Global - Time Exceptions
Time exceptions is a way to skip execution of a Job at a certain time or interval. A time exception collection is a package of one or more time exceptions. For example, a time exception collection may be "American Holidays" and one time exception could be the 4th of July. If you, for example, have a Job that runs every day and you want to skip running that Job on "American holidays", you check the time exception collection "American holidays" for this Job.
Collections with time exceptions are managed either from the main menu Server > Global objects > Time exceptions dialog or from the Add Job/Edit Job menu under the Time exceptions tab. When adding a collection, you can specify a name and a appropriate description. When a collection has been created, time exceptions can be added. Each collection is expandable, and when expanded, the underlying time exceptions are displayed. Setting of time exceptions work the same way as time settings for a Job. Collections and exceptions are managed (add, edit and delete) by mouse right-click in the collection/time exception list. During changes in the time settings, the Next exception time will be calculated at the status bar.
Note: Remember that a change of a collection affects all Jobs that use that specific collection.
The time exception settings are stored by VisualCron in the "timeexceptions.xml" file, by default stored in the "C:\Program Files\VisualCron\settings" folder.
An important feature is the import function, Time exceptions -> Collections -> Import. The import function can import collections that you or another person has created. If a collection already exists you'll be asked if you want to replace or skip the import of that collection.
Download time exceptions
Manage Time Exceptions window
The Time Exceptions window displays a two‑band hierarchical grid:
- Collection rows (parent) show the Name, Description, and a Use checkbox indicating whether the collection is active
- Exception rows (child, expanded under each collection) show the Name, Next exception (the next time the exception will be active), and Description
The toolbar above the grid is split into two sections — Collections and Exceptions — with the following buttons:
- Collections: Add, Edit, Clone, Remove
- Exceptions: Add, Edit, Remove
- Shared: Download (download community‑shared time exception collections), Audit log
Right‑clicking a row opens a context menu with the same commands plus Versions (view the version history of the collection or exception), Object relations (see which Jobs reference the collection), and Export.
Add / Edit collection
The Add/Edit collection dialog has the following fields:
- Name — the name shown in the collection grid
- Description — optional free‑text description
When editing an existing collection, a link is also shown that lets you copy the internal collection ID to the clipboard.
Add / Edit time exception
The Add/Edit time exception dialog uses a tab layout similar to a Custom Time Trigger:
- Main — Name and Description fields for the individual exception
- Year, Month, Day, Hour, Minute, Second — one tab per time unit, each offering Every, Choose, or Between options. The Day tab also includes weekday selection (Choose weekdays and Between weekdays)
The Next exception value is shown in the status bar at the bottom of the dialog and is recalculated automatically as you change the time settings.