Scheduling & Automation

This guide explains how to schedule runbook execution, configure automation triggers, and use the execution and approval workflow.

When to use scheduling

• Recurring health checks — Run a runbook on a cron (e.g. nightly DB check, hourly cache refresh) so you detect or prevent issues before they become incidents.
• Maintenance windows — Run known-safe runbooks at a fixed time (e.g. weekly restarts, cleanup) without manual triggers.
• Approval workflows — When runbooks require approval (L1/L2), schedules still create runs; approvers act on them from Automation → Approvals. See Runbooks and Settings & RBAC.

Why use schedules instead of only manual runs

Schedules give you predictable, auditable automation — the same runbook runs at the same time every day/week, and execution history is in Automation → Activity. You can correlate schedule runs with incident trends to prove that proactive automation is reducing incidents.

Where to find scheduling and automation

1. Automation (left sidebar) — Execution list, pending approvals, and autonomy settings.
2. Automation → Schedules — Create and manage cron-style schedules that trigger runbooks or jobs.
3. Runbooks — Execute a runbook once (manual or from incident); scheduled runs are configured under Schedules.

Capture from: Tenant Plane → AUTOMATE → Automation. Add as public/img/automation-hub.png.

Creating a schedule

1. Go to Automation → Schedules (or Settings → Schedules if your layout differs).
2. Click New schedule or Create schedule.
3. Configure:
   • Name — e.g., “Nightly DB health check.”
   • Runbook — Select the runbook to run (or job type if the product supports generic jobs).
   • Schedule — Cron expression (e.g., 0 2 * * * for 2:00 AM daily) or use preset options (Daily, Weekly, etc.).
   • Timezone — When the cron is evaluated (e.g., UTC or your region).
   • Variables — Default variables for each run (e.g., environment: production). Can be overridden per run if supported.
   • Enabled — Turn the schedule on or off without deleting it.
4. Save. The schedule will trigger at the next matching time.

Example cron expressions

Capture from: Tenant Plane → Automation → Schedules → New schedule. Add as public/img/schedule-form.png.

Running a runbook on a schedule

1. Create the runbook and get it approved (see How to Work with Runbooks).
2. Create a schedule (above) and select that runbook.
3. Set variables if the runbook expects them (e.g., target_ci or a fixed host for health checks).
4. Enable the schedule. Executions will appear under Automation → Activity (or Jobs).

Approval workflow for automation

1. Automation → Approvals — Lists pending runbook steps or runs that require human approval (depending on autonomy level).
2. Review the runbook name, step, and context (e.g., incident link).
3. Click Approve or Reject. If approved, execution continues; if rejected, the job can fail or pause depending on configuration.
4. Audit: All approvals and executions are recorded for compliance.

Capture from: Tenant Plane → Automation → Approvals. Add as public/img/automation-approvals.png.

Autonomy levels (L0–L5)

Under Automation → Settings (or equivalent):

• L0 / Inform — AI only suggests; no automatic execution.
• L1 / Suggest — AI suggests; each action requires approval.
• L2–L3 — Some steps auto-execute; high-risk steps still require approval.
• L4–L5 — Full closed-loop (use with caution and strong guardrails).

Start with L1 and increase as confidence and policy allow.

Viewing execution history

1. Go to Automation → Activity (or Jobs, Execution history).
2. Filter by runbook, date range, status (success, failed, rolled back).
3. Open a run to see step-by-step output, timing, and rollback if applicable.

Next steps

• Runbooks — Create and approve runbooks.
• War Room — Coordinate during major incidents.
• Automation (module reference) — Technical overview.