| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
schedule_alarm | Set an alarm: a countdown (30s, 5m, 2h, 1d), a specific ISO 8601 datetime, or a recurring cron expression (0 9 * * 1). Includes a message the agent will receive when it fires |
list_alarms | List active alarms with their schedule IDs, next run times, and messages |
cancel_alarm | Delete an alarm by schedule ID |
update_alarm | Enable or disable an alarm, or change its message |
What happens when an alarm fires
The workflow runs and the agent wakes with the stored message delivered as an event in its turn, alongside its standing instructions from the Message field. The alarm also carries the conversation key that was active when it was scheduled, so the agent resumes the same conversation with full context of why it set the alarm. The alarm node’s config panel shows an Active Alarms viewer so you can inspect and audit what the agent has scheduled.
Example: a daily research agent
Wire the pieces
Create an agent, wire in an Alarm node, and wire a send tool (for example a Slack node with Send Message to Channel allowlisted) so the agent can deliver results.
Write standing instructions
In Message: “You are a research assistant. When asked to monitor a topic, schedule a daily alarm. When an alarm fires, research the topic and post a summary to Slack.”
Kick it off
Run the agent once with a request like “track AI agent frameworks every morning at 9”. The agent calls
schedule_alarm with the cron 0 9 * * * and a message describing the task.Alarms are for agent self-scheduling. To run a whole workflow on a fixed schedule you define yourself, use a schedule trigger instead.