---
title: Templates & auto-schedule
description: Save reusable board layouts and let OnAirFlow create your daily shows automatically on the days and time you choose.
order: 7
---

If you run the same show every day, you should not rebuild the board every day. Board templates capture a column layout and a set of starter stories you can reuse, and auto-schedule creates upcoming shows for you at a set time in your timezone — including carrying yesterday's unused story ideas forward. Both features require the Studio or Newsroom plan; the Creator plan does not include them.

## Board templates

Open **Templates** from the main navigation (visible to producers and admins). Each template card shows its column count, story count, how many times it has been used, and a **Default** badge if it is your organization's default.

To create one, click **New Template**:

- **Name** and an optional **Description**.
- **Columns** — start from the suggested Rundown / Queue / Done set, add your own with **New column name**, drag (or use the arrows) to reorder, and remove any you don't need. A **Block** checkbox is available per column.
- **Default Stories** — optionally add recurring segments (a title, the column they belong in, and a duration preset from 1:00 to 10:00). These are the stories every show built from this template should start with, like a cold open or weather hit.

From a template card you can edit it, delete it (with an inline confirmation — the default template cannot be deleted), or click the star to **Set as default**. Only one template can be the default at a time.

Producers can create and edit templates; deleting is admin-only. On the Creator plan, creating a template returns a "Template limit reached" error — upgrade to Studio or Newsroom for unlimited templates.

## Auto-scheduled shows

Auto-schedule creates shows ahead of time so the board is ready before your team sits down. An admin configures it under Settings in **Automation**:

- **Enable Auto-Creation** turns the feature on. On the Creator plan this is rejected with an upgrade message — auto-scheduled shows are available on Studio and Newsroom.
- **Create Shows For These Days** — pick the weekdays your show airs. Unselected days (typically weekends) are skipped entirely: on a Mon–Fri schedule, Friday's run creates Monday's show.
- **Show Title Format** — a title pattern with a `{date}` placeholder, e.g. `Live Show - {date}` becomes "Live Show - Monday, August 17, 2026".
- **Creation Time** — the hour shows are created, from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM.
- **Timezone** — Eastern, Central, Mountain, or Pacific; the creation time is interpreted in this zone.
- **Lead Time** — how many enabled days in advance to create shows, from 1 day to 1 week.

A **Schedule Preview** at the bottom of the page spells out exactly when shows will be created and which days get skipped. Click **Save Settings** to apply.

## How auto-creation behaves

The scheduler runs every 15 minutes and creates shows within a 15-minute window of your chosen time. It is safe by design:

- If a show already exists for a date, nothing is created — auto-schedule never duplicates or overwrites a show you made manually.
- Each new show gets your organization's default columns (or the built-in Story Ideas / Working / Ready / Done set if you haven't customized them).
- Stories sitting in the previous show's **Story Ideas** or **Backlog** column are copied into the new show's first column, including their notes, attachments, and comments — unused pitches roll forward instead of dying with yesterday's rundown.
- Auto-creation pauses automatically if your subscription lapses.

## Manual show creation still works

Auto-schedule is additive. You can always create a show by hand from the board's show menu, and manual creation follows the same rules: default columns, plus the story-ideas carry-over from your most recent show. When creating manually you can also copy stories from a specific past show and choose which columns to copy from.

## Related

- Timing your recurring segments starts with planned durations — see [Show clock & timers](/docs/guide/clock-and-timers).
- Past shows created by the scheduler are browsable like any other — see [Exports & archive](/docs/guide/exports-and-archive).