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Cron Jobs Overview

Hiro CRM uses scheduled cron jobs to automate routine tasks like syncing reservations, sending notifications, and executing marketing automations.

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Master Cron Endpoint

GET /api/cron/master
The master cron consolidates all scheduled tasks into a single endpoint, optimized for Vercel Hobby Plan which allows only 2 cron jobs.

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Configuration

export const dynamic = 'force-dynamic';
export const maxDuration = 300; // 5 minutes

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Executed Endpoints

The master cron calls these endpoints sequentially:
  1. /api/cron/sync - Sync reservations from PMS
  2. /api/cron/calendar-notifications - Send calendar event notifications
  3. /api/cron/calendar-reminders - Send calendar reminders
  4. /api/cron/ticket-notifications - Send ticket notifications
  5. /api/cron/ticket-reminders - Send ticket reminders
  6. /api/cron/automations - Execute active marketing automations

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Authentication

All cron endpoints require CRON_SECRET in the Authorization header: 
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_CRON_SECRET
Set CRON_SECRET environment variable to a strong random string. Never expose this value publicly.

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Example Request

curl -X GET https://your-domain.com/api/cron/master \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_CRON_SECRET"

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Example Response

{
  "success": true,
  "master": true,
  "timestamp": "2026-03-04T10:00:00.000Z",
  "results": [
    {
      "endpoint": "/api/cron/sync",
      "status": 200,
      "data": {
        "success": true,
        "synced": 142
      }
    },
    {
      "endpoint": "/api/cron/automations",
      "status": 200,
      "data": {
        "success": true,
        "executed": 3,
        "totalSent": 45
      }
    },
    {
      "endpoint": "/api/cron/calendar-notifications",
      "error": "No notifications to send"
    }
  ]
}

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Individual Cron Endpoints

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Sync

Endpoint: GET /api/cron/sync Synchronizes reservations from CoverManager and other PMS systems. Timeout: 60 seconds Frequency: Every 15 minutes (recommended) Response: 
{
  "success": true,
  "timestamp": "2026-03-04T10:00:00.000Z",
  "summary": [
    {
      "location": "La Tasca Madrid · Centro",
      "result": {
        "status": "success",
        "reservations": 67
      }
    }
  ]
}
See also: Sync Reservations

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Automations

Endpoint: GET /api/cron/automations Executes all active marketing automations (birthday campaigns, re-engagement, VIP rewards). Timeout: 300 seconds (5 minutes) Frequency: Daily or every 30 minutes (depending on automation type) Response: 
{
  "success": true,
  "timestamp": "2026-03-04T10:00:00.000Z",
  "total": 5,
  "executed": 5,
  "failed": 0,
  "statistics": {
    "totalProcessed": 245,
    "totalSent": 238,
    "totalSkipped": 5,
    "totalFailed": 2
  },
  "details": [
    {
      "automationId": "auto-uuid-1",
      "automationName": "Cumpleaños VIP",
      "success": true,
      "processed": 12,
      "sent": 12,
      "skipped": 0,
      "failed": 0
    }
  ]
}
See also: Run Automation

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Calendar Notifications

Endpoint: GET /api/cron/calendar-notifications Sends notifications for upcoming calendar events. Timeout: 60 seconds Frequency: Every 15 minutes (recommended)

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Calendar Reminders

Endpoint: GET /api/cron/calendar-reminders Sends reminders for calendar events. Timeout: 60 seconds Frequency: Hourly or every 30 minutes

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Ticket Notifications

Endpoint: GET /api/cron/ticket-notifications Sends notifications for new or updated support tickets. Timeout: 60 seconds Frequency: Every 15 minutes

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Ticket Reminders

Endpoint: GET /api/cron/ticket-reminders Sends reminders for open tickets nearing SLA deadlines. Timeout: 60 seconds Frequency: Every 4 hours

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Vercel Cron Configuration

Add to vercel.json: 
{
  "crons": [
    {
      "path": "/api/cron/master",
      "schedule": "*/15 * * * *"
    }
  ]
}
Schedule formats:
  • */15 * * * * - Every 15 minutes
  • 0 * * * * - Every hour
  • 0 9 * * * - Daily at 9:00 AM
  • 0 0 * * 0 - Weekly on Sunday at midnight

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Error Handling

Cron jobs implement graceful error handling:
  • Individual endpoint failures don’t stop the master cron
  • Errors are logged and returned in the results array
  • Failed tasks are retried on the next cron execution

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Example Error Response

{
  "success": true,
  "master": true,
  "results": [
    {
      "endpoint": "/api/cron/sync",
      "error": "PMS API timeout"
    }
  ]
}

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Monitoring

All cron executions are logged: 
logger.info("Master cron execution completed", "MasterCron", {
  timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
  endpoints: endpoints.length,
  results: results.length
});
Monitor logs in your hosting platform (Vercel, Railway, etc.) for:
  • Execution frequency
  • Error rates
  • Performance metrics
  • API call volumes

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Best Practices

Use the master cron endpoint for Vercel Hobby Plan deployments
Set appropriate timeout durations for each task
Monitor cron execution logs for failures
Test cron endpoints manually before scheduling
Rotate CRON_SECRET periodically for security
Cron jobs on Vercel Hobby Plan have a 10-second timeout by default. Use maxDuration to extend this.

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Debugging Cron Jobs

Manually trigger cron endpoints for testing: 
# Test master cron
curl -X GET https://your-domain.com/api/cron/master \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_CRON_SECRET"

# Test individual sync
curl -X GET https://your-domain.com/api/cron/sync \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_CRON_SECRET"

# Test automations
curl -X GET https://your-domain.com/api/cron/automations \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_CRON_SECRET"

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Alternative Schedulers

Besides Vercel Cron, you can use:
  • GitHub Actions (scheduled workflows)
  • Render Cron Jobs (if deploying on Render)
  • Railway Cron (if deploying on Railway)
  • External services (cron-job.org, EasyCron)
All require the CRON_SECRET for authentication.

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