Schtasks /Create - DOS/Command Prompt Reference

Syntax

schtasks[.exe] /Create [/S <remote-system> [/U <user-name> [/P [<password>]]]]
    /TN <task-name> /TR <command>
    /SC <schedule> [/MO <parameter>] [/EC <channel>]
    [/D <day>] [/M <month>] [/I <idle-time>] [/ST <start-time>]
    [/RI <interval>] [{/ET <end-time> | /DU <duration>} [/K]]
    [/SD <start-date>] [/ED <end-date>] [/DELAY <delay-time>] [/IT | /NP]
    [/RU <user> [/RP <password>]] [/RL <level>]
    [/XML <xml-file>] [/V1] [/Z] [/F] [/HRESULT]

Details

You can register tasks using the ‘/Create’ option of Schtasks command. By registering tasks, you can schedule programs you want to start at startup or run periodically (similar to cron in Linux). However, please note that creating some task types such as "ONLOGON" requires administrator privileges.

* Registration for ‘task execution at the timing when a specific user logs in’ cannot be specified using parameters of the Schtasks command. You need to create an XML file in advance and specify it with the /XML parameter. (By creating and registering an XML file containing the settings for ‘execution at the timing when a specific user logs in’, you can register it without administrator privileges.)

Tasks created with Schtasks will have ‘Start the task only if the computer is on AC power’ enabled by default, except when configured in an XML file. Please note that tasks will not run if the computer is not connected to a power source, such as in the case of a notebook PC.

Tasks scheduled to run at a specified date and time will not run if the system is not powered on at that time.

Tasks are created as files under %windir%\System32\Tasks. These files are in XML format and can be specified using the "/XML" parameter of Schtasks. Additionally, by creating XML files in advance, you can register schedules based on them as part of the program installation process.

Samples

Sample 1

schtasks /create /tn CheckUpdate /tr D:\home\updater.exe /sc daily /st 17:00

Registers a task named ‘CheckUpdate’ to run ‘D:\home\updater.exe’ every day at 17:00. Since user options are not specified, the task will be executed with the current user's permissions only if the current user is logged in.

Sample 2

schtasks /create /tn CheckStatus /tr D:\home\checker.exe /sc monthly /mo first /m jan,mar,may,jul,sep,nov /d mon /st 10:00 /ru system

Registers a task named ‘CheckStatus’ to run ‘D:\home\checker.exe’ at 10:00 on the first Monday of January, March, May, July, September, and November. The task will be executed under the ‘SYSTEM’ account.

Sample 3 (Command Prompt)

for /f "tokens=2 delims=:" %A in ('whoami /user /fo csv /nh') do set "MY_SID=%~A"
schtasks /create /tn LaunchNotepad /tr notepad.exe /sc onevent /ec system ^
  /mo "*[System[EventID=7001] and EventData[Data[@Name='UserSid']='%MY_SID%']]" ^
  /delay 3

Registers a task named ‘LaunchNotepad’ to run ‘notepad.exe’ when the current user logs in. The first line executes the Whoami command to obtain the SID of the current user, and then assigns the result to the ‘MY_SID’ variable using For. The XPath expression ‘*[System[EventID=7001] and EventData[Data[@Name='UserSid']=' %MY_SID%']]’ means to match only if it is a Windows logon event (EventID: 7001) and the user is ‘%MY_SID%’. Additionally, a delay time of 3 seconds is specified to ensure proper execution of the program (3 seconds may not be sufficient).

Note that if you want to run a task when a specific user logs on, it's better to create an XML file like the following and load it into Schtasks, or configure it via the Task Scheduler GUI:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-16"?>
<Task version="1.2" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/windows/2004/02/mit/task">
  <Triggers>
    <LogonTrigger>
      <Enabled>true</Enabled>
      <UserId>Specify the username here</UserId>
    </LogonTrigger>
  </Triggers>
  <Principals>
    <Principal id="Author">
      <RunLevel>LeastPrivilege</RunLevel>
      <UserId>Specify the username here</UserId>
      <LogonType>InteractiveToken</LogonType>
    </Principal>
  </Principals>
  <Actions Context="Author">
    <Exec>
      <Command>Enter the command you want to execute here</Command>
    </Exec>
  </Actions>
</Task>

If you save the above as Bar.xml (make sure to save it with BOM UTF-16 LE), you can register it with the command: schtasks /create /tn TaskName /xml Bar.xml

See also

• Schtasks /Query - used to confirm registered tasks.
• Schtasks /Change - used to change the task settings.
• Schtasks /Delete - used to delete the registered task.
• Schtasks /Run - used to run the task immediately.
• Whoami command - can be used to show current user's SID.