Scheduled Tasks ​

CodeBuddy Code supports creating and managing scheduled tasks within a session. You can set up tasks that execute instructions on a recurring schedule or trigger a one-time action at a specific future time. Common use cases include: periodically checking build status, polling for task completion, setting reminders at specific times, and more.

Note: Scheduled tasks are session-scoped. Tasks are only active while CodeBuddy Code is running and are automatically cleared upon exit.

Creating Recurring Tasks with /loop ​

/loop is the most convenient way to create recurring tasks. Simply specify a time interval and the instruction to execute, and the system will automatically convert it into a cron expression and create the task.

Syntax ​

/loop [interval] <instruction>
ParameterDescription
intervalOptional. Supports s (seconds), m (minutes), h (hours), d (days). Defaults to 10 minutes if omitted
instructionRequired. The content to execute each time the task triggers — can be natural language or a slash command

Common Examples ​

Check CI/CD pipeline status:

/loop 3m Check if the pipeline has finished and report the result

Run unit tests on a schedule:

/loop 30m Run the unit tests and let me know if any test cases fail

Summarize code review backlog every hour:

/loop 1h Check if there are any new PRs that need my review

Use with custom commands:

/loop 10m /check-build

Describe frequency in natural language (append every at the end):

Monitor API response time every 8m
Check deployment status every 25m

Default Behavior When Interval Is Not Specified ​

If you provide only the instruction without a time interval, the task triggers every 10 minutes by default:

/loop Check if the backend service is responding normally

Creating One-Time Reminders ​

If you only need a reminder at a specific future time, you can describe it in natural language:

Remind me at 4:30 PM to sync today's progress
Check the build task output in one hour
Generate a daily work report for yesterday at 9 AM tomorrow

These tasks trigger once at the specified time and are automatically deleted after execution.

Managing Existing Tasks ​

View All Current Tasks ​

What scheduled tasks do I have right now?

The list includes the task ID, execution frequency, task type (recurring / one-time), and the associated instruction.

Cancel a Task ​

Cancel the deployment check scheduled task

Or cancel by task ID:

Delete the scheduled task with ID xxx

Under the hood, these correspond to the CronList and CronDelete tools, which can be operated through conversation without needing to remember specific commands.

Task Execution Mechanism ​

Execution Timing ​

Tasks only trigger when the session is idle — that is, when the system is not processing other requests. If an operation is in progress when the task is due, the trigger is deferred until the operation completes.

Time Jitter ​

The system adds a small random offset to task trigger times to prevent congestion from many tasks firing simultaneously:

  • Recurring tasks: Delayed by up to 10% of the cycle duration (capped at 15 minutes)
  • One-time tasks: For tasks set to the hour or half-hour, may trigger up to 90 seconds early

For example, a task set to run every hour may actually trigger randomly within 0–6 minutes after the hour.

Auto-Expiration ​

Recurring tasks automatically expire and are deleted after 3 days, with one final trigger before expiration. If you need tasks to persist longer, you can recreate them after expiration or use an external scheduling solution (such as GitHub Actions).

Cron Expression Reference ​

For precise schedules like "every Monday at 10 AM" or "the 1st of every month," simply describe your requirement to the AI, and it will automatically convert it to a cron expression and create the task:

Generate a weekly work plan every Monday at 10 AM
On the 1st of every month, compile last month's code commit statistics grouped by contributor
Every Friday at 5:30 PM, remind me to sync progress and update task status
Every day at noon, check if there are any PRs awaiting my review
On weekdays at 9:15 AM, list yesterday's unmerged PRs

The AI response will include the actual cron expression and execution frequency used, so you can confirm whether it matches your expectations.

Format:

Minute  Hour  Day  Month  Weekday

Common expressions:

ExpressionMeaning
*/5 * * * *Every 5 minutes
*/15 * * * *Every 15 minutes
0 * * * *Every hour on the hour
0 9 * * *Every day at 9 AM
0 9 * * 1-5Weekdays at 9 AM
0 0 1 * *Midnight on the 1st of every month
30 18 * * 5Every Friday at 6:30 PM

Field descriptions:

FieldRangeSpecial Characters
Minute0–59* (any), */N (every N minutes), N,M (list), N-M (range)
Hour0–23Same as above
Day1–31Same as above
Month1–12Same as above
Weekday0–60 or 7 = Sunday, 1 = Monday, and so on

Notes ​

ItemDescription
Session-boundTasks exist within the session. They are lost when CodeBuddy Code exits and are not persisted to disk
Recurring task limitA maximum of 50 scheduled tasks can exist simultaneously per session
Minimum interval1 minute (sub-minute intervals are automatically rounded up)
Task expirationRecurring tasks are automatically cleared after 3 days
No backfillMissed tasks during session interruptions are not retroactively executed

Disabling Scheduled Tasks ​

To completely disable the scheduled tasks feature, set the following environment variable:

bash
CODEBUDDY_DISABLE_CRON=1 codebuddy

Once enabled, the /loop skill is no longer available, and the CronCreate, CronList, and CronDelete tools are also disabled.