GermainUX-Agent Installation

⚙️ GermainUX Agent Installation

The GermainUX Agent monitors Windows applications and can collect real-user-experience data, Windows UI activity, and .NET CLR-level performance metrics.

This guide explains the prerequisites, installer packages, installation process, automatic startup behavior, upgrades, and uninstallation.

📋 System Requirements

Before installing the GermainUX Agent, verify the following:

Requirement

1

A supported 64-bit Windows operating system

2

Administrator access for the person performing the installation

3

A local administrator account for the user who will run the Agent

4

Microsoft Visual C++ 2015–2022 Redistributable, matching the architecture of the component being installed

Download the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable when required:

Redistributable

Link / Notes

64-bit Redistributable

https://aka.ms/vs/17/release/vc_redist.x64.exe

32-bit Redistributable

32-bit Redistributable

The GermainUX installer verifies that the required redistributable is present. If it is missing, installation stops and displays a link to the appropriate Microsoft download. The redistributable is not installed automatically.

The account running the GermainUX Agent must be a local administrator. The Agent requires elevated privileges to detect when processes start and stop. If it cannot obtain the required privileges, it displays an error and exits instead of running with limited capabilities.

📦 Select the Appropriate Installer

Two installation packages are available. They are not simply 64-bit and 32-bit versions of the same product: each package installs different components.

Installer

Windows product name

Default installation folder

Components

Setup64.msi

GermainUX-Agent

C:\Program Files\Germain Software\GermainUX Agent\

Complete Agent, Windows RUM worker, 64-bit .NET Code Profiler, and diagnostic console

Setup.msi

GermainUX-Code Profiler

C:\Program Files (x86)\Germain Software\GermainUXCodeProfiler\

32-bit .NET Code Profiler and 32-bit diagnostic console

✅ Standard Installation

Use Setup64.msi in almost all deployments.

This is the primary GermainUX Agent package and includes:

Component

The system-tray Agent

Process-start and process-stop monitoring

GermainUX RUM for Windows

The 64-bit .NET Code Profiler

Diagnostic utilities

The tray Agent, process watcher, and Windows UI monitoring worker are 64-bit components and are available only in this package.

🧰 Monitoring 32-Bit .NET Applications

Install Setup.msi only when:

Condition

You need CLR-level monitoring for a 32-bit .NET application; or

Germain Software has asked you to install it.

This package does not include the tray Agent or Windows UI monitoring worker.

Both packages can be installed on the same computer. They use separate product identities, installation directories, and upgrade mechanisms and therefore do not conflict.

🚀 Install the GermainUX Agent

Follow these steps:

  1. Launch the appropriate MSI package:

  2. Approve the Windows elevation request if prompted.

  3. On the Welcome screen, click Next.

  4. On the Agent Settings screen—or Germain CLR Agent Settings for the 32-bit package—enter the base URL of your organization’s GermainUX server.

    Example:

    https://server.cloud.germainux.com
    

    This is the only configuration value requested by the installer. It is stored in the Windows Registry during the initial installation. For details, see Agent Settings (Registry).

  5. On the Destination Folder screen, accept the default installation directory or select another folder.

  6. Click Install.

  7. When the installation completes, click Finish.

Package

When to use

Setup64.msi

Use Setup64.msi for a standard deployment.

Setup.msi

Use Setup.msi when the 32-bit .NET Code Profiler is also required.

A Windows restart is not required.

The 64-bit Agent does not start immediately when installation finishes. It starts automatically the next time a local administrator logs on.

📁 Components Installed by Setup64

The standard 64-bit package installs the following principal components:

File

Purpose

GermainUXAgent.exe

Runs the system-tray Agent, monitors processes, and coordinates the other Agent components.

GermainUXRumWindows.exe

Collects real-user-experience and Windows UI monitoring data.

GermainUXCodeProfiler.dll

Provides CLR-level monitoring for 64-bit .NET applications.

AgentConsole.exe

Provides command-line diagnostic capabilities.

cpprest_2_10.dll

Runtime dependency.

fmt.dll

Runtime dependency.

GermainUXRumWindows.exe and GermainUXCodeProfiler.dll must remain in the same directory as GermainUXAgent.exe. The Agent locates these components relative to its own executable rather than through configurable paths or Registry entries.

Do not move or rename the installed files individually. Doing so may prevent Windows UI monitoring or .NET profiling from working.

For information about the diagnostic console, see Agent Troubleshooting.

⏰ Automatic Startup

GermainUXAgent.exe must:

Requirement

Run with elevated privileges

Run within the interactive user’s Windows session

Access mouse and keyboard hooks

Display its system-tray icon

Because of these requirements, the Agent cannot run as a conventional Windows service. A standard Registry startup entry would also cause Windows to display a User Account Control prompt at every login.

Instead, the 64-bit installer creates a per-machine Windows Scheduled Task that:

Behavior

Runs when a user logs on

Runs with the highest privileges available to that user

Starts the Agent without displaying a UAC prompt when the user is a local administrator

👥 Login Behavior

Logged-in account

Result

Local administrator

The Agent starts automatically and silently with the required privileges.

Non-administrator

The task starts without elevation, and the Agent exits with an insufficient-privileges error.

On a computer dedicated to monitoring, make sure the account that remains logged on is a local administrator.

The scheduled task is:

Attribute

Created automatically during installation

Removed automatically during uninstallation

Visible in Windows Task Scheduler

Not configurable from the GermainUX installer

🔍 Validate the Installation

After installing Setup64.msi:

  1. Log out of Windows and log back in with the local administrator account that will run the Agent.

  2. Confirm that the GermainUX Agent appears in the Windows system tray.

  3. If the Agent does not start, verify that:

Check

The logged-in account is a local administrator.

The GermainUX Scheduled Task exists and completed successfully.

The Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable is installed.

The configured GermainUX server URL is correct and reachable.

The installed Agent files have not been moved or renamed.

For additional diagnostic procedures, see Agent Troubleshooting.

🔧 Repair or Upgrade the Agent

You can run a newer installer over an existing installation to perform an in-place upgrade.

During an upgrade or repair:

Behavior

The existing GermainUX server URL is preserved.

Other Registry-based Agent settings are preserved.

Existing settings are not reset each time the installer runs.

The installer prevents an older version from being installed over a newer version.

If both the 64-bit Agent and 32-bit Code Profiler are installed, upgrade each package independently when corresponding updated installers are provided.

⏏️ Uninstall the Agent

Use Windows Programs & Features or Installed Apps to uninstall:

Product

GermainUX-Agent for the standard 64-bit package

GermainUX-Code Profiler for the optional 32-bit package

Uninstalling the 64-bit Agent removes:

Removed item

Installed Agent files

The Agent’s automatic-start Scheduled Task

The Setup64-managed Germain Agent Registry structure

Monitoring-target rules manually created under the Registry Targets structure are not removed automatically. Remove these entries manually if the computer will no longer be monitored.

For information about Registry settings and monitoring targets, see Agent Settings (Registry).


ℹ️ Get Help

The Germain Team can help you set this up. Contact GermainUX Support.


Feature Availability: 2026.2