docs-v2/content/telegraf/v1.17/administration/windows_service.md

title	description	menu
Running Telegraf as a Windows service	How to configure Telegraf as a Windows service using PowerShell.	telegraf_1_17 name weight parent Running as Windows service 20 Administration

Telegraf natively supports running as a Windows service.

The following commands are available:

Command	Effect
telegraf.exe --service install	Install telegraf as a service
telegraf.exe --service uninstall	Remove the telegraf service
telegraf.exe --service start	Start the telegraf service
telegraf.exe --service stop	Stop the telegraf service

Outlined below are the general steps to install Telegraf as a Service.

{{% note %}} Installing a Windows service requires administrative permissions. Be sure to launch Powershell as administrator. {{% /note %}}

1. Download the Telegraf binary and unzip its contents to C:\Program Files\InfluxData\Telegraf.

2. In PowerShell, run the following as an administrator:

   > cd "C:\Program Files\InfluxData\Telegraf"
   > .\telegraf.exe --service install --config "C:\Program Files\InfluxData\Telegraf\telegraf.conf"
   

   When installing Telegraf as a Windows service, provide the absolute path of the Telegraf configuration file. Otherwise the Windows service may fail to start.

3. To test that the installation works, run:

   > C:\"Program Files"\InfluxData\Telegraf\telegraf.exe --config C:\"Program Files"\InfluxData\Telegraf\telegraf.conf --test
   

4. To start collecting data, run:

   telegraf.exe --service start
   

{{% note %}}

Logging and troubleshooting

When Telegraf runs as a Windows service, Telegraf logs messages to Windows event logs. If the Telegraf service fails to start, view error logs by selecting Event Viewer→Windows Logs→Application. {{% /note %}}