> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.strata.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Windows

The Orchestrator is distributed as platform-specific packages downloadable from the Maverics Console. To download the installer for your platform, open any Deployment in the Console and use the **Download Orchestrator Software** modal. See [Download the Orchestrator](/reference/orchestrator/installation#download-the-orchestrator) for details.

Run the MSI installer (`maverics-orchestrator.msi`), which provides a guided setup wizard. The installer prompts you to configure:

* **Configuration source** -- Path to your YAML configuration file or a remote config source URL
* **TLS certificates** -- Paths to your certificate and private key files
* **Environment variables** -- Any runtime environment variables the Orchestrator needs

The installer registers the Orchestrator as a Windows service that starts automatically on boot.

Manage the service from the command line:

```powershell theme={null}
# Check service status
sc query maverics

# Start the service
sc start maverics

# Stop the service
sc stop maverics
```

Configuration is set during MSI installation and can be updated through the Windows Services management console (`services.msc`) or by modifying the service registry entries.

## In-Place Config Reload

To enable zero-downtime config reload on Windows, set `MAVERICS_RELOAD_CONFIG=true`
in the Orchestrator's service environment. When the Orchestrator detects a config
change, it applies it in place without restarting the service — the Windows service
entry stays running and `RESTARTS` remains 0.

**Windows behaves differently from Linux/macOS in two ways:**

* **Brief connection gap.** On Linux and macOS, the listening port is inherited
  directly by the new process, so new connections are never refused during a
  reload. On Windows, the new process must re-bind the port, which creates a short
  window where new connections may be refused. In-flight requests on the old process
  drain cleanly and are not dropped.

* **Weaker rollback on bad config.** On Linux and macOS, if the new process fails to
  start, the old one keeps serving uninterrupted — it never released the port. On
  Windows, the old process releases its listener during the reload handoff. The
  Orchestrator pre-validates the config file before triggering a reload (catching
  syntax and schema errors), but a runtime startup failure after the handoff carries
  a small risk of a brief outage rather than a seamless fallback.

Set `MAVERICS_RELOAD_CONFIG=true` via the Windows service environment. In the MSI
installer, set it during the installation wizard under **Environment variables**. To
update it after installation, modify the service environment through
`services.msc` or the registry, then restart the service to pick up the new
environment.

## Related Pages

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Installation Overview" icon="download" href="/reference/orchestrator/installation">
    System requirements, download options, CLI flags, and environment variables
  </Card>

  <Card title="Configuration" icon="gear" href="/reference/orchestrator/configuration">
    Configure the Orchestrator after installation
  </Card>

  <Card title="Getting Started" icon="rocket" href="/introduction/getting-started">
    End-to-end quick-start guide
  </Card>
</CardGroup>