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Cron Job on Windows

Windows has no native cron daemon. This guide covers the three real options: Task Scheduler (built-in), WSL crontab (real cron syntax), and third-party cron software - with the trade-offs of each.

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Windows Cron Equivalent: Task Scheduler

Task Scheduler is the native Windows tool for running scripts and programs on a schedule. It covers everything cron does and more - GUI-based, supports triggers based on time, events, startup and user login. The main difference: no cron expression syntax. Schedules are configured through a dialog instead. Official reference: Task Scheduler documentation on Microsoft Learn.

Create a Scheduled Task via GUI

1. Open Task Scheduler

Press Win + R, type taskschd.msc and press Enter. Or search "Task Scheduler" in the Start menu. Works on Windows 10, Windows 11 and Windows Server.

2. Create Basic Task

Click "Create Basic Task" in the right panel. Give it a name, set the trigger (daily, weekly, on startup...) and point it to your script or program.

3. Run whether logged on or not

In the task properties, under General, select "Run whether user is logged on or not". Otherwise the task only runs when your user is active. This is the most commonly missed setting for server tasks.

4. Set the working directory

In the "Action" step, the "Start in" field sets the working directory. Without it, relative paths in your script will fail - same as the cron PATH problem on Linux.

Create a Task via PowerShell or Command Line

For automation and scripting, schtasks and PowerShell are more practical than the GUI - and the only way to script task creation from a deployment pipeline:

# Run a Python script daily at 2 AM
$action = New-ScheduledTaskAction -Execute "python.exe" -Argument "C:\scripts\backup.py"
$trigger = New-ScheduledTaskTrigger -Daily -At "02:00"
Register-ScheduledTask -TaskName "DailyBackup" -Action $action -Trigger $trigger -RunLevel Highest

# Using schtasks (command line / cmd.exe)
schtasks /create /tn "DailyBackup" /tr "python C:\scripts\backup.py" /sc daily /st 02:00 /ru SYSTEM

# Run a task immediately, on demand
schtasks /run /tn "DailyBackup"

# List all scheduled tasks
schtasks /query /fo list

Real Crontab on Windows with WSL

If you want actual cron syntax on Windows, WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) gives you a full Linux environment, including a real crontab. This is the option developers reach for - same syntax you already know, same crontab files you can copy to a Linux server later.

# Enable WSL (PowerShell as Administrator)
wsl --install

# Inside WSL, install and start cron:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install cron
sudo service cron start

# Edit the WSL crontab exactly like on Linux:
crontab -e

A typical WSL crontab entry looks identical to a Linux one - the syntax does not change:

0 2 * * * /usr/bin/python3 /home/user/backup.py >> /home/user/backup.log 2>&1

WSL crontab does not start automatically on Windows boot

This is the single biggest gotcha with WSL cron. WSL does not run in the background by default - the cron daemon stops the moment the WSL session ends, which happens when you close your last WSL terminal window. Three ways to work around it:

Keep a WSL terminal open - simplest, but fragile on a server that reboots or where you log out.
Launch via Windows Task Scheduler on startup - create a scheduled task that runs wsl sudo service cron start at system boot.
Use a WSL systemd distro - newer WSL versions support systemd (/etc/wsl.conf with boot.systemd=true), which keeps cron running more reliably across sessions.

For anything running unattended on a server, plain Task Scheduler is usually more reliable than WSL cron - WSL is best suited to development environments where you control when the machine is on.

Third-Party Cron Software for Windows

If neither Task Scheduler nor WSL fits, there is a small category of dedicated cron-syntax schedulers built for Windows:

NSSM

Non-Sucking Service Manager wraps any script or executable as a Windows Service. Good for scripts that need to run continuously or on a tight interval without Task Scheduler's overhead.

cronw / similar wrappers

Small open-source tools that parse real cron expressions and run as a Windows background process, giving you cron syntax without WSL. Useful if your team already has crontab files to reuse as-is.

Commercial job schedulers

Enterprise tools (e.g. job scheduling suites used in regulated industries) offer cron-like scheduling plus retries, alerting and dependency chains - overkill for a single script, useful at scale.

Which Option to Use

Feature	Task Scheduler	WSL crontab	3rd-party software
Built-in, no install	Yes	No (needs WSL)	No
Real cron syntax	No	Yes	Sometimes
Survives reboot unattended	Yes	Needs extra setup	Usually yes
Best for	Production servers	Dev environments	Cross-platform teams

Linux vs Windows Scheduling Comparison

Feature	Linux cron	Windows Task Scheduler
Minimum interval	1 minute	1 minute (or on trigger events)
Syntax	Cron expressions	GUI / XML / PowerShell
Run as different user	Yes (`crontab -u`)	Yes (run as SYSTEM or specific user)
Run on startup	`@reboot`	Startup trigger
Logging	Redirect to file	Task history in Event Viewer
Environment variables	Minimal (set explicitly)	Inherits from user or SYSTEM

Using WSL or need a cron expression for another platform?

Our generator works for Linux, AWS, Kubernetes and more. If you are using WSL, it is standard Linux cron syntax.

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