Auto start node.js server on boot

Can any node.js experts tell me how I might configure node JS to autostart a server when my machine boots? I'm on Windows

Solution 1:

This isn't something to configure in node.js at all, this is purely OS responsibility (Windows in your case). The most reliable way to achieve this is through a Windows Service.

There's this super easy module that installs a node script as a windows service, it's called node-windows (npm, github, documentation). I've used before and worked like a charm.

var Service = require('node-windows').Service;

// Create a new service object
var svc = new Service({
  name:'Hello World',
  description: 'The nodejs.org example web server.',
  script: 'C:\\path\\to\\helloworld.js'
});

// Listen for the "install" event, which indicates the
// process is available as a service.
svc.on('install',function(){
  svc.start();
});

svc.install();

p.s.

I found the thing so useful that I built an even easier to use wrapper around it (npm, github).

Installing it:

npm install -g qckwinsvc

Installing your service:

> qckwinsvc
prompt: Service name: [name for your service]
prompt: Service description: [description for it]
prompt: Node script path: [path of your node script]
Service installed

Uninstalling your service:

> qckwinsvc --uninstall
prompt: Service name: [name of your service]
prompt: Node script path: [path of your node script]
Service stopped
Service uninstalled

Solution 2:

If you are using Linux, macOS or Windows pm2 is your friend. It's a process manager that handle clusters very well.

You install it:

npm install -g pm2

Start a cluster of, for example, 3 processes:

 pm2 start app.js -i 3

And make pm2 starts them at boot:

 pm2 startup

It has an API, an even a monitor interface:

Go to github and read the instructions. It's easy to use and very handy. Best thing ever since forever.