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This guide is for IT administrators only. If you are a regular user, see our standard installation guide instead.
Desktop Services is a lightweight background service that handles several functionality for Connectors. Not all connectors require the desktop service. Check the installation instructions for specific connectors to know if it is needed. For the connectors that require it, the Desktop Service should be running at all times. We recommend setting it to launch at startup so it’s always available.
Updating from an older version?: Make sure Desktop Services isn’t running before you install. After installation, restart the service.

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Install for a single user

  1. Extract the downloaded ZIP file
  2. Copy all contents from the extracted folder to %AppData%\Speckle\Desktop Services\
    • Create the directory structure if it doesn’t exist
  3. Create a shortcut to Speckle.Desktop.Services.exe
  4. Move the shortcut to %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\
    • This makes Desktop Services run automatically when you sign in to Windows

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Install for all users

Follow the same steps as the single user install, but use these locations instead:
  • Program files: %ProgramFiles%\Speckle\Desktop Services\
  • Startup folder: %ProgramData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\StartUp\

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Uninstall Desktop Services

  1. Stop Desktop Services if it’s running
  2. Delete the Desktop Services folder from the location where you installed it
  3. Remove the startup shortcut from the Startup folder
To completely remove all Speckle products from your system, you may also need to delete the %AppData%\Speckle\ folder.

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Last modified on July 18, 2026