From ADAM - Academic Data Management for Schools

See also: Cron

The cron status message allows administrator's to keep tabs on the automated side of ADAM. If a red error message is displayed, it indicates that the cron script has not been run in over 24 hours. This is normally an indication that the cron script has not been configured correctly.

The ADAM Administrator should see to it that this script is set up: ADAM uses this "heartbeat" in order to manage and maintain several behind-the-scenes activities.