Crons Module — User Guide

The Crons Module gives WordPress administrators a full graphical interface to view, search, filter,
create, edit, run, and delete every WordPress cron job registered on the site — all without writing a single line of
code.

Enable / Disable the Module

The Crons module is a standalone module inside Advanced Analytics. You can enable or disable it without affecting any
other part of the plugin or WordPress itself.

1. Navigate to Error Logs → Settings in the WordPress admin sidebar.
2. Click the “Cron Options” tab (or scroll to the section headed Cron options).
3. Toggle the “Enable cron module” checkbox.
4. Click Save Changes.

Module Settings

The Cron Options tab on the Settings page has two settings:

Cron Jobs List

This is the main screen. It shows every registered cron job on your site in a sortable, filterable table.

Columns

Row Actions

Hover over any cron row to reveal these actions below the hook name:

• Edit — Opens the edit form with all current values pre-filled.
• Run — Executes the cron immediately via AJAX (no page reload). Displays a green “Successfully
  run” message.
• Delete — Removes the cron after a confirmation dialog. The row fades out on success.

Filters & Views

View Tabs

Above the table you will find quick-filter links. Each shows a count in parentheses:

Dropdown Filters

Use the dropdown menus above the table then click Filter:

Searching Crons

Use the search box in the top-right corner of the list page. It searches by hook name only.

• Type part of a hook name and press Enter or click Search.
• The search is case-insensitive and matches anywhere in the hook name.
• To clear the search, empty the box and press Enter.

Single Cron Actions

Run a Cron Immediately

1. Find the cron in the list.
2. Hover over its row and click Run.
3. The cron executes instantly via AJAX — no page reload. A green success message appears briefly.

Delete a Single Cron

1. Find the cron in the list.
2. Hover over its row and click Delete.
3. Confirm the deletion in the browser dialog: “You sure you want to delete this cron?”
4. On success the row fades out and is removed from the table.

Editing a Cron

Click Edit on any row to open the edit form.

Form Fields

Click Update to save changes.

Working with Arguments

Arguments are data values that get passed to the cron hook’s callback function. They must be entered as a
JSON-encoded array in the Arguments field.

Argument Format Reference

[25]

Passes the integer 25 as the first (and only) argument to the callback.

["hello-world"]

Passes the string "hello-world" to the callback.

["i", "want", 25, "cakes"]

The callback receives four arguments: two strings, an integer, and another string. In PHP:

<?php
\add_action( 'my_baking_cron', 'bake_order' );

function bake_order( $who, $verb, $quantity, $item ) {
    // $who = "i", $verb = "want", $quantity = 25, $item = "cakes"
}

[true, false, null]

Passes boolean true, boolean false, and null to the callback.

[["admin", "editor", "author"]]

Passes a single argument which is itself an array containing three strings. In PHP:

<?php
\add_action( 'sync_user_roles', 'do_sync' );

function do_sync( $roles ) {
    // $roles = array( "admin", "editor", "author" )
    foreach ( $roles as $role ) {
        // process each role…
    }
}

[{"post_type": "product", "limit": 50, "force": true}]

Passes a single object (PHP decodes it as an associative array or object depending on context):

<?php
\add_action( 'refresh_product_cache', 'do_refresh' );

function do_refresh( $config ) {
    // $config->post_type = "product"
    // $config->limit     = 50
    // $config->force     = true
}

["WC_Product", 12345]

The argument values themselves don’t specify the callback — that is determined by what’s hooked to the action. But
you might pass a class name and an object ID when your callback needs to instantiate
a class:

<?php
\add_action( 'process_item_cron', 'handle_item' );

function handle_item( $class_name, $item_id ) {
    // $class_name = "WC_Product"
    // $item_id    = 12345
    if ( class_exists( $class_name ) ) {
        $item = new $class_name( $item_id );
        // process…
    }
}

[]

Leave the array empty when the callback expects no parameters. You can also leave the field completely empty — the
system defaults to [].

Common Mistakes

Adding a New Cron

1. On the Cron Jobs list page, click “Add New Cron” (top-right, next to the page title).
2. Fill in the form fields:
   • Hook — The WordPress action hook name. If left empty, a name is auto-generated
     (unnamed_hook_XXXX).
   • Next Run — Date and time for the first execution. Defaults to the current date/time.
   • Arguments — JSON-encoded array (see Arguments section). Leave empty
     for no arguments.
   • Schedule — Choose recurrence. Default is “Non-repeating” (fires once then
     disappears).
3. Click Submit (or Update) to create the cron.

Example: Create a Daily Cleanup Cron

Then in your theme’s functions.php or custom plugin:

<?php
\add_action( 'my_daily_cleanup', 'run_cleanup', 10, 2 );

function run_cleanup( $directory, $max_age_days ) {
    // $directory     = "temp_files"
    // $max_age_days  = 30
    // … your cleanup logic here
}

Bulk Actions

Perform operations on multiple crons at once:

1. Check the boxes next to the crons you want to act on. Use the checkbox in the header row to select all visible
   crons.
2. Open the Bulk actions dropdown (top-left or bottom-left of the table).
3. Choose an action:
   • Delete — Permanently removes all selected crons.
   • Run — Executes all selected crons immediately, in sequence.
4. Click Apply.

CSV Export

Export the currently filtered/displayed crons to a CSV file:

1. Apply any desired filters or search (the export respects your current filter context).
2. Click the “CSV Export” button above the table.
3. A progress bar appears during the export. You can click Cancel if needed.
4. The CSV file downloads automatically once complete.

Available Schedules

At the bottom of the Cron Jobs list page, a reference table shows all registered cron schedules on your WordPress
installation:

The above are WordPress defaults. Plugins and themes may register additional schedules (e.g., “Every 5
minutes”, “Monthly”). These will also appear in the reference table and in the Schedule dropdown when
editing or adding a cron.

Screen Options

Click Screen Options (top-right of the page, just below the admin bar) to customize the display:

Multisite Networks

On WordPress multisite installations, the Crons module provides additional capabilities:

• Site column — Each cron row shows which site (blog ID + site name) it belongs to.
• Site filter dropdown — Network administrators can filter the list to show crons from a specific
  site. Default shows all sites.
• The site filter dropdown is only available to users with the manage_network capability (Super Admin).

Troubleshooting