[!WARNING] This content is AI-generated. Verify before relying on it.

Task Scheduling

Laravel's task scheduler eliminates the need to configure multiple cron entries on your production server. Instead, a single cron entry calls Artisan every minute, and all schedules are managed cleanly in application code.

Server Crontab Setup

Add this single cron job to your production server via crontab -e:

* * * * * cd /path-to-your-project && php artisan schedule:run >> /dev/null 2>&1

Defining Schedules

Laravel 11+ (`routes/console.php`)

use App\Jobs\GenerateWeeklyReport;
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Schedule;

// Schedule an Artisan command
Schedule::command('backup:clean')->dailyAt('01:00');
Schedule::command('backup:run')->dailyAt('02:00');

// Schedule a queued job
Schedule::job(new GenerateWeeklyReport)->mondays()->at('06:00');

// Schedule a closure / PHP callback
Schedule::call(function () {
    \DB::table('temp_uploads')->where('created_at', '<', now()->subDay())->delete();
})->hourly();

// Schedule an OS shell command
Schedule::exec('node /scripts/metrics.js')->everyTenMinutes();

Laravel 10 and Earlier (`app/Console/Kernel.php`)

namespace App\Console;

use Illuminate\Console\Scheduling\Schedule;
use Illuminate\Foundation\Console\Kernel as ConsoleKernel;

class Kernel extends ConsoleKernel
{
    protected function schedule(Schedule $schedule): void
    {
        $schedule->command('inspire')->hourly();
    }
}

Frequency Schedule Methods

Schedule Method	Execution Timing
`->everyMinute();`	Runs once every minute
`->everyFiveMinutes();`	Runs every 5 minutes (`0, 5, 10, ...`)
`->everyTenMinutes();`	Runs every 10 minutes
`->everyFifteenMinutes();`	Runs every 15 minutes
`->everyThirtyMinutes();`	Runs every 30 minutes
`->hourly();`	Runs at the beginning of every hour
`->hourlyAt(15);`	Runs at 15 minutes past the hour
`->daily();`	Runs daily at midnight (`00:00`)
`->dailyAt('14:30');`	Runs daily at specified 24h time (`14:30`)
`->twiceDaily(1, 13);`	Runs twice daily at specified hours (`01:00` and `13:00`)
`->weekly();`	Runs weekly on Sunday at midnight
`->weeklyOn(1, '08:00');`	Runs weekly on Monday (`1`) at `08:00`
`->monthly();`	Runs monthly on the 1st at midnight
`->monthlyOn(15, '10:00');`	Runs on the 15th of every month at `10:00`
`->weekdays();`	Restricts execution to Monday through Friday
`->weekends();`	Restricts execution to Saturday and Sunday
`->timezone('UTC');`	Overrides the default timezone for the task
`->cron('0 /4 * *');`	Custom standard cron expression

Execution Modifiers & Constraints

// Prevent task overlap if the previous execution is still running
Schedule::command('emails:send')
    ->everyMinute()
    ->withoutOverlapping(); // Optional: ->withoutOverlapping(10) sets a 10 min lock expiry

// Run task in the background so it does not block subsequent tasks
Schedule::command('reports:compile')
    ->daily()
    ->runInBackground();

// Multi-server clustering: Ensure the task runs on only one server instance
Schedule::command('queue:prune-batches')
    ->daily()
    ->onOneServer();

// Run even when the app is in 'php artisan down' maintenance mode
Schedule::command('health:check')
    ->everyFiveMinutes()
    ->evenInMaintenanceMode();

// Conditional execution
Schedule::command('reminders:send')
    ->daily()
    ->when(fn () => config('features.reminders_enabled'));

Testing & Inspecting Schedules

Command	Description
`php artisan schedule:list`	Displays a table of all scheduled tasks, intervals, and next run time
`php artisan schedule:run`	Evaluates and triggers any tasks due at the current minute
`php artisan schedule:work`	Runs a foreground daemon locally that fires `schedule:run` every minute

[!TIP] Use php artisan schedule:work during local development to test scheduled jobs without touching your local OS crontab.

Vachan's Wiki