JumpCloud Agent Windows Installation Walkthrough

This article guides you through the methods you can use to install the JumpCloud Agent on your Windows devices:

• Install using the MSI download
• Install via Group Policy Objects
• Install using PowerShell
• Install via MDM Provisioning Package

Prerequisites

• Understand JumpCloud’s supported operating systems. See JumpCloud Agent Compatibility, System Requirements, and Impacts.

Installing via MSI Download

There are two methods to install the JumpCloud Agent as an MSI file:

1. Deploying Using the Command Line or PowerShell
2. Manually Installing on a Single Device

Deploying Using the Command Line or PowerShell

You can install the JumpCloud Agent using either the Windows command line or PowerShell. First, you must download the MSI file: 

1. Log in to the JumpCloud Admin Portal.
2. Go to DEVICE MANAGEMENT > Devices. 
3. Click ( + ) to add a new device, then select the Windows tab. 
4. Select Install MSI Via Download if necessary. 
5. Click Download Windows Agent.

Once the file is downloaded, you must enter one of the commands below depending on whether you are running the command line or PowerShell.

• For the command line:

• For PowerShell:

The JumpCloud Agent is installed when the command finishes running. 

Manually Installing on a Single Device

To manually install the JumpCloud Agent MSI file on a single device:

1. Log in to the JumpCloud Admin Portal.
2. Go to DEVICE MANAGEMENT > Devices.
3. Click ( + ) to add a new device, then select the Windows tab. 
4. Select Install MSI Via Download if necessary. 
5. Click Download Windows Agent.

6. Open the jcagent-msi-signed.msi.
7. Click Install.
8. Click Finish.

Installing via Group Policy Objects

You can also install the JumpCloud Agent to Windows devices by using Windows Group Policy Objects (GPO) to deploy the PowerShell install script.

Create a new PowerShell script for the Agent install:

1. Log in to the JumpCloud Admin Portal.
2. Go to DEVICE MANAGEMENT > Devices.
3. Click ( + ) to add a new device, then select the Windows tab. 
4. Click Install via PowerShell. 
5. Under PowerShell Install Command, click to copy the install command.
6. Create a .ps1 file with this Agent install command.

Create the Group Policy Object:

1. From the Windows Start menu, find Windows Administrative Tools and open Group Policy Management.
2. Under Group Policy Objects, right-click and select New to create a new GPO, with a name like JC Agent Deploy.
3. Click OK.
4. Right-click the new GPO you just created and select Edit….
5. In the Group Policy Management Editor, under Policies > Windows Settings in the left menu, select Scripts > Startup.
6. In Startup Properties, click Add…, then click Browse….
7. Copy the jcagent.ps1 script from the saved location and paste it into the browsed location, then click Open.
8. Click OK.
9. Click Apply.
10. Click OK. You’ve now attached the install script to run at startup.

Link the GPO to the desired OU:

1. In Group Policy Management, find the group you want to apply this GPO to.
2. Right-click and select Link an Existing GPO….
3. From the Group Policy objects list, select the JC Agent Deploy GPO you created above and click OK.
   • Open the GPO and click Settings. You can view the install script (jcagent.ps1) that’s set to run on startup under Computer Configurations (Enabled).
4. Right-click the GPO in the left menu and select Edit….
5. Under Computer Configuration > Policies > Administrative Templates > Windows Components, select Windows PowerShell.
6. Select Turn on Script Execution.
7. Select Enabled and, under Options, select Allow local scripts and remote signed scripts as the Execution Policy.
8. Click OK.
   • Open the GPO and click Settings. You can view the install script (jcagent.ps1) that’s set to run on startup under Computer Configurations (Enabled). The execution policy is now set.

After reboot, the JumpCloud Agent is installed on startup without admin privileges required. You should see these events once the Agent is installed successfully:

• Event 1520, GroupPolicy (Microsoft-Windows-GroupPolicy) – The Group Policy settings for the computer were processed successfully. New settings from 1 Group Policy objects were detected and applied.
• Event 1040 MsiInstaller – Beginning a Windows installer transaction: C:\windows\Temp\jcagent-msi-signed.msi. Client Process Id: 4192.
• Event 11707, MsiInstaller – Product: JumpCloud Agent v.1.193.2 — Installation completed successfully.

Installing Via PowerShell

To install the JumpCloud Agent using PowerShell:

1. Log in to the JumpCloud Admin Portal.
2. Go to DEVICE MANAGEMENT > Devices. 
3. Click ( + ) to add a new device.
4. Select the Windows tab. 
5. Copy the text provided in the PowerShell Install Command window. 
6. On your device, open a PowerShell prompt as an administrator.
7. Paste the text into the prompt and press enter.

Installing Via Provisioning Package

When enrolled in MDM, you can bulk install the JumpCloud Agent on Windows devices with a provisioning package.

• See Enroll Windows MDM Using a Provisioning Package.

Verifying Installation

After you’ve installed the agent on the destination Windows device, you'll need to verify that the installation works with JumpCloud.

You can verify the installation on a Windows device from the following places:

• Programs and Features
• Windows Service
• JumpCloud Admin Portal

Verifying in Programs and Features

In Windows, the JumpCloud Agent is displayed in Control Panel > Programs and Features:

1. On the Windows device, open the Control Panel.
2. Click Programs.
3. Click Programs and Features.

“JumpCloud Agent vX.X.X” should be displayed in the programs pane if it’s installed.

Verifying the Windows Service

The JumpCloud Agent operates as a Windows service, and may be viewed within Services Manager:

1. Right-click the Start Button and click Run…
2. On the Open field, enter services.msc and click OK.

The JumpCloud Agent service should be present, and under the Status column it should be listed as Running.

Verifying in the JumpCloud Admin Portal

You can verify the Agent was installed correctly and works with JumpCloud device's Insights tab:

1. Log in to the JumpCloud Admin Portal.
2. Go to DEVICE MANAGEMENT > DEVICES.
3. A green checkmark in the Status column indicates that the Agent is actively reporting into JumpCloud.