How to Run pyLoad as a Windows Service with AlwaysUp

pyLoad is a lightweight download manager written in Python.

Unfortunately running as a daemon isn't supported on Windows but AlwaysUp fixes that.

To set up pyLoad as a Windows Service with AlwaysUp:

1. If necessary, install pyLoad. Configure pyLoad and ensure that the web interface operates as you expect.

   The "pip install pyload-ng" command worked like a charm on our server:

   

   And pyLoad was available at the default address:

   

2. Download and install AlwaysUp, if necessary.

3. Start AlwaysUp.

4. Select Application > Add to open the Add Application window:

   

5. On the General tab:

   • In the Application field, enter the full path to the pyLoad executable, pyload.exe.

     If you don't know offhand where the program lives, open a command prompt and type where pyload.exe to find it on your computer:

     

   • In the Start the application field, choose Automatically, but shortly after the computer boots. This tell AlwaysUp to launch pyload.exe a couple of minutes after boot — after all the machine's critical services are fully up and running.

   • In the Name field, enter the name that you will call the application in AlwaysUp. We went with PyLoad but you can specify another name that you prefer.

   

6. Move to the Startup tab and check the Ensure that the Windows Networking components have started box. This informs AlwaysUp that pyLoad needs the TCP/IP networking stack to perform downloads.

   

7. We're done configuring pyLoad so click the Save button. In a couple of seconds, an application called PyLoad (or whatever you called it) will show up in the AlwaysUp window. It's not yet running though and the state will be "Stopped":

   

8. To start pyLoad, choose Application > Start "PyLoad". After a few seconds, the state will transition to "Running" and the download manager will be working in the background:

   

   Since everything is in place, now is a good time to confirm that Pyload opens in your browser. It worked well on our machine:

   

9. That's it! Next time your computer boots, pyLoad will start up immediately, before anyone logs on.

   We encourage you to edit pyLoad in AlwaysUp and check out the many other settings that may be appropriate for your environment.

   For example, you can:

   • install a web server health check, to automatically restart pyLoad if it ever stops serving pages;
   • send an email if pyLoad.exe crashes;
   • schedule a nightly restart, to keep the download manager "fresh" and free of memory leaks; and more

pyLoad not working properly as a Windows Service?

• Consult the AlwaysUp Troubleshooter — our online tool that can help you resolve the most common problems encountered when running an application as a Windows Service.

• From AlwaysUp, select Application > Report Activity > Today to bring up an HTML report detailing the interaction between AlwaysUp and pyLoad. The AlwaysUp Event Log Messages page explains what each message means.

• Browse the AlwaysUp FAQ for answers to commonly asked questions and troubleshooting tips.

• Contact us and we will be happy to help!