Auto start node.js server on boot

This isn’t something to configure in node.js at all, this is purely OS responsibility (Windows in your case). The most reliable way to achieve this is through a Windows Service.

There’s this super easy module that installs a node script as a windows service, it’s called node-windows (npm, github, documentation). I’ve used before and worked like a charm.

var Service = require('node-windows').Service;

// Create a new service object
var svc = new Service({
  name:'Hello World',
  description: 'The nodejs.org example web server.',
  script: 'C:\\path\\to\\helloworld.js'
});

// Listen for the "install" event, which indicates the
// process is available as a service.
svc.on('install',function(){
  svc.start();
});

svc.install();

p.s.

I found the thing so useful that I built an even easier to use wrapper around it (npm, github).

Installing it:

npm install -g qckwinsvc

Installing your service:

> qckwinsvc
prompt: Service name: [name for your service]
prompt: Service description: [description for it]
prompt: Node script path: [path of your node script]
Service installed

Uninstalling your service:

> qckwinsvc --uninstall
prompt: Service name: [name of your service]
prompt: Node script path: [path of your node script]
Service stopped
Service uninstalled