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Job Automator – Introduction

The Job Automator is a web-based automation and scheduling tool for managing workflows in the Domain Services ecosystem. It replaces older command-line automation methods (like the Job Executer) with a modern, visual interface and flexible backend, allowing you to create, monitor, and control automated workflow execution without logging into production servers.

What Is It?

At its core, the Job Automator:

  • Runs jobs automatically based on triggers you define.
  • Manages multiple scheduled workflows through a single web UI.
  • Chains jobs together so one can start when another finishes.
  • Groups and organizes workflows for easier management.
  • Enables/Disables workflows individually or in bulk, including “snooze” timers for auto re-enabling.
  • Integrates with Domain Services to track and display progress for individual jobs.
  • Simplifies diagnostics and job history tracking without requiring remote desktop access.

Why Use It?

Before Job Automator, running scheduled workflows often meant:

  • Setting up Windows Task Scheduler or cron jobs manually.
  • Maintaining command-line scripts (with credentials and connection details in plain text).
  • Logging into remote servers to troubleshoot.
  • Limited visibility into execution progress and history.

With Job Automator, all of that is replaced by a centralized web application with:

  • Visual job creation.
  • Multiple trigger types (time-based, job completion, file availability, SQL queries, scalars-based, your own custom triggers implemented based on the provided interfaces, etc.).
  • Instant manual triggering from the browser.
  • Execution history for auditing and diagnostics.
  • Import/export/clone tools for reusing and sharing job automations.

How It Works (Big Picture)

  1. Automation Entities Each automation is an entity that defines: i. One or more triggers (when to run). ii. The workflow/job to execute. iii. Optional chaining rules, grouping, and tags.
  2. Automation Service A background service periodically checks all automation entities to see if their trigger conditions are met.
  3. Job Creation When all conditions are satisfied, a job is created and added to the Jobs Repository.
  4. Job Orchestrator The Job Orchestrator executes the job, while the Automator tracks status and completion.
  5. Web Interface All automation entities, job progress, and execution history are visible in the Domain Service Ops React-based web UI.

Key Features at a Glance

Feature Description
Web UI Create, edit, and trigger automations without editing scripts.
Multiple Triggers Time-based, job completion, scalar values, timeseries, file availability, SQL, and custom triggers.
Job Chaining Run jobs in sequence or based on other jobs’ completion.
Grouping Organize automations for easier management.
Enable/Disable Temporarily pause or snooze automations.
Integration See live job progress via Domain Services.
History & Diagnostics View past runs, failures, and job output logs.
Import/Export Share or migrate automations between environments.

Who Uses It?

User Type Typical Usage
System Managers / Operators Configure and monitor automated jobs.
Modelers / Analysts Chain and schedule modeling workflows.
Developers Extend with custom triggers and actions.

Next Steps

To understand how Job Automator is structured behind the scenes, see: Architecture Overview