= vCenter Scheduled Task =

**Summary**: How to schedule a task in vCenter to start a Virtual Machine. \\
**Date**: Around 2012 \\
**Refactor**: 29 April 2025: Checked links and formatting. \\
{{tag>vmware}}

How to schedule a task in vCenter to start a Virtual Machine:

* Logon to vCenter -> Tasks & Events -> Scheduled Tasks
* Click on the "New" button
* In the "Schedule Task" dialog select the "Change the VM power state"
* In the "Change a Virtual Machine's Power State" dialog:
  * Select the virtual machine
  * Select the required Power Operation (Power on)
    * Note that it's possible to select a specific host to power on the virtual machine on.
  * Give a task name and description and set the the frequency (once - later - 20:00 - today)
  * Fill in the email addresses to notify after task completion

= Scheduled Tasks Options =

These are the options available when scheduling a task:
* Change the VM power state
* Clone a virtual machine
* Deploy a virtual machine
* Migrate a virtual machine
* Create a virtual machine
* Create a snapshot of a virtual machine
* Add a host
* Change cluster power settings
* Change resource pool or VM resource settings
* Check compliance for a profile
* Scan for Updates
* Remediate

= Tasks Policies =

The vCenter Server and ESX/ESXi hosts adhere to certain rules when managing tasks in the system. \\
vCenter Server and ESX/ESXi hosts use the following rules to process tasks:
* The user performing the task in the vSphere Client must have the correct permissions on the relevant objects. After a scheduled task is created, it will be performed even if the user no longer has permission to perform the task.
* When the operations required by manual tasks and scheduled tasks conflict, the activity due first is started first.
* When a virtual machine or host is in an incorrect state to perform any activity, manual or scheduled, vCenter Server or the ESX/ESXi host does not perform the task. A message is recorded in the log.
* When an object is removed from the vCenter Server or the ESX/ESXi host, all associated tasks are also removed.
* The vSphere Client and vCenter Server system use UTC time to determine the start time of a scheduled task. This ensures vSphere Client users in different time zones see the task scheduled to run at their local time.
* Events are logged in the event log at start and completion of a task. Any errors that occur during a task are also recorded in the event log.

> Note: Do not schedule multiple tasks to be performed at the same time on the same object. The results are unpredictable.