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English

Nederlands

Disable WP Cron Jobs ​

By default, WordPress handles its scheduled tasks — like checking for updates or publishing scheduled posts — through a script called wp-cron.php.

This "pseudo-cron" system is convenient, but it only runs when someone actually visits your website. That can cause two problems:

  • On high-traffic sites: the script fires on every page load, wasting valuable server resources.
  • On low-traffic sites: scheduled tasks may be skipped entirely if no one visits at the right time.

In addition, if your site uses full-page caching (such as Varnish or Cloudflare), visitors may receive a cached version of the page without ever "hitting" WordPress. When that happens, wp-cron.php won't trigger at all — making a system-level cron job essential.

The solution is to disable the internal WordPress cron and replace it with a system-based cron job that runs on a fixed schedule.


Step 1 — Disable the internal WordPress cron ​

To stop WordPress from running the cron script on every page load, you need to edit your wp-config.php file.

  1. Log in to your OS Cloud panel and open the File Manager.
  2. Navigate to your website's root directory: /public_html/.
  3. Find the wp-config.php file, right-click it, and select Edit.
  4. Scroll to the bottom of the file and find this line:
    /* That's all, stop editing! Happy blogging. */
  5. Just above that line, paste the following code:
    php
    define('DISABLE_WP_CRON', true);
  6. Click Save Changes.

Step 2 — Set up a system cron job ​

Now that the internal trigger is disabled, you'll need to tell the server to run the script manually on a fixed schedule.

  1. Return to the OS Cloud panel dashboard.
  2. Select your website and go to Advanced → Developer Tools.
  3. Click Cron Jobs in the left-hand sidebar.
  4. Click Add Cron Job.
  5. Set the Execution Type and Interval, then save.

Important: After completing this setup, keep an eye on your site's functionality to make sure scheduled tasks are running as expected. You can adjust the schedule at any time from the Cron Jobs management area in your panel.