Author | Chrissy LeMaire (@cl), netnerds.net |
Availability | Windows, Linux, macOS |
Want to see the source code for this command? Check out Start-DbaAgentJob on GitHub.
Want to see the Bill Of Health for this command? Check out Start-DbaAgentJob.
Starts SQL Server Agent jobs and optionally waits for completion
Starts one or more SQL Server Agent jobs that are currently idle. This function validates jobs are in an idle state before starting them and can optionally wait for job completion before returning results. You can start all jobs, specific jobs by name, or exclude certain jobs from execution. It also supports starting jobs at specific steps rather than from the beginning, which is useful for resuming failed jobs or testing individual job steps.
Start-DbaAgentJob
[-SqlCredential <PSCredential>]
[-Job <String[]>]
[-StepName <String>]
[-ExcludeJob <String[]>]
[-AllJobs]
[-Wait]
[-Parallel]
[-WaitPeriod <Int32>]
[-SleepPeriod <Int32>]
[-EnableException]
[-WhatIf]
[-Confirm]
[<CommonParameters>]
Start-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance <DbaInstanceParameter[]>
[-SqlCredential <PSCredential>]
[-Job <String[]>]
[-StepName <String>]
[-ExcludeJob <String[]>]
[-AllJobs]
[-Wait]
[-Parallel]
[-WaitPeriod <Int32>]
[-SleepPeriod <Int32>]
[-EnableException]
[-WhatIf]
[-Confirm]
[<CommonParameters>]
Start-DbaAgentJob
[-SqlCredential <PSCredential>]
[-Job <String[]>]
[-StepName <String>]
[-ExcludeJob <String[]>]
-InputObject <Job[]>
[-AllJobs]
[-Wait]
[-Parallel]
[-WaitPeriod <Int32>]
[-SleepPeriod <Int32>]
[-EnableException]
[-WhatIf]
[-Confirm]
[<CommonParameters>]
PS C:\> Start-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance localhost
Starts all running SQL Agent Jobs on the local SQL Server instance
PS C:\> Get-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance sql2016 -Job cdc.DBWithCDC_capture | Start-DbaAgentJob
Starts the cdc.DBWithCDC_capture SQL Agent Job on sql2016
PS C:\> Start-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance sql2016 -Job cdc.DBWithCDC_capture
Starts the cdc.DBWithCDC_capture SQL Agent Job on sql2016
PS C:\> $servers | Find-DbaAgentJob -IsFailed | Start-DbaAgentJob
Restarts all failed jobs on all servers in the $servers collection
PS C:\> Start-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance sql2016 -AllJobs
Start all the jobs
PS C:\> Start-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance sql2016 -Job @('Job1', 'Job2', 'Job3') -Wait
This is a serialized approach to submitting jobs and waiting for each job to continue the next.
Starts Job1, waits for completion of Job1
Starts Job2, waits for completion of Job2
Starts Job3, Waits for completion of Job3
PS C:\> Start-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance sql2016 -Job @('Job1', 'Job2', 'Job3') -Wait -Parallel
This is a parallel approach to submitting all jobs and waiting for them all to complete.
Starts Job1, starts Job2, starts Job3 and waits for completion of Job1, Job2, and Job3.
PS C:\> Start-DbaAgentJob -SqlInstance sql2016 -Job JobWith5Steps -StepName Step4
Starts the JobWith5Steps SQL Agent Job at step Step4.
The target SQL Server instance or instances.
Alias | |
Required | True |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value |
Accepts SQL Agent job objects from the pipeline, typically from Get-DbaAgentJob or other dbatools functions.
Use this when chaining dbatools commands together to start jobs that meet specific criteria, such as failed jobs or jobs with certain schedules.
Alias | |
Required | True |
Pipeline | true (ByValue) |
Default Value |
Login to the target instance using alternative credentials. Accepts PowerShell credentials (Get-Credential).
Windows Authentication, SQL Server Authentication, Active Directory - Password, and Active Directory - Integrated are all supported.
For MFA support, please use Connect-DbaInstance.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value |
Specifies the names of specific SQL Agent jobs to start. Accepts job names as strings and supports multiple job names in an array.
Use this when you need to start only certain jobs instead of all jobs on the server. Job names are case-sensitive and must match exactly.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value |
Specifies the job step name where job execution should begin instead of starting from the first step.
Use this to resume a failed job at a specific step or to test individual job steps without running the entire job sequence.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value |
Specifies job names to exclude from starting when using -AllJobs or when no specific jobs are specified.
Use this to start all jobs except certain ones, such as excluding maintenance jobs during business hours or problematic jobs that need special handling.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value |
Starts all SQL Agent jobs that are currently in an idle state on the target instance.
Use this switch when you need to start all available jobs, typically after server maintenance or during bulk job execution scenarios.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value | False |
Waits for each job to complete execution before returning results or proceeding to the next job.
Use this when you need to ensure job completion before continuing your script, or when jobs have dependencies that require sequential execution.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value | False |
Starts all specified jobs simultaneously and waits for all to complete, rather than starting and waiting for each job sequentially.
Use this when jobs can run concurrently without conflicts to reduce total execution time. Requires the -Wait parameter to function.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value | False |
Sets the polling interval in seconds for checking job status when using the -Wait parameter. Defaults to 3 seconds.
Adjust this value based on your job duration - use shorter intervals for quick jobs or longer intervals for jobs that run for hours to reduce server load.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value | 3 |
Sets the initial wait time in milliseconds after starting a job before checking its status. Defaults to 300 milliseconds.
Increase this value if you experience issues with jobs not showing as started immediately, which can occur on heavily loaded servers.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value | 300 |
By default, when something goes wrong we try to catch it, interpret it and give you a friendly warning message.
This avoids overwhelming you with "sea of red" exceptions, but is inconvenient because it basically disables advanced scripting.
Using this switch turns this "nice by default" feature off and enables you to catch exceptions with your own try/catch.
Alias | |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value | False |
If this switch is enabled, no actions are performed but informational messages will be displayed that explain what would happen if the command were to run.
Alias | wi |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value |
If this switch is enabled, you will be prompted for confirmation before executing any operations that change state.
Alias | cf |
Required | False |
Pipeline | false |
Default Value |