Windows Service

On Windows, the collector runs as a Scheduled Task triggered at system startup. This page provides two setup methods: importing an XML task definition, or creating the task via PowerShell.

Prerequisites

• Collector binary (ms-teams-agent.exe) placed in a permanent directory (e.g., C:\Program Files\Phenisys\)
• A valid config.yaml in the same directory
• Administrator privileges on the Windows host
• The service account must have Log on as a batch job rights

Method 1: Import XML Task Definition

Save the following XML as MSTeamsObservabilityAgent.xml, update the paths and user, then import.

XML Template

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-16"?>
<Task version="1.2" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/windows/2004/02/mit/task">
  <RegistrationInfo>
    <Author>YOURDOMAIN\youruser</Author>
    <URI>\MSTeamsObservabilityAgent</URI>
  </RegistrationInfo>
  <Triggers>
    <BootTrigger>
      <Enabled>true</Enabled>
    </BootTrigger>
  </Triggers>
  <Principals>
    <Principal id="Author">
      <UserId>YOURDOMAIN\youruser</UserId>
      <LogonType>Password</LogonType>
      <RunLevel>HighestAvailable</RunLevel>
    </Principal>
  </Principals>
  <Settings>
    <MultipleInstancesPolicy>IgnoreNew</MultipleInstancesPolicy>
    <DisallowStartIfOnBatteries>false</DisallowStartIfOnBatteries>
    <StopIfGoingOnBatteries>true</StopIfGoingOnBatteries>
    <AllowHardTerminate>true</AllowHardTerminate>
    <StartWhenAvailable>false</StartWhenAvailable>
    <RunOnlyIfNetworkAvailable>false</RunOnlyIfNetworkAvailable>
    <IdleSettings>
      <StopOnIdleEnd>true</StopOnIdleEnd>
      <RestartOnIdle>false</RestartOnIdle>
    </IdleSettings>
    <AllowStartOnDemand>true</AllowStartOnDemand>
    <Enabled>true</Enabled>
    <Hidden>false</Hidden>
    <RunOnlyIfIdle>false</RunOnlyIfIdle>
    <WakeToRun>false</WakeToRun>
    <ExecutionTimeLimit>PT0S</ExecutionTimeLimit>
    <Priority>7</Priority>
  </Settings>
  <Actions Context="Author">
    <Exec>
      <Command>"C:\Program Files\Phenisys\ms-teams-agent.exe"</Command>
      <Arguments>run --config "C:\Program Files\Phenisys\config.yaml"</Arguments>
      <WorkingDirectory>C:\Program Files\Phenisys</WorkingDirectory>
    </Exec>
  </Actions>
</Task>

Import the task

1. Update the XML:
   • Replace YOURDOMAIN\youruser with your service account
   • Replace paths under <Command>, <Arguments>, and <WorkingDirectory> with your installation path
2. Open Task Scheduler (taskschd.msc)
3. Click Import Task… in the right sidebar
4. Select your XML file
5. Enter the password for the service account when prompted

Method 2: PowerShell

Run the following in an elevated PowerShell session:

$User = "YOURDOMAIN\youruser"
$Credential = Get-Credential -UserName $User -Message "Enter your password"
$PlainPassword = $Credential.GetNetworkCredential().Password

$Action = New-ScheduledTaskAction `
  -Execute "C:\Program Files\Phenisys\ms-teams-agent.exe" `
  -Argument 'run --config "C:\Program Files\Phenisys\config.yaml"'

$Trigger = New-ScheduledTaskTrigger -AtStartup

$Settings = New-ScheduledTaskSettingsSet `
  -ExecutionTimeLimit (New-TimeSpan -Days 3) `
  -StartWhenAvailable:$true `
  -MultipleInstances "IgnoreNew" `
  -RunOnlyIfIdle:$false

$Principal = New-ScheduledTaskPrincipal `
  -UserId $User `
  -LogonType Password `
  -RunLevel Highest

$Task = New-ScheduledTask `
  -Action $Action `
  -Trigger $Trigger `
  -Settings $Settings `
  -Principal $Principal

Register-ScheduledTask `
  -TaskName "MSTeamsObservabilityAgent" `
  -InputObject $Task `
  -User $Credential.UserName `
  -Password $PlainPassword `
  -Force

Task Settings Summary

Setting	Value	Rationale
Trigger	At startup	Starts collection as soon as the host boots
Multiple instances	IgnoreNew	Prevents duplicate collector processes
Run level	HighestAvailable	Ensures network and filesystem access
Execution time limit	Unlimited (PT0S) / 3 days	Collector runs indefinitely; no hard timeout
Start when available	true (PowerShell)	Retries if the task misses its scheduled start
Stop on batteries	true	Preserves laptop battery when unplugged
Allow start on demand	true	Lets you manually trigger a run from Task Scheduler

Tip

The collector logs to stdout and stderr. To capture logs, redirect output in the <Arguments>: run --config "config.yaml" > "C:\Program Files\Phenisys\logs\agent.log" 2>&1

Verifying the Service

1. Open Task Scheduler and locate MSTeamsObservabilityAgent
2. Right-click → Run to test immediately
3. Check History tab for execution results
4. Verify data appears in your backend after one collection cycle

Stopping the Collector

To stop the running collector:

Stop-ScheduledTask -TaskName "MSTeamsObservabilityAgent"

To permanently disable:

Disable-ScheduledTask -TaskName "MSTeamsObservabilityAgent"

To remove:

Unregister-ScheduledTask -TaskName "MSTeamsObservabilityAgent" -Confirm:$false