs. |
| It ran at the wrong time | A time-zone difference or daylight-saving change. | Check the task's time zone and your system clock. |
| Each run overwrites the last | The output file name has no date. | Add the date to the file name, for example _YYYY-MM-DD. |
| Empty or duplicate reports | No rule for "nothing new". | Add "if there's nothing new, create no file". |
| Results vary from run to run | The instructions are too loose. | Fix the format, and give an example of the output you want. |
| Web step fails | Missing plugin, a site that blocks automated access, or a page that changed. | Check the plugin settings, and add backup sources. |
| Sign-in expired or "server busy" | The account session ended, or peak demand. | Sign in again (see the login guide), and check updates. |
Scheduled tasks - frequently asked questions
Do I need to know cron or code?
No. Pick daily, weekly or monthly and a time, and write the instructions in plain English. Cron expressions are optional, for custom schedules where your version supports them.
Does my computer need to be on?
Harness is a desktop app, so it usually needs to be running for a task to start. Check the app for how it handles runs missed while the computer was asleep or off.
Can a scheduled task use the web?
Yes, if web access is enabled through a plugin. Make sure web results never trigger actions automatically.
Can it send me the result?
It saves results to your folder and records each run in its history. Sending results by email or chat depends on having a suitable plugin set up.
Does it cost anything?
Harness is free during the public preview. With an API key, each run uses tokens at normal rates, so keep frequent tasks small.
Can I schedule chat app conversations instead?
Scheduled tasks are a Harness feature. The chat app and mobile apps are for live conversations. Developers can schedule their own jobs that call the API. To compare DeepSeek with other assistants, see DeepSeek vs ChatGPT.
Is this an official DeepSeek page?
No. DeepSeekR1.com is an independent guide. See about us, our disclaimer, privacy policy and terms.