Individual schedules can be run as a foreground or the background task. When you run a schedule in the foreground, you can easily test and debug scripts in the run-time environment. When an error occurs, VBA launches the Visual Basic Editor (VBE) debugger, where you can edit and save changes to a script. You cannot run scripts in the configuration environment.
When you run schedules as background tasks, they run regardless of whether the iFIX WorkSpace is in the run-time or configuration environment, and regardless of whether the iFIX WorkSpace is running. If you modify a scheduled entry, it automatically restarts. When the iFIX WorkSpace is in the run-time environment, you can view Scheduler statistics and diagnostic information about each entry in the schedule, including the number of times each entry has been fired and the last time it was fired.
You can also run the Scheduler in the background as a service under Windows. Because the Scheduler runs as a service, operators can log in and out of an Windows node without affecting scheduled entries, and entries are triggered regardless of whether or not the iFIX WorkSpace is running.
You can create multiple schedules, which allows you to organize and easily maintain entries. Each schedule can be configured individually to run as a background or foreground task. Also, as you add events to a schedule, you can choose whether or not to start monitoring them immediately, or to wait until the next time the iFIX WorkSpace starts.
The Scheduler supports a powerful Find and Replace feature that allows you to quickly and easily modify information in a schedule. For additional information on using the Find and Replace feature, refer to the Finding and Replacing Data section of the Understanding iFIX manual.
