Windows Installation

Overview

This document covers the post-installation verification and troubleshooting of AI Endpoint Shield on Windows. Use it if Akto was installed but is not sending data, or stopped working after a reboot.

How to open PowerShell as Administrator: Press Win, type powershell, right-click Windows PowerShell, and choose Run as administrator.

Troubleshooting

1

Run the full status check

Paste this into an elevated PowerShell and press Enter:

$d = "C:\Program Files\Akto Endpoint Shield"
Write-Host "--- Binary ---"
Test-Path "$d\akto-endpoint-shield.exe"
& "$d\akto-endpoint-shield.exe" --version 2>&1

Write-Host "`n--- Scheduled Tasks ---"
Get-ScheduledTask -TaskName "MCPEndpointShield*" | ForEach-Object {
    $i = $_ | Get-ScheduledTaskInfo
    [PSCustomObject]@{ Task = $_.TaskName; State = $_.State; LastResult = "0x{0:X8}" -f $i.LastTaskResult }
} | Format-Table -AutoSize

Write-Host "`n--- Processes ---"
Get-Process akto-endpoint-shield -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Format-Table Name,Id -AutoSize

Share the full output with Akto support if you need help interpreting the results.

2

Start the services manually

Start-ScheduledTask -TaskName "MCPEndpointShieldHTTP"
Start-ScheduledTask -TaskName "MCPEndpointShieldAgent"
Start-ScheduledTask -TaskName "MCPEndpointShieldDetector"
Start-Sleep -Seconds 8
Get-Process akto-endpoint-shield -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Result	Next step
Processes appear	Services are running — wait 2–3 minutes and check the Akto dashboard for a heartbeat
Processes start then disappear within seconds	CrowdStrike is likely terminating them — see Whitelist Paths
Nothing appears	Continue to the next step

3

Run the diagnostic script

The diagnostic script checks everything automatically and saves a report to your Desktop.

1. Copy diagnose_windows.ps1 and diagnose_windows.bat from the Akto installer package to the same folder on your machine (e.g. your Desktop).

2. Right-click diagnose_windows.bat → Run as administrator.

3. A .txt report file is saved to your Desktop — send this to Akto support.

4

Run the agent directly to see errors

If a scheduled task exits immediately, run the agent directly to capture the exact error message:

cd "C:\Program Files\Akto Endpoint Shield"
.\akto-endpoint-shield.exe agent

Leave the window open and read the output:

Message	Fix
AKTO_API_TOKEN is not set	Config file is missing. Re-run the installer and enter your token.
AKTO_API_BASE_URL is not set	Re-run the installer and enter your Akto dashboard URL.
bind: Only one usage of each socket address	Port is already in use. Stop existing processes first.
failed to install mitmproxy	No internet access during install. Check network and re-run the installer.

5

Reinstall (last resort)

If none of the above resolves the issue:

1. Open Add or remove programs → find Akto Endpoint Shield → Uninstall.

2. Restart the machine.

3. Re-run the installer package received from Akto.

4. After install, wait 2–3 minutes and check the dashboard.

If the problem persists after reinstall, run the diagnostic script (Step 3) and send the report to Akto support along with what you observed.

Common Issues

What you see	Fix
Test-Path returns False	Akto is not installed. Re-run the installer.
Task LastResult is 0x80070002	Binary or launcher file is missing. Re-run the installer.
Task LastResult is 0x00000000 but no process	Binary started and exited immediately. Run the agent directly (Step 4 above).
Task LastResult is 0xC000013A	Process was killed externally. Check CrowdStrike — see Whitelist Paths.
Port conflict error	Another Akto instance is stuck. Run Stop-Process -Name akto-endpoint-shield -Force then restart the tasks.
No tasks listed at all	Installer did not complete. Re-run the installer as Administrator.

Get Support for your Akto setup

There are multiple ways to request support from Akto. We are available on the following:

1. In-app intercom support. Message us with your query on intercom in Akto dashboard and someone will reply.

2. Join our discord channel for community support.

3. Contact [e-mail] for email support.