Manage automations

Use Manage Automations to run a core agent on a schedule and send its answers to your team by email or chat. Each automation runs on a daily, weekly or monthly cadence at the time you choose.

To open the screen, go to ManageIT → Manage Automations.

The automation directory

The Automation directory lists every recurring automation for your account. The table has these columns:

Column	What it shows
Name	The automation name. Select it to open the automation for editing.
Type	The frequency: Daily, Weekly or Monthly.
Source	What the automation runs against, with a short badge and the core agent name.
Cadence	A short summary, such as Every day, the weekdays it runs on, or the date it runs on.
Scheduled Time	The time the automation runs, shown in your own time zone.
Created	When the automation was created.
Last run	When the automation last ran.
Enabled	A switch that turns the automation on or off.
Action	Buttons to Edit, view History and Delete.

You can work with the list in these ways:

• Search: type in the Search by name box to show only automations whose name matches.
• Sort: select the Last run or Enabled column heading to sort by it. Select it again to reverse the order.
• Pages: the list shows 10 automations per page. Use the arrows below the table to move between pages.

Add an automation

1. Select Add automation.
2. In Automation name, enter a name.
3. In Frequency, choose Daily, Weekly or Monthly.
4. If you chose Weekly, select one or more Days of week.
5. If you chose Monthly, pick a Date. The date must be today or later.
6. In Scheduled Time, set the time the automation should run. The time zone shown under the field is the one the time is read in.
7. Leave Enabled selected if the automation should start running straight away. Clear it to save the automation without running it.
8. In Target mode, keep Legacy core agent.
9. In Core agent, select the core agent to run.
10. Fill in the extra fields the core agent asks for. See Fields that depend on the core agent.
11. If the core agent takes questions, type a question in the Questions box and select Add. Repeat for each question. Each added question runs separately on the schedule.
12. In Notification emails, enter one or more email addresses, one per line or separated by commas.
13. Optional: enter a Google Chat webhook, Slack webhook or Teams webhook to send results to a chat channel.
14. Select Create automation.

Fields that depend on the core agent

Different core agents need different inputs. The form shows only the fields that apply to the core agent you select.

• Scope with Application or Location: some core agents analyse one application or one location. Choose Application or Location in Scope, then pick the item from the list that appears.
• Lookback with Location: some core agents forecast for one location over a lookback period. Choose the Lookback period and a Location.
• Predefined question and Days: some core agents offer ready-made questions grouped under Six Sigma, Semantic, Pattern and Executive. Pick one from Predefined question to fill in the question, or type your own. In Days, enter from 1 to 90 days of data to analyse, or leave it blank to let ScoutIT AI choose.
• Questions: core agents that answer free-text questions need at least one question. Core agents that use a scope or a location instead don't ask for questions.

Edit an automation

1. In the Action column, select Edit. You can also select the automation name.
2. Change the fields you need.
3. Select Update automation.

Turn an automation on or off

In the Enabled column, select the switch. A confirmation message tells you the automation was enabled or disabled. You can also change this with the Enabled checkbox when you edit the automation.

View run history

1. In the Action column, select History.
2. Review each run. Each entry shows the question, the time it ran, and the answer.
3. Close the window to return to the directory.

If the automation hasn't run yet, you see No history yet.

Delete an automation

1. In the Action column, select Delete.
2. In the Delete automation? window, select Delete automation.

The automation stops running. Its past run history is kept.

What happens next

After you save, a message confirms Automation created. or Automation updated. and the automation appears in the directory. When it runs, the answers go to the notification emails and any chat webhooks you entered, and the run appears in History.

Troubleshooting

If the form shows Please fix the highlighted automation fields., check the message under each highlighted field:

Message	What to do
Automation name is required.	Enter a name.
Weekly automations require at least one day.	Select at least one day of the week.
Monthly automations require a date.	Pick a date.
Choose today or a later date.	Pick a date that hasn't passed.
Schedule time is required.	Set a time.
Legacy automations require a core agent type.	Select a core agent.
Select an application or location.	Pick an application or a location for the chosen scope.
Select a location for Prophet.	Pick a location.
At least one question is required.	Type a question and select Add.
At least one notification email is required.	Enter at least one email address.
Invalid email: followed by an address	Correct the email address shown.
Slack webhook must be a valid https:// URL. (or the Google Chat or Teams version)	Enter the full webhook address, starting with https://, or leave the field blank.

If the directory shows Automation service is unavailable, select Retry. Add automation stays unavailable until the directory loads. If the problem continues, contact support.

If you see Could not update the automation status. Please try again. or Could not delete automation. Please try again., wait a moment and try again.

Related

• ManageIT overview
• Manage apps
• Manage monitoring points
• FAQ