`.jobs/<slug>.yaml` schema

Routines are YAML files in .jobs/. The filename becomes the routine slug.

For the conceptual story see Routines. This page is the field-by-field reference.

Minimal valid job

schedule: "0 9 * * 1"
ownerAgent: ops-coordinator
title: "Monday triage"
prompt: "Read /inbox/. Group by urgency. Write /briefings/$DATE.md."

Every field

Trigger

Field	Type	Required	Default	What it does
`schedule`	cron string \| `"manual"`	yes	—	Standard 5-field cron, or `"manual"` for run-on-button.
`timezone`	IANA tz	no	system	E.g., `"America/New_York"`.
`enabled`	boolean	no	`true`	Off without deleting.
`jitterMinutes`	integer	no	`0`	Random delay added per run to avoid thundering herd on cron-aligned beats.

Identity

Field	Type	Required	Default	What it does
`title`	string	yes	—	Shown in the schedule UI and approval logs.
`description`	string	no	""	One-line summary.
`tags`	string[]	no	`[]`	Free-form tags for filtering.

Execution

Field	Type	Required	Default	What it does
`ownerAgent`	agent slug	yes	—	Which persona runs this routine. Inherits its tools and memory.
`prompt`	string	yes	—	The instruction. Variables get interpolated (see below).
`model`	string	no	agent's default	Override the agent's model for this routine.
`effort`	`"low"` \| `"medium"` \| `"high"`	no	agent's default	Override reasoning effort.
`tools`	string[]	no	agent's default	Allow-list of tool names for this routine.
`requiresApproval`	boolean	no	`false`	If true, the result queues for review before landing.

Budget

Field	Type	Required	Default	What it does
`budget.maxTokens`	integer	no	inherits	Token cap per run.
`budget.maxCostUsd`	number	no	inherits	Dollar cap per run.

Outputs

Field	Type	Required	Default	What it does
`outputs`	array	no	`[]`	Hint Cabinet which files this routine writes. Powers link-checking.
`outputs[].path`	path	yes	—	Path within the cabinet, with variables interpolated.
`outputs[].kind`	string	no	inferred	E.g., `"page"`, `"data"`, `"asset"`.

Dependencies

Field	Type	Required	Default	What it does
`reads`	path[]	no	`[]`	Files the routine declares it'll read. Used for impact analysis.
`after`	string[]	no	`[]`	Slugs of jobs that must complete first.

Variable interpolation

Available in prompt, outputs[].path, and any string field:

Variable	Expands to
`$DATE`	`YYYY-MM-DD`
`$TIME`	`HH:MM`
`$YYYY-WW`	ISO week, e.g. `2026-W18`
`$WEEK`	alias for `$YYYY-WW`
`$MONTH`	`YYYY-MM`
`$AGENT`	owner agent's slug
`$CABINET`	current cabinet's id
`$RUN_ID`	unique id for this run, e.g. `r_42a8`

Complete example

schedule: "0 17 * * 5"
timezone: "America/Los_Angeles"
enabled: true
title: "Friday investor update packet"
description: "Compile the weekly metrics + cover narrative for investor.update@."
tags: [investors, weekly]

ownerAgent: revenue-analyst
prompt: |
  Compile this week's metrics into /investors/${YYYY-WW}/.
  Pull from /metrics/, /sales/pipeline.csv, /support/tickets.csv.
  End with a 3-sentence narrative for the cover email.

model: claude-opus-4-7
effort: high
budget:
  maxTokens: 80000
  maxCostUsd: 2.50

reads:
  - "/metrics/**"
  - "/sales/pipeline.csv"
  - "/support/tickets.csv"

outputs:
  - path: "investors/${YYYY-WW}/packet.md"
    kind: page
  - path: "investors/${YYYY-WW}/cover.md"
    kind: page

requiresApproval: true

Manual routines

Set schedule: "manual" for a button-driven routine. The body of the YAML is unchanged; the routine just doesn't fire on a clock.

schedule: "manual"
ownerAgent: research-lead
title: "Brief 10 competitors"
prompt: |
  Take the company name from the trigger context.
  Produce one /research/competitors/<slug>.md per competitor.

When you click Run in the UI, you can pass arguments which become available in the trigger context.

Validation

A bad job file fails at boot with exit code 6 and a precise error.

Read on

Routines (concept) — the conceptual story.
Persona schema — the agent file format.
Manifest schema — the cabinet-level config.

.jobs/<slug>.yaml schema