install and run mongodb as a windows service

On windows mongod.exe has native support for installing and running as a windows service.

Service Related Commands

The service related commands are:

mongod --install
mongod --service
mongod --remove
mongod --reinstall

You may also pass the following options to --install and --reinstall

--serviceName {arg}
--serviceUser {arg}
--servicePassword {arg}

The --install and --remove options install and remove the mongo daemon as a windows service respectively. The --service option starts the service. --reinstall will attempt to remove the service, and then install it. If the service is not already installed, --reinstall will still work.

Both --remove and --reinstall will stop the service if it is currently running.

To change the name of the service use --serviceName. To make mongo execute as a local or domain user, as opposed to the Local System account, use --serviceUser and --servicePassword.

Whatever other arguments you pass to mongod.exe on the command line alongside --install are the arguments that the service is configured to execute mongod.exe with. Take for example the following command line (these arguments are not required to run mongod as a service):

mongod --logpath d:\mongo\logs\logfilename.log --logappend --dbpath d:\mongo\data --directoryperdb --install

This will cause a service to be created with service name "MongoDB" and display name "Mongo DB" that will execute the following command:

mongod --logpath d:\mongo\logs\logfilename.log --logappend --dbpath d:\mongo\data --directoryperdb --service

If your file specification includes spaces, put quotes around the file specification.

mongod --logpath "d:\my mongo\logs\my log file name.log" --logappend --dbpath "d:\my mongo\data" --directoryperdb --install

Installing on Windows 7

If installing on Windows 7, you need to make sure that you're running as an administrator. To do this, open the start menu, and in the search box enter "cmd.exe." When the executable appears, right-click on it and choose "Run as administrator."

At this point, you can install MongoDB as a service with the --install option as described above.

mongos as a Windows service

For the moment (at least through 1.8.x), mongos does not yet directly support being installed as a Windows service. However, using the Windows Resource Kit available here, you can configure a Windows host to start mongos at system startup. (Tested on a Windows 7 system, with MongoDB 1.8.1):

1. Assume your mongos config file is at C:\MongoDB\mongos.conf, and
   that you've tested that it works.
2. Start cmd.exe as an administrator.
3. Install srvany.exe as a service, like this: 
   C:\Program Files\Windows Resource Kits\Tools>"C:\Program Files\Windows Resource
   Kits\Tools\instsrv.exe" mongos "C:\Program Files\Windows Resource Kits\Tools\srvany.exe"
   The output looks like this: 
   

   The service was successfuly added\!
   
   Make sure that you go into the Control Panel and use
   the Services applet to change the Account Name and
   Password that this newly installed service will use
   for its Security Context.
   

4. Start regedit.exe
5. Find the subkey

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\mongos

6. Right click on mongos, select New > Key. Name the key Parameters.
7. Select the Parameters key.
8. Right click in the right window. Select New > String Value. Name
   the new value Application.
9. Modify Application's value to be the full path to mongos.exe
   (e.g., c:\mongodb\bin\mongos.exe)
10. Right click in the right window again. Select New > String Value.
    Name the new value AppParameters.
11. Modify AppParameters's value to be the arguments to mongos (e.g.,
    --config C:\mongodb\mongos.conf)
12. To verify that the service can be started, try NET START mongos.