How to configure cron jobs

Cron is a Unix utility that lets you schedule commands to run automatically at times you specify. For example, you might want a PHP script to generate invoices once a day at 2am.

Accessing cron jobs in cPanel

1. Log in to cPanel. You can do this by visiting http://www.yourdomain.ext/cpanel, replacing yourdomain.ext with your domain name.
2. In the Advanced section, click Cron Jobs.

Choosing the configuration editor

cPanel offers two ways to set up a cron job:

• Standard - a form-based editor that lets you pick timing from drop-down menus. Use this if you are not familiar with crontab syntax.
• Advanced - a single text field where you enter a full crontab expression. Use this if you are comfortable with Unix crontab syntax.

Server timezone

All cron jobs run in the server's timezone, which is UTC, not your local time. UTC stays constant throughout the year with no daylight saving adjustments, which suits our global client base. Bear this in mind when choosing your scheduled time, and adjust accordingly if your local timezone differs from UTC.

Using the nice command

We require all cron jobs to use the nice command to reduce their impact on server resources and keep things running smoothly for everyone.

Prefix every cron command with:

/usr/bin/nice -n 15

For example, to run a PHP invoicing script you would enter:

/usr/bin/nice -n 15 /usr/local/bin/php /home/USERNAME/billing_program/run_invoices.php

Replace USERNAME with your actual cPanel username and adjust the script path to match your account.