Besides running a process by hand, you can have it start automatically. There are two main ways: a schedule (run at set times) and a webhook (run when another system calls a URL).

1. Schedule a process

A schedule runs a process at times you set – see Scheduling processes for the full guide. In short: create a schedule, give it a cron expression (for example 0 9 * * 1 for 9am every Monday) and a timezone, choose whether it runs on a bot or in the Cloud, and enable it. Automize fires it automatically at the next due time.

2. Webhook triggers

A webhook lets an external system start a Cloud process by sending it a request. This is how you connect Automize to things that "push" events – a form tool, a payment provider, another app's automation.

2.1 Create a webhook trigger

Open a Cloud process and add a webhook trigger.
Give it a name and create it.
Automize gives you a unique webhook URL.

Important: The secret part of the webhook URL is shown only once and can't be retrieved later – copy it as soon as you create the trigger. If you lose it, create a new one.

2.2 Use the webhook

The external system sends a POST request with a JSON body to your webhook URL.
The top-level values in that JSON become inputs to the run, available as {{inputs.<name>}} in your connector steps.
The run is queued on the server and appears under My Runs on your dashboard.
The run executes as you (the trigger's creator), so it uses your permissions and plan – the caller doesn't need an Automize account.

2.3 Managing triggers

You can revoke a trigger at any time; once revoked its URL stops working. Webhook endpoints are rate-limited to protect against abuse. Webhook triggers are a Cloud feature and require the cloudFlows plan feature.

3. Bot triggers and unattended mode

A desktop bot can also start a process automatically when something happens on the machine, without anyone pressing Play. These bot triggers include:

Interval – every set period of time.
File added / removed / changed / renamed – when a file in a watched folder changes.
Folder added / removed / changed / renamed – when a sub-folder changes.
New unread email – when an unread message arrives (Outlook).
Queue item – when a new item lands in a queue.

Each trigger can carry filter conditions – the same operators used in a decision – so it only fires for items that match, for example only .pdf files or emails from a particular sender.

3.1 Unattended (armed) mode

To run unattended, press Play on the bot with no specific process selected. This arms the bot: it watches for any of its triggers and runs the matching process when one fires, staying armed across runs until you press Stop. Pressing Play on a specific process instead runs that one straight away (attended) and takes priority over the armed triggers. The armed state can also be controlled remotely.

Triggers and webhooks