This guide will install Rundeck PRO or Open Source as a Service on a Windows Server. It uses the Rundeck executable war installer.

• Download the latest Rundeck war OSS or PRO
  
• Choose a root directory (e.g. C:). This will be your %RDECK_BASE%
• Place rundeckpro-[edition]-X.X.X.war in that directory
• Go to the %RDECK_BASE% (e.g. `C:) folder and launch the installation of rundeck.

set RDECK_BASE=C:\rundeck
cd %RDECK_BASE%
java -jar rundeckpro-[edition]-X.X.X.war

• After Rundeck started, stop the process.
• Create a bat file (e.g. start_rundeck.bat) and place it under %RDECK_BASE%

set CURDIR=%~dp0
call %CURDIR%etc\profile.bat
java %RDECK_CLI_OPTS% %RDECK_SSL_OPTS% -jar rundeckpro-[edition]-X.X.X.war --skipinstall -d  >> %CURDIR%\var\logs\service.log  2>&1

• Download nssm.exe
• Place the executable under %RDECK_BASE% (you can place it elsewhere, but for the sake of the example let’s use always the root dir)
• Open a prompt and issue these commands (Administrator mode required to install a service)

    cd C:\rundeck
    nssm.exe install RUNDECK

• the GUI pops up, set “path” as %RDECK_BASE%\start_rundeck.bat , startup directory as %RDECK_BASE% (optionally set “low” on the process tab, under priority, to avoid server cpu spike when starting rundeck)

• Go to the service management console (services.msc) and you’ll find RUNDECK listed as a service. Starting it will start the rundeck process.

• set JVM memory heap on %RDECK_BASE%\etc\profile. Replace the RDECK_CLI_OPTS variable with the amount of memory that you need, for example:

....

set RDECK_CLI_OPTS=-Xms512m -Xmx2048m
set RD_LIBDIR=%RDECK_BASE%\tools\lib

Login to the GUI

By default, Rundeck will be installed in port 4440. To access Rundeck, go to the following URL: ttp://servername:4440.

Normally, it is necessary to modify the grails.serverURL property in %RDECK_BASE%\server\config\rundeck-config.properties to access the GUI. Change grails.serverURL to the server name or IP. You will need to restart the Rundeck service for the change to take effect.

After the restart, you can access the GUI at http://servername:4440/

The default username and password is “admin”

Start-Stop instances

Use the Service Windows GUI to start/stop/restart the instance

Folder Structure

+---etc
|       admin.aclpolicy => Administrator access control policy defined with a [aclpolicy] document
|       apitoken.aclpolicy => Default API ACL policies
|       cli-log4j.properties => This file defines the logging configuration for the Commandline tools.
|       framework.properties => Configuration file used by shell tools and core Rundeck services
|       preferences.properties
|       profile
|       profile.bat => Shell environment variables used by the shell tools
|       project.properties =>Rundeck project configuration file when using Filsystem based project defintions.
+---libext => Plugin folder
+---projects => Projects data (eg: resource files, project properties, etc)
+---server
|   +---config
|   |       jaas-loginmodule.conf
|   |       log4j.properties => This file defines the logging configuration for rundeck.
|   |       realm.properties => Property file user directory when PropertyFileLoginModule is used
|   |       rundeck-config.properties => This is the primary Rundeck webapp configuration file. Defines default loglevel, datasource configuration, and GUI customization.
|   |       ssl.properties => To enable SSL access to rundeck
|   +---data => H2 database
|   |       grailsdb.mv.db
|   +---lib
|   |       rundeck-core-3.0.x.jar => rundeck core 
|   +---logs => Rundeck logging 
|   |       rundeck.access.log => access to rundeck
|   |       rundeck.api.log => Api calls
|   |       rundeck.audit.log => Authorization messages pertaining to aclpolicy
|   |       rundeck.executions.log => Logs of all executions
|   |       rundeck.jobs.log => Log of all job definition changes
|   |       rundeck.log=> General Rundeck application messages
|   |       rundeck.options.log=> Logs remote HTTP requests for Options JSON data
|   |       rundeck.project.log
|   |       rundeck.storage.log=> Standard input and output generated during runtime
|   +---sbin
|   \---work
+---tools=> rd-acl client (to manage ACL validation)
\---var   => Executions Logs folder