Introduction

Go to Automation > Tasks to create or manage a task.

Also see:

• Tasks - Overview

Create a pre-defined task from the Task Catalog

The Task Catalog contains a variety of common, pre-defined tasks. These tasks can be quickly and easily added to your HelloID environment with minimal effort. Documentation for tasks in the Task Catalog is available in the Task docs section.

Note that the Task Catalog is context-sensitive. It only shows tasks which are supported by the object in which the task is encapsulated. For example, synchronization tasks are available to standalone tasks created in the Tasks Overview, but not available to tasks encapsulated inside delegated forms or Self Service products.

To create a standalone task from the Task Catalog, follow the instructions below. The process is almost identical for creating encapsulated tasks, except the Create task button will be located inside another object (e.g., on the Actions tab of a Self Service product) instead of in Automation > Tasks.

1. Select the Create Task button.
   
2. Find or search for the task that you wish to create. In this example, we'll add the Synchronize AD task.
   
3. The following screen gives you several tabs to go through and configure.
   • General
     1. Name
        Provide a suitable name for this task. In this example, we will name it Active Directory Synchronization Task.
     2. Agent Pool
        Choose which of your Agent Pools will be responsible for running this task.  Note that Agents in the pool must have access to the resources that the task is targeting.
     
   • Task
     The content of this tab will differ depending on which task was chosen from the catalog. In our example, we are prompted to specify which directory configuration will be used during execution.
     
   • Settings
     • Enabled
       Whether or not this task can run.
     • Enable Script Timeout
       Terminate the script if it runs for more than the configured number of minutes.
     • Send Mail When Succeeded
       Send an email to the specified address on task success.
     • Send Mail When Failed
       Send an email to the specified address on task failure.
     • Send Mail For Critical Events
       Send an email to the specified address when a critical event occurs in the task.
     
   • Schedules
     Add any number of schedules for this task to run automatically. Learn more about managing task schedules here.
     
4. Select the Save button to confirm.
5. The newly-created task is now available on the Tasks Overview screen.
   

Create a custom PowerShell task

If the HelloID Task Catalog doesn't contain a built-in task that does what you want, you'll need to create a custom PowerShell task. There are two methods of doing so:

• Create a standalone PowerShell script, and then add it to a task
• Create an encapsulated PowerShell script directly inside a task

The second method is analogous to how tasks themselves can be encapsulated inside other objects.

Below, we will demonstrate both methods.

1. Select the Create Task button.
   
2. Select the PowerShell link, and then select the Add button for Custom PowerShell script.
   
3. The General, Settings, and Schedules tabs contain the same settings as described above, in the Create a pre-defined task from the Task Catalog section. The main difference when adding a PowerShell task is the Task tab.
   
4. On the PowerShell sub-tab of the Task tab, the Use Template toggle determines whether the task will use a standalone PowerShell script from the PowerShell Scripts Overview screen, or use an encapsulated PowerShell script.
   
   By default, the toggle is turned on, and you must select a standalone PowerShell script in the Template drop down.
   
   Alternatively, to create an encapsulated script directly inside this task, turn off the Use Template toggle. The Template drop down is replaced by a script input box. A script entered here is permanently tied to the current task, and cannot be used or edited elsewhere.
   
5. On the Variables sub-tab of the Task tab, you can define local variables for use in the task's PowerShell script. To do so, select a data Type in the drop down, and enter a variable Name and Value.
   
   When you use a standalone PowerShell script as your Template, all variables defined on the script's Variables tab are copied to the task's Variables tab. In this case, any subsequent changes made to the template script's variables are not automatically carried over to the task. If you change the template script's variables, you will need to turn the Use Template toggle off and on again to re-copy them to the task.
   
   You can also use double curly brace syntax in the Value field to pull in data from other HelloID objects.
   
   When finished, select the plus sign button to save the variable.
   
6. After you have configured the settings on the Task tab, and the other tabs described previously in this article, select the Save button to confirm.
   
7. The newly-created PowerShell task is now available on the Tasks Overview screen.
   

Manually run a task

1. Go to Automation > Tasks. Select a task's Play button to manually run it.
   
2. You are taken to the Progress Log while the task executes.
   
3. When the task finishes executing, you are taken to the Summary tab.
   

Schedule a task

See How to Manage Task Schedules.

Edit or delete a task

Modify a task's details by selecting its Edit link in the Actions column on the Tasks Overview screen.

If a task is no longer necessary, delete it by selecting its Delete link in the Actions column. Once confirmed, the task and its associated schedules will be removed.