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Schedulers & Triggers

Control when and how workflows start execution.

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Available Nodes

NodeTypePurpose
Workflow TriggerTriggerManual workflow start
Cron SchedulerTriggerRun on cron schedule
TimerActionDelay execution
Python ExecutorActionRun Python code

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Workflow Trigger

Manually start a workflow with the Run button.

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Use Cases

  • Testing workflows during development
  • On-demand execution
  • Entry point for manual processes

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Output

{
  "triggered_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
  "trigger_type": "manual"
}
Every workflow needs at least one trigger node to start execution.

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Cron Scheduler

Run workflows on a schedule using cron expressions.

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Parameters

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cronExpression
string
required
Cron expression defining the schedule
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timezone
string
default:"UTC"
Timezone for schedule execution

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Cron Expression Format

* * * * *
│ │ │ │ │
│ │ │ │ └── Day of week (0-7, Sun=0 or 7)
│ │ │ └──── Month (1-12)
│ │ └────── Day of month (1-31)
│ └──────── Hour (0-23)
└────────── Minute (0-59)

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Common Expressions

ExpressionDescription
* * * * *Every minute
*/5 * * * *Every 5 minutes
0 * * * *Every hour
0 0 * * *Daily at midnight
0 9 * * 1-5Weekdays at 9am
0 0 1 * *First day of month
0 12 * * 0Sundays at noon

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Output

{
  "triggered_at": "2024-01-15T09:00:00Z",
  "trigger_type": "cron",
  "expression": "0 9 * * *",
  "next_run": "2024-01-16T09:00:00Z"
}

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Example: Daily Report

[Cron (0 9 * * *)] --> [HTTP Request] --> [AI Summary] --> [WhatsApp Send]
                        (fetch data)                         (send report)

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Timer

Add a delay between nodes.

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Parameters

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delay
number
required
Delay duration
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unit
select
default:"seconds"
Time unit: seconds, minutes, hours

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Use Cases

  • Rate limiting API calls
  • Waiting for external processes
  • Scheduling sequential actions

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Example: Rate-Limited API Calls

[For Each Item] --> [HTTP Request] --> [Timer (1s)] --> [Next Item]

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Output

{
  "delayed": true,
  "duration_ms": 5000,
  "completed_at": "2024-01-15T10:30:05Z"
}

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Python Executor

Run custom Python code within workflows.

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Parameters

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code
code
required
Python code to execute

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Available Variables

VariableDescription
input_dataData from connected input node
outputDictionary to set as node output

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Example: Data Processing

# Access input data
message = input_data.get("text", "")

# Process
word_count = len(message.split())
has_question = "?" in message

# Set output
output = {
    "word_count": word_count,
    "has_question": has_question,
    "summary": f"Message has {word_count} words"
}

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Example: Conditional Logic

level = input_data.get("battery_level", 100)
is_charging = input_data.get("is_charging", False)

if level < 20 and not is_charging:
    output = {
        "action": "alert",
        "message": f"Low battery: {level}%"
    }
else:
    output = {
        "action": "none"
    }

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Example: API Response Formatting

import json

# Parse response
data = input_data.get("data", {})
items = data.get("items", [])

# Format for output
formatted = []
for item in items:
    formatted.append({
        "name": item.get("name"),
        "price": f"${item.get('price', 0):.2f}"
    })

output = {
    "count": len(formatted),
    "items": formatted
}

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Available Libraries

The Python executor includes common libraries:
  • json - JSON parsing
  • datetime - Date/time handling
  • re - Regular expressions
  • math - Mathematical functions
Code runs in a sandboxed environment. File system and network access are restricted.

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Combining Schedulers

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Schedule with Delay

[Cron (hourly)] --> [HTTP Request] --> [Timer (5s)] --> [HTTP Request #2]

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Multiple Schedules

Deploy workflows with different schedules: 
Workflow 1: [Cron (daily)] --> [Daily Report]
Workflow 2: [Cron (hourly)] --> [Hourly Check]
Workflow 3: [Webhook] --> [On-Demand Action]

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Workflow States

After deployment, trigger nodes show their state:
StateColorDescription
IdleDefaultWaiting for next trigger
WaitingCyanActively waiting for event
RunningPurpleWorkflow executing

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Tips

Test cron expressions at crontab.guru before deploying.
Use Python Executor for conditional logic instead of multiple workflow branches.
Add Timer nodes when calling rate-limited APIs repeatedly.
Cron schedules are in UTC by default. Set timezone if needed.

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Troubleshooting

  • Verify workflow is deployed (not just saved)
  • Check cron expression syntax
  • Ensure timezone is correct
  • Check server logs for errors
  • Check for syntax errors
  • Verify input_data has expected fields
  • Use try/except for error handling
  • Print debug info with print() (shows in logs)
  • Ensure delay value is positive
  • Check unit (seconds vs minutes)
  • Verify node is connected properly

Webhooks

Trigger workflows via HTTP

WhatsApp

Message-triggered workflows