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Create recurring tasks that run on a cron schedule inside a box. You can schedule shell commands or agent prompts. Available on both box.schedule and ephemeralBox.schedule.

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API

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Schedule a shell command

Run a shell command on a cron schedule. 
const schedule = await box.schedule.exec({
  cron: "* * * * *",
  command: ["bash", "-c", "date >> /workspace/home/cron.log && echo scheduled-ok"],
  webhookUrl: "https://example.com/hook",          // optional
  webhookHeaders: { Authorization: "Bearer ..." }, // optional
  folder: "/workspace/home",                       // optional, defaults to box.cwd
})

console.log(schedule.id)
ParameterRequiredDescription
cronYes5-field cron expression (UTC)
commandYesstring[] — the command to run
webhookUrlNoURL to notify when the scheduled run completes
webhookHeadersNoHeaders to include in the webhook request
folderNoWorking directory. Defaults to box.cwd; relative paths resolved against it

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Schedule an agent prompt

Run an agent prompt on a cron schedule. Requires an agent to be configured on the box. 
const schedule = await box.schedule.agent({
  cron: "0 9 * * *",
  prompt: "Run the test suite and fix any failures",
  model: "claude-sonnet-4-6",          // optional, overrides box's model
  timeout: 300_000,                     // optional, kill the run after 5 minutes
  options: { maxBudgetUsd: 1.0 },      // optional, provider-specific agent options
})

console.log(schedule.id)
ParameterRequiredDescription
cronYes5-field cron expression (UTC)
promptYesThe prompt to send to the agent
folderNoWorking directory. Defaults to box.cwd; relative paths resolved against it
modelNoOverride the box’s default model for this schedule
optionsNoProvider-specific agent options (e.g. maxBudgetUsd, effort, systemPrompt, maxTurns)
timeoutNoTimeout in milliseconds — kills the run if exceeded
webhookUrlNoURL to notify when the scheduled run completes
webhookHeadersNoHeaders to include in the webhook request

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List schedules

Retrieve all non-deleted schedules for the current box. 
const schedules = await box.schedule.list()

for (const s of schedules) {
  console.log(s.id, s.type, s.cron, s.status)
}

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Get a schedule

Retrieve a single schedule by ID. 
const schedule = await box.schedule.get("schedule_abc123")

console.log(schedule.type)   // "exec" | "prompt"
console.log(schedule.status) // "active" | "paused" | "deleted"
console.log(schedule.cron)

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Pause a schedule

Pause an active schedule so it stops running. 
await box.schedule.pause("schedule_abc123")

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Resume a schedule

Resume a paused schedule. 
await box.schedule.resume("schedule_abc123")

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Delete a schedule

Remove a schedule so it no longer runs. 
await box.schedule.delete("schedule_abc123")

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Schedule response

Most schedule methods return a Schedule object: 
interface Schedule {
  id: string
  box_id: string
  type: "exec" | "prompt"
  cron: string
  command?: string[]         // present when type is "exec"
  prompt?: string            // present when type is "prompt"
  folder?: string
  model?: string
  agent_options?: Record<string, unknown>
  timeout?: number
  status: "active" | "paused" | "deleted"
  webhook_url?: string
  webhook_headers?: Record<string, string>
  last_run_at?: number
  last_run_status?: "completed" | "failed" | "skipped"
  last_run_id?: string
  total_runs: number
  total_failures: number
  created_at: number
  updated_at: number
}

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Cron syntax

Schedules use standard 5-field cron expressions (UTC): 
┌───────────── minute (0-59)
│ ┌───────────── hour (0-23)
│ │ ┌───────────── day of month (1-31)
│ │ │ ┌───────────── month (1-12)
│ │ │ │ ┌───────────── day of week (0-6, Sun=0)
│ │ │ │ │
* * * * *
ExpressionDescription
* * * * *Every minute
0 * * * *Every hour
0 9 * * *Daily at 9:00 AM
0 9 * * 1-5Weekdays at 9:00 AM
*/5 * * * *Every 5 minutes

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Examples

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Periodic health check

Schedule a command that checks whether your service is healthy. 
import { Box } from "@upstash/box"

const box = await Box.create({ runtime: "node" })

await box.schedule.exec({
  cron: "*/5 * * * *",
  command: ["bash", "-c", "curl -sf http://localhost:3000/health || echo UNHEALTHY >> /workspace/home/health.log"],
})

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Daily code review agent

Schedule an agent to review recent changes every morning. 
import { Box, Agent, ClaudeCode } from "@upstash/box"

const box = await Box.create({
  runtime: "node",
  agent: {
    provider: Agent.ClaudeCode,
    model: ClaudeCode.Sonnet_4_5,
    apiKey: process.env.ANTHROPIC_API_KEY,
  },
  git: { token: process.env.GITHUB_TOKEN },
})

await box.git.clone({ repo: "github.com/your-org/your-repo" })

await box.schedule.agent({
  cron: "0 9 * * 1-5",
  prompt: "Pull latest changes, review the last 24h of commits, and open issues for any bugs or style violations",
  timeout: 600_000,
  options: { maxBudgetUsd: 2.0, effort: "high" },
})

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Manage schedules

List active schedules, pause, resume, and clean up ones you no longer need. 
const schedules = await box.schedule.list()

for (const s of schedules) {
  console.log(`${s.id} — ${s.type} — ${s.cron} — ${s.status}`)
}

// Pause a schedule
await box.schedule.pause(schedules[0].id)

// Resume it later
await box.schedule.resume(schedules[0].id)

// Remove a specific schedule
await box.schedule.delete(schedules[0].id)