Documentation | Retriever AI

Turn any successful workflow into a scheduled task that runs on autopilot. Schedule from the Chrome Extension for local execution using your logged-in sessions, or export to Cloud for 24/7 headless operation. Perfect for price tracking, inventory monitoring, job board scraping, news aggregation, and competitive analysis.

Creating a Schedule

01
Run a task successfully in the chat
02
Click "Schedule" on the agent's response
03
Set a title and choose frequency: once, hourly, daily, weekly, or custom cron
04
Pick your start time and configure advanced options
05
Save — your schedule is now active

Browser Execution (Chrome Extension)

Scheduled tasks run in your Chrome browser using your existing logged-in sessions — no re-authentication required. Tasks execute while your browser is open. If a scheduled run is missed (browser closed), it runs automatically when Chrome reopens.

text

Schedule set for 9 AM → Browser closed overnight → Opens at 10 AM → Task runs immediately

Smart Tab Reuse

Configure schedules to reuse matching open tabs instead of opening new ones. This can reduce sign-in churn on authenticated sites where the session is still valid.

01
In Schedule Config, find "Tab Execution Mode"
02
Select "Reuse matching open tabs when possible"
03
Keep your target site open in a tab
04
The agent uses your existing logged-in session

Auto-Append to Sheets

Build a master tracking sheet that grows over time. Configure your schedule to append new data as rows to the same Google Sheet instead of creating a new sheet each run.

01
In Schedule Config, expand the workflow step
02
Find "Sheet Output Configuration"
03
Select "Append to same sheet on each run"
04
Each scheduled run adds new rows to your master sheet

text

Daily job scrape → New listings append as rows → One sheet tracks all jobs over time

Multi-Step Workflows

Chain multiple workflows together in a single schedule. Each step can have its own tab handling and sheet configuration. Steps can pass context using "Reuse tabs from previous step."

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Step 1: Scrape job listings → Step 2: Analyze fit with resume → Step 3: Export to tracking sheet

Cloud Scheduling (24/7)

Export workflows to rtrvr.ai Cloud for execution on headless browsers that run 24/7 — even when your laptop is closed. Cloud schedules support the same features (sheet append, multi-step, recordings) plus cron expressions and notification delivery.

A cloud schedule runs one of three targets, chosen on the Workflow tab of the Schedule modal (Cloud → Schedules): a saved execution (replay a completed cloud run — the default), a prompt (up to 4,000 characters, with up to 20 optional start URLs), or tools (1–10 of your saved custom/MCP tools, run in order with the parameters you fill in). The createSchedule / updateSchedule callables take the same choice as a target object; a request with only sourceExecutionId still means the execution kind.

json

// target: prompt
{
  "name": "Daily price check",
  "target": {
    "kind": "prompt",
    "userInput": "Open each competitor's pricing page and summarize what changed since the last run",
    "urls": ["https://example.com/pricing"]
  },
  "frequency": { "unit": "days", "every": 1 },
  "timeZone": "America/New_York"
}

// target: tools (ordered saved-tool steps)
{
  "name": "Sync leads to Slack",
  "target": {
    "kind": "tools",
    "steps": [
      { "toolName": "fetchNewLeads", "parameters": { "since": "24h" } },
      { "toolName": "postLeadsToSlack" }
    ]
  },
  "frequency": { "unit": "hours", "every": 6 }
}

// target: execution (replay a completed cloud run)
{ "target": { "kind": "execution", "sourceExecutionId": "exec_123" } }

Cron Expressions

json

{
  "schedule": {
    "type": "cron",
    "expression": "0 */6 * * *",
    "timezone": "America/New_York"
  }
}

Pattern	Meaning
0 9 * * 1-5	Weekdays at 9 AM
0 /2 * *	Every 2 hours
0 0 1 * *	First day of each month
0 0 * * 0	Every Sunday at midnight

API-Based Schedule Creation

bash

POST /schedules

{
  "name": "Daily Price Check",
  "prompt": "Check product prices on competitor websites",
  "schedule": {
    "type": "recurring",
    "interval": "daily",
    "time": "09:00",
    "timezone": "UTC"
  },
  "webhook_url": "https://your-app.com/price-updates",
  "active": true
}

Monitoring & Alerts

Get notifications when cloud schedules complete via email, Slack, Discord, or WhatsApp. Set up change-detection alerts for monitoring pipelines:

json

{
  "monitoring": {
    "enabled": true,
    "alert_on_change": true,
    "alert_threshold": 0.1
  },
  "notifications": [
    { "type": "email", "address": "alerts@yourcompany.com" },
    { "type": "slack", "webhook": "https://hooks.slack.com/..." }
  ]
}

Schedule Management

Manage schedules from the Schedules dropdown in the extension side panel, the Cloud dashboard, or programmatically via API:

bash

GET    /schedules                          # List all
GET    /schedules/{id}                     # Details
PUT    /schedules/{id}                     # Update
POST   /schedules/{id}/pause               # Pause
POST   /schedules/{id}/resume              # Resume
DELETE /schedules/{id}                     # Delete
GET    /schedules/{id}/executions          # History

Execution History

json

{
  "executions": [
    {
      "id": "exec_123",
      "started_at": "2025-01-01T09:00:00Z",
      "completed_at": "2025-01-01T09:02:15Z",
      "status": "completed",
      "result": { ... },
      "duration": 135.2
    }
  ],
  "stats": {
    "total_executions": 30,
    "success_rate": 96.7,
    "average_duration": 142.5
  }
}

Error Handling

01
Automatic retries with exponential backoff for transient failures
02
Alert notifications for persistent failures
03
Automatic schedule pausing after repeated failures
04
Full error details in execution history

Best Practices

01
Test schedules with a one-time execution before enabling recurring runs
02
Use tab reuse for authenticated sites to avoid login walls
03
Use sheet append mode to build historical datasets over time
04
Set appropriate intervals — don't overwhelm target sites
05
Use webhooks for real-time notifications on completion
06
Monitor execution history to spot performance degradation early
07
Consider timezone differences for global operations

Platform Availability

Capability	Extension	Cloud	API
Create schedules from chat	✅	—	—
Local browser execution	✅	—	—
Smart tab reuse	✅	—	—
24/7 headless execution	—	✅	✅
Cron expressions	—	✅	✅
Auto-append to sheets	✅	✅	✅
Multi-step workflows	✅	✅	✅
Email / Slack / Discord alerts	—	✅	✅
API-based management	—	✅	✅
Missed-run catch-up	✅	—	—

Pattern

Meaning

0 9 * * 1-5

Weekdays at 9 AM

0 */2 * * *

Every 2 hours

0 0 1 * *

First day of each month

0 0 * * 0

Every Sunday at midnight

Capability

Extension

Cloud

API

Create schedules from chat

✅

—

Local browser execution

✅

—

Smart tab reuse

✅

—

24/7 headless execution

—

✅

Cron expressions

—

✅

Auto-append to sheets

✅

Multi-step workflows

✅

Email / Slack / Discord alerts

—

✅

API-based management

—

✅

Missed-run catch-up

✅

—

Schedules

Creating a Schedule

Browser Execution (Chrome Extension)

Smart Tab Reuse

Auto-Append to Sheets

Multi-Step Workflows

Cloud Scheduling (24/7)

Cron Expressions

API-Based Schedule Creation

Monitoring & Alerts

Schedule Management

Execution History

Error Handling

Best Practices

Platform Availability

Run the example on a real site.

Schedules

Creating a Schedule

Browser Execution (Chrome Extension)

Smart Tab Reuse

Auto-Append to Sheets

Multi-Step Workflows

Cloud Scheduling (24/7)

Cron Expressions

API-Based Schedule Creation

Monitoring & Alerts

Schedule Management

Execution History

Error Handling

Best Practices

Platform Availability

Run the example on a real site.