Server Installation

Windows server installation

These steps install the LyftData server as a Windows service. All commands below must be run from an elevated PowerShell prompt.

Before you begin

Complete the installation prerequisites and install the Windows distribution (MSI recommended). Confirm lyftdata --version from an elevated PowerShell prompt.

Note

If you installed via MSI, the installer registers a disabled LyftDataServer service by default. Use lyftdata service install --replace below to apply your final configuration (env file + ACLs + service args).

MSI automation (optional)

The MSI supports a small set of public properties for unattended installs:

# Default (recommended): LocalService
msiexec /i .\lyftdata-x86_64-pc-windows-msvc.msi /qn

# Optional: LocalSystem (highly privileged; prefer a dedicated account in production)
msiexec /i .\lyftdata-x86_64-pc-windows-msvc.msi /qn LYFTDATA_MSI_SERVICE_ACCOUNT=LocalSystem

# Optional: enable auto-start and attempt to start the service during MSI install (best-effort).
# Warning: this can leave the service configured to start automatically even if `service.env` is not ready yet.
msiexec /i .\lyftdata-x86_64-pc-windows-msvc.msi /qn LYFTDATA_MSI_SERVICE_START=1

Prepare the server account

Note

Use the Windows service account template with user lyftdata and data directory C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server.

Success criteria

• Get-Service LyftDataServer reports Status : Running.
• Test-NetConnection -ComputerName localhost -Port 3000 succeeds from the server.
• The latest log file under C:\\ProgramData\\LyftData\\server\\logs\\ contains “Server started” with no error entries.

Need a trial-only setup? Start with the Evaluation Quickstart before wiring services.

Configure the service environment file

Native services load environment variables from a scoped file (instead of machine-wide registry environment variables) so secrets like API keys and initial admin passwords are not exposed to non-admin users.

Create C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server\service.env with the required settings:

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path "C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server" -Force | Out-Null

@'
# LyftData server service environment
LYFTDATA_STAGING_DIR=C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server
LYFTDATA_LICENSE_EULA_ACCEPT=yes
LYFTDATA_ADMIN_INIT_PASSWORD=ChangeMeVerySoon
'@ | Set-Content -Path "C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server\service.env" -Encoding UTF8

Tip

If you prefer, you can skip creating service.env manually and run lyftdata service install --replace once to generate a template env file, edit it, then rerun the install.

Tip

Set optional environment variables (for example LYFTDATA_BIND_ADDRESS, LYFTDATA_LOG_RETENTION_DAYS, or LYFTDATA_DB_DISK_USE_MAX_PERCENT) following the guidance in installation prerequisites.

LYFTDATA_ADMIN_INIT_PASSWORD is recommended for unattended Windows services. If you omit it, LyftData does not print a generated password to the logs. Instead it writes a one-time setup link to C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server\bootstrap\initial-admin.url, which you must use locally on the server host.

Install the native service

Install the service using the built-in Windows Service Control Manager (SCM) integration:

# Install/update (default: LocalService). Use --replace for MSI installs and upgrades.
lyftdata service install --replace

# Optional: run as a dedicated local user account (recommended for production)
# lyftdata service install --replace --user ".\lyftdata" --password-stdin

Start-Service LyftDataServer

Tip

To update the service after replacing the binary, rerun lyftdata service install --replace. It preserves the existing --data-dir and --env-file unless you override them.

Verify the installation

# Check the Windows service
Get-Service LyftDataServer

# Inspect the server log (optional)
Get-ChildItem "C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server\logs\lyftdata*.log" | Sort-Object LastWriteTime | Select-Object -Last 1 | Get-Content -Tail 50

If LYFTDATA_ADMIN_INIT_PASSWORD was not supplied:

• inspect C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server\bootstrap\initial-admin.url to retrieve the one-time setup link, or
• print a fresh link locally with lyftdata server bootstrap --staging-dir "C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server" --bind-address 127.0.0.1:3000 --print-url, or
• create the first admin directly with lyftdata server create-admin --staging-dir "C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server".

Keep the service on localhost until that setup is complete. If you later bind to a non-loopback address before an admin exists, the server refuses remote bootstrap by default.

Next steps

• Open the UI at https://localhost:3000 and sign in as admin
• Review the worker installation guide to add external workers
• Follow the post-install checklist to enable metrics and create your first job

Legacy: Install with NSSM

If you are running an older LyftData build that does not include lyftdata service ..., you can still install the server service with NSSM.

Configure machine environment variables (legacy)

[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("LYFTDATA_STAGING_DIR", "C:\\ProgramData\\LyftData\\server", "Machine")
[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("LYFTDATA_LICENSE_EULA_ACCEPT", "yes", "Machine")
[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("LYFTDATA_ADMIN_INIT_PASSWORD", "ChangeMeVerySoon", "Machine")

Install the service with NSSM (legacy)

# Install the service
nssm install LyftDataServer "C:\Program Files\LyftData\lyftdata.exe" run server
nssm set LyftDataServer AppDirectory "C:\Program Files\LyftData"
nssm set LyftDataServer AppStdout "C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server\server.log"
nssm set LyftDataServer AppStderr "C:\ProgramData\LyftData\server\server-error.log"
nssm set LyftDataServer ObjectName ".\lyftdata" "<ServiceAccountPassword>"
nssm set LyftDataServer Start SERVICE_AUTO_START

# Start the service
Start-Service LyftDataServer

Replace <ServiceAccountPassword> with the password for the lyftdata service account before running the command.