Repeat

A repeat rule tells herbe.calendar to create the next occurrence of a task automatically. The repeat engine works across ERP, Outlook To Do, and Google Tasks. iOS Reminders are not supported — the iOS Reminders API doesn't allow server-side task creation.

Setting a repeat rule

Long-press any ERP, Outlook, or Google task row to open the context menu, then choose Set repeat. You can also open a task and find the Repeat row in the edit form.

Setting	Description
Mode	Regularly — fires on schedule regardless of completion. After completion — fires N units after the previous occurrence was marked done.
Every / Unit	Interval: e.g. every 1 week, every 2 months.
On	For weekly rules: which day of the week.
Ends	Never, or on a specific date.
Reminder	Default lead-time copied into each new ERP occurrence (ERP tasks only).

How repeat works

herbe.calendar manages its own repeat schedule — it does not use Outlook's or Google's native recurrence. The reason is After completion mode: neither Outlook Tasks nor Google Tasks has native support for "create the next occurrence N days after I actually finish the current one." The herbe repeat engine handles this uniformly across all task sources.

In practice this means each created occurrence is an independent task in Outlook or Google, not a recurring series item. If you view your Outlook or Google tasks in another tool, you'll see individual tasks, not a recurring series.

After completion mode

When mode is set to After completion:

1. You mark the current task done.
2. herbe.calendar detects the completion on the next sync.
3. The cron computes completionDate + interval and creates a new task at that date.
4. The rule advances its next_occurrence_date to the new date.

The gap between occurrences is measured from when you actually finished, not from the original due date. This suits "review X every 3 weeks" style tasks where the cadence should flex around your actual pace.

What to know before relying on it

• Editing the original task's title or description after saving a rule does not update future occurrences. The rule stores a snapshot of the title and description at the time you saved it.
• Deleting the template task does not delete the repeat rule. Go to the task's edit form → Repeat → Don't repeat to remove the rule first.
• Each occurrence appears in Outlook or Google as an independent task. If you have other tools watching your Outlook/Google tasks, they'll see individual tasks, not a series.
• To change the schedule, open any occurrence → Set repeat → adjust settings → Save. This replaces the rule for all future occurrences.
• For Outlook and Google tasks, completion detection depends on the sync cycle. There can be a delay of up to one sync interval between marking a task done and the next occurrence being scheduled.

Limitations

Limitation	Notes
iOS Reminders	Not supported — no server-side creation API.
Non-default lists	Outlook and Google occurrences are created in the default task list. If the template task lives in a non-default list, new occurrences still go to the default.
Native recurrence	Each Outlook/Google occurrence is an independent task, not a recurring series item.