---
title: Playback Modes
description: "A schedule is a plan for an ideal night; real nights have autofocus runs, safety holds, and cloud bands. Playback mode decides how NINA follows the plan when reality has pushed it off the timeline. [![](https://astro-pm.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-12-133440.png)](https://astro-pm.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-12-133440.png) ### Time-Aware (default) After…"
url: "https://astro-pm.com/docs/playback-modes/"
updated: "2026-07-12"
category: Astro PM NINA Guide
---

# Playback Modes

A schedule is a plan for an ideal night; real nights have autofocus runs, safety holds, and cloud bands. Playback mode decides how NINA follows the plan when reality has pushed it off the timeline.

   [![](https://astro-pm.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-12-133440.png)](https://astro-pm.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-12-133440.png)

### Time-Aware (default)

After a delay, the container **jumps to the entry that should be running right now** according to the clock. A 40-minute safety closure means those exposures are skipped and the night stays on schedule – filters keep matching the plan’s moon windows, and later targets start on time. This is the right mode for most automated setups, especially where safety closures happen.

### Sequential

Entries run **strictly in order, never skipping**. After a delay the night simply runs behind plan, and a block captures fewer subs if it runs out of window. Choose this when capturing every planned sub in order matters more than tracking the timeline – short interruptions, forgiving targets.

### Choosing

The setting lives in the desktop simulator’s Step 1 (per rig) and is read at the start of each block, so a change mid-night takes effect at the next block. When in doubt: **Time-Aware**. The block end time is a hard boundary in both modes – neither will overrun into the next target’s window.