Configuring Windows environment variables

Environment variables are named values the operating system and applications use to configure behavior and locate files. Informer relies on several of them, and a missing or inaccurate one tends to fail quietly: a feature that depends on an executable Informer cannot find simply stops working, and an upgrade can fail outright and leave Informer unable to start.

Verify these on your Windows Server after a first-time install and again before every upgrade. Some are not added automatically by the installer.

Default paths

By default these applications install to the C:\ drive, but yours may differ. Adjust the values for your deployment.

The variables Informer needs

All of these live under System Variables in System Properties.

Variable	Value
ES_HOME	<RootInformerInstallDirectory>\Elastic\Elasticsearch\
JAVA_HOME	C:\Program Files\Amazon Corretto\jdk1.8.0_###
PM2_HOME or INFORMER_HOME	C:\Entrinsik\Informer5
PM2_SERVICE_PM2_DIR	C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\npm\node_modules\pm2\index.js
PM2_SERVICE_SCRIPTS	C:\Entrinsik\Informer5\service.config.json

The Path system variable should include:

C:\OpenSSL-Win64\bin
C:\Program Files (x86)\PDFtk Server\bin
C:\Program Files\nodejs\
C:\Program Files\wkhtmltopdf\bin
C:\Program Files\PostgreSQL\##\bin
C:\Program Files\Redis\
C:\Program Files\Amazon Corretto\jdk#.#.#_###\bin
C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\npm
C:\Program Files\Python310\
C:\Program Files\Python310\Scripts\

The # characters stand in for the version numbers on your server. Check the actual folder names under C:\Program Files and use those.

Adding or editing a variable

You need administrator access to the server to change System Variables, and the directory path you want to add.

1. Open the Environment Variables screen

   Press Windows + R, type sysdm.cpl, and press Enter to open System Properties. Click the Advanced tab, then Environment Variables at the bottom right.

2. Work in System Variables, not User variables

   The screen has two sections. User variables apply to one account; System Variables apply to every account on the computer, which is what Informer needs. Informer runs as a service, so a value set only for your own account is invisible to it.

3. Add or edit the variable

   For a new variable, click New under System Variables and enter the name and value. To extend Path, select it, click Edit, then New, and enter the full directory path on its own line.

4. Close every dialog with OK

   Click OK on the edit dialog, OK on the Environment Variables window, and OK on System Properties. A change abandoned with Cancel at any of these three is not saved.

5. Verify in a new terminal

   Open a new Command Prompt or PowerShell window and run the executable you added by name, with no path. openssl version and node --version are good checks. If the command runs, the entry is live.

Troubleshooting

• The command is still not found. Open a fresh Command Prompt or PowerShell window. A terminal reads Path when it starts, so a window that was already open still has the old value. Restart the Informer service too, for the same reason.
• Permission denied when saving. System Variables need administrator rights. Right-click the application and choose Run as administrator, then try again.
• The entry looks right but nothing resolves. Windows separates Path entries with a semicolon and adds it for you. Do not type a trailing ; on your entry, and check for a stray space at the end of the path.
• Informer starts but a feature that shells out fails. Confirm the directory you added is the one holding the .exe, usually a bin folder, not the application's install root.