Some software functionality require periodic execution to trigger maintenance tasks and email notifications such as;

• Ticket warning for ticket system
• Automatic close of tickets
• Ticket warning for users
• Ticket late reply
• Affiliate status check
• Update exchange rates
• Notification of pending orders
• Automatic cancel of order
• Featured items scheduler
• Unpublished items scheduler
• Check for App update
• Won Auction notification
• Auction Re-listing
• Expired subscription
• Subscription top-up reminders
• Empty trash box for Bounce-back
• Start subscriptions
• Delete old activity from jDefender
• List owner notification of subscriptions
• Server optimization scheduler
• Google Merchant feed

Automated periodic execution is implemented through the use of a scheduling service that allows users to schedule jobs at defined times or regular intervals. By default the system Scheduled Tasks are already define using the default standard limit and frequency using the Cron Task plugin.

After install the cron jobs are setup and ready to work, however some users disable purposely the Joobi cron plugin which result to unset email messages.

Step 1 Enable cron jobs

The Scheduler settings is located in jApps >> Preferences >> Scheduler

There are 4 Cron system available;

1. No Cron: This will stop any Scheduled Task
2. Site Cron: This is the Joobi cron plugin and is enabled buy default. When this is selected, the cron plugin is automatically enabled.
3. Joobi Cron: This is the free service we provide which is hosted in the joobi.org server
4. External Cron: You can setup the cron script in your server or any third part Cron service

Server Time: This is the time of your Website server not your local time where you are accessing your website.
Your Time: This is the time base on the Timezone specified in your Joomla global configuration

Step 2 Setup external cron jobs

Using site cron (cron plugin) is good enough but if you have third party security extensions installed in your website, it can block the processes of the plugin which could stop the triggering of the Task.

So setting an external cron jobs is always the most efficient solution.

1. The Scheduler settings is located in jApps >> Preferences >> Scheduler
2. Select External Cron and click Save to see the cron url you can use to trigger
3. Copy the Cron URL and use it to create a script in your server

Please ask your web hosting for the correct cron setup/script.

Below are samples from popular hosting control panels.

1 Setting up cron task on your cPanel

1. Login to your Cpanel account
2. Browse for Advance Tab located at the buttom
3. Click on Cron Jobs
4. Kindly enter your email address in Cron Email Tab, if you want to receive an email everytime the cron job runs.
5. And click Update Email.
6. Next, set your desired frequency of your cron in the "Add New Cron Job"
7. Add this cron command curl "ADD the link here that you copied from Scheduler Tab of jApps" in command field.
8. Then, click Add New Cron Job

2 Setting up the command line in Unix

There are different command line programs you can use to call the page from the command line. Not all of them may be available on a given server.

For example, you can use a Unix utility like 'wget':

wget -q -nd --delete-after 'ADD the CRON URL HERE'

The options:
-q = quiet (no message)
-nd = no directory
--delete-after = delete the downloaded file

Same with log file
wget -q -nd --delete-after 'ADD the CRON URL HERE' -O /home/public_html/cache/dull

When using SSL, add one additional argument when calling wget: --no-check-certificate.
Do not put “--no-check-certificate” between the -0 and the -.

*/15 * * * * /usr/bin/wget --no-check-certificate --quiet -O - 'ADD the CRON URL HERE'

Note in this example that the output is thrown away (to /home/public_html/cache/dull ).

A number of users of jNews have found that 'wget' sometimes fails. Especially if you have trouble with email digests not being sent on a daily basis to all users, an alternative command that solves the problem is:

php 'ADD the CRON URL HERE'

3 Set up your cron task using DirectAdmin

1. Log into DirectAdmin as user
2. At Advanced Features select Cronjobs

If you want a schedule every 10 minutes define as below:

Minute: */10
Hour: *
Day of Month: *
Month: *
Day of Week: *

Command: /usr/bin/curl -s -o /dev/null "ADD the CRON URL HERE"
Important are the quotes around the URL. Otherwise all looks perfect but mail will never be send.

4 Other most common ways to add a cron jobs;

1. CPanel
2. Plesk
3. crontab

5 Set up your cron task on Windows

Creating a Scheduled Task

1. Open Scheduler
2. Go to Start >> Programs >> Accessories >> System Tools >> Scheduled Tasks
3. Double-click Add Scheduled Task
4. The Scheduled Task Wizard will appear. Click Next.
5. Select the program to run. Choose your browser from the list (for example, Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox). Click Next.
6. Give the task a Name, such as jNews Cron Job, and choose the Frequency with which to perform the task (for example, Daily)). Click Next.
7. Choose specific date and time options (this step will vary, depending on the option selected in the previous step). When finished, click Next.
8. Enter your password if prompted. Change the username if required (for example, you'd like the task to run under a user with fewer privileges security reasons). Click Next.
9. On the final page, select the check box Open advanced properties for this task when I click Finish and click Finish.

Configuring the task

1. Go to the task's setting page either by checking the check box at the end of the last step, or by double-clicking on the task.
2. In the Run box, after the text that is there now (for example, C:Program FilesInternet Exploreriexplore.exe), enter a space and then type the address to your website's cron.php page in double
3. To set a frequency more often than Daily (for example, hourly), click the Schedule tab, then click Advanced. Here you can set options such as Repeat task, every 1 hour for 23 hours. Click Ok when finished.
4. Change the start time on the task to one minute from the current time. This will allow you to test the task and make sure that it is working.
5. When all settings have been configured to your liking, click Apply and OK (note: you may be prompted for your password)