julien-workflow-queuing-background-tasks

name	julien-workflow-queuing-background-tasks
description	Queue long-running tasks (transcoding, API calls, batch processing) to run in background at low priority when user is active, normal priority when idle. Use when scripts take minutes/hours and shouldn't impact PC performance during active use.
triggers	["queue task","background job","idle queue","low priority task","run when idle","qm add","idle-queue","schedule this task","planifier cette tâche","deferred job","transcode video","transcoder vidéo","convert video background","ffmpeg background","ffmpeg en arrière-plan","conversion longue","long conversion","render video","faire le rendu","render vidéo en tâche de fond","encode footage","run blender render","convert mkv","script takes long","script prend du temps","long running script","slow script","script lent","batch processing","traitement par lot","this is taking forever","ça prend une éternité","queue heavy python script","without blocking","sans bloquer","don't block PC","ne pas bloquer le PC","keep PC responsive","garder le PC réactif","run without impact","low priority execution","don't slow down my machine","ne ralentis pas ma machine","keep my system responsive","resource-intensive task","tâche gourmande en ressources","heavy computation","calcul lourd","run in background","exécuter en arrière-plan","lancer en arrière-plan","background execution","execute when idle","exécuter quand inactif","run this when I'm away","exécute quand je ne suis pas là","process when computer is idle","do this asynchronously","faisons cela de manière asynchrone","bulk API calls","mass translation","batch encode","multiple file conversion","heavy task","tâche lourde","compress files when idle","traiter photos RAW","background ML training","train machine learning model","batch OCR","large file processing","traitement de gros fichiers","process data overnight","large data export","exportation volumineuse","scrape website background","pipeline data nightly","run backup background","compile in background","keep working while this runs","continuer à travailler pendant que ça tourne","encoder des vidéos","encode videos"]

Idle Queue - Background Task Manager

Queue manager that runs jobs at low priority when user is active, and normal priority when idle (5min inactivity).

Prerequisites

• Python 3.10+
• Service must be running before adding jobs
• Windows only (uses Windows API for idle detection)

Quick Start

Verified behavior: When user is active, jobs run at IDLE priority (4) - your PC stays responsive. After 5 minutes idle, priority increases for faster execution. Only 1 job runs when active.

# 1. Start the service (keep this terminal open)
qm start --foreground

# 2. In another terminal, add a job
qm add "python my_script.py" --name "My Task"

# 3. Monitor
qm list
qm logs 1

Service Startup

Manual start

qm start                   # Background (daemon)
qm start --foreground      # With dashboard at http://127.0.0.1:8742

Auto-start at login (Windows)

# Create shortcut in startup folder
# Target: pythonw -m idle_queue.cli start
# Or add to Task Scheduler

Check if service is running

qm status                  # Shows service status
curl http://127.0.0.1:8742/api/status  # API check

When to Use

• Scripts taking > 30 seconds
• Batch processing (transcoding, conversions)
• API-heavy operations (translations, LLM calls)
• Any task that shouldn't block user work

CLI Commands

All commands via python -m idle_queue.cli or qm (if installed):

# Add a job to queue
qm add "python script.py" --name "My Task"
qm add "ffmpeg -i in.mp4 out.webm" --name "Transcode" --cwd "C:/videos"
qm add  --force  


qm list                    
qm list --status pending   


qm status <>             
qm logs <>               
qm logs <> --follow      


qm cancel <>             
qm retry <>              
qm force <>              


qm start                   
qm start --foreground      
qm stop                    


qm config show             
qm config  workers.max_when_idle 4