Installation on Windows

The Zoan Agent is installed along with the rest of the platform (the Designer and the engine they share, the Runner) using a single installer: Zoan Platform Setup. This page covers detailed installation on Windows, wizard decisions, and how to manage the Windows service that runs the Agent in unattended mode.

Requisitos

Requisito	Detalle
Sistema operativo	Windows 10 (build 1809+) o Windows 11. Windows Server 2016, 2019 o 2022.
Arquitectura	x64 only. ARM64 not supported for now.
Memoria	4 GB minimum. Recommended 8 GB+ if you are going to run several concurrent bots.
Disco	500 MB free for installation. Additional space depends on the packages you download.
Permisos	Local administrator if you want to install the Agent as a service (recommended for servers). Normal user if you only need it for your session.
Red	Acceso saliente al puerto 443 (HTTPS) hacia tu instancia de Zoan Cloud.
Runtime .NET	The installer automatically downloads and installs the.NET 8 Desktop Runtime if it is missing.
WebView2	The installer automatically downloads and installs the Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime if it is missing.

Corporate servers with a proxy

If your corporate network requires a proxy to access the Internet, the Agent respects the system’s proxy settings. Make sure the user the service runs under (LocalSystem by default) has access to the proxy or configure an explicit proxy in the advanced options (documented soon).

Download the installer

The file is ZoanPlatformSetup.exe (~80-120 MB). There are three ways to obtain it:

1. From the tenant portal: there is a download link in the header and on each agent page.
2. From the Zoan Cloud admin of your organization, who can download it from the portal.
3. Ask support: soporte@zoansoftware.com.

The installation wizard

Al ejecutar ZoanPlatformSetup.exe, Windows pregunta si quieres permitir cambios (UAC). Acepta.

Before displaying the wizard, the installer performs two automatic checks:

1. .NET 8 Desktop Runtime — if it is not there, it offers you to download it and installs it in the background.
2. Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime — idem.

If you accept both installations, the wizard opens when they are finished. If you decline, the installer closes (it cannot continue without those components).

From here you have 5 steps:

1. Welcome

   Welcome screen with a summary of what the installer does and links to the legal terms.

   

   Note

   By installing you accept the Terms of Service and the Privacy Policy.

   Click Get started.

2. Install location

   Installation scope:

   Option	Detail	When to choose it
   All users	Installs for every Windows user. Requires admin. It is the only one that allows the Windows service for unattended runs.	Servers and machines dedicated to running unattended bots.
   Current user only	Installs only for your account. No admin needed. The Agent starts in the tray when you sign in (HKCU\...\Run entry).	Development machines, attended runs, or when you have no admin rights.

   Destination folder: where the files are copied. By default:

   • All users: C:\Program Files\Zoan
   • Current user only: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Zoan (for example C:\Users\<YourUser>\AppData\Local\Zoan)

   You can change it with Browse… if you need another drive or a corporate path.

   

   Click Next.

3. Select components

   Component	What it does	Default
   Zoan Designer	Visual playbook editor, with its engine to try them locally.	Checked. Uncheck it on servers that only run bots.
   Zoan Agent	Connects the machine to Zoan Cloud and runs the bots. It has a tray icon for manual and remote runs.	Checked. Uncheck it on machines that only design.
   Zoan Agent Service	Registers the Agent as a Windows service (ZoanAgentService) with automatic start, for unattended runs. Requires the Agent.	Unchecked. Only available with All users.
   Zoan UI Discover (browser extension)	Chrome or Edge install it from the Chrome Web Store, with your confirmation. Without it, UI Discover cannot capture selectors on web pages; desktop, Java and SAP still work.	Checked.

   The engine shared by Designer and Agent (the Runner) is always installed; it is not an option.

   

   Click Install. With All users, Windows asks for administrator permission.

4. Installing

   Progress bar with the detail of what is being copied: the executables, the activity packages, the shortcuts and, depending on your choices, the browser extension, the Agent auto-start (Current user only) or the ZoanAgentService service (Agent Service).

   

   The installation takes 30 to 90 seconds depending on disk speed.

5. Finish

   Confirmation with a green check. The installation created:

   • Shortcuts in the Start menu and on the Desktop: Zoan Designer and Zoan Agent.
   • An entry in Settings → Apps named “Zoan Platform”, to uninstall.
   • With Current user only, the Agent auto-start in the tray when you sign in.
   • With Agent Service, the ZoanAgentService service registered and running.

   

   Click Launch Designer to open it, or close the installer.

Connect Agent to Zoan Cloud

Configuring the connection to your Zoan Cloud instance is done from the Agent interface, not by editing files.

1. Open Zoan Agent from the Start menu.

2. Linking screen

   The first time you are greeted by this screen. It has two fields:

   • Zoan Cloud URL — the URL of your portal (e.g. https://acme.cloud.zoansoftware.com). Copy it exactly as it appears in the browser.
   • Machine Key — the key the portal shows when you create the machine with Nueva máquina (New machine) under Centro › Máquinas.

   

3. Paste the values and click “Vincular este equipo” (Link this computer)

   The Agent contacts Zoan Cloud, validates the Machine Key, and saves the encrypted configuration to disk. If everything goes well, in 2-3 seconds it changes to the main screen with the status pill connected in green.

   

4. Verify from the portal

   Go to environment → Agents. The agent must be listed as online (green badge) and the “Online” counter above must have incremented.

   

Configuration screen requires admin

The linking screen requires that the Agent be opened as administrator to save the settings to a protected location. If you open it as a normal user, the screen is displayed but the button is disabled and you see a warning to reopen as admin. This prevents an unprivileged user from changing the Zoan Cloud connection of a shared machine.

Manage Windows service

When you install with All users and check Zoan Agent Service, the Agent registers as a service. Useful commands from PowerShell with admin:

# Estado del servicio
Get-Service ZoanAgentService

# Detener
Stop-Service ZoanAgentService

# Iniciar
Start-Service ZoanAgentService

# Reiniciar
Restart-Service ZoanAgentService

# Cambiar a inicio manual (no arranca con Windows)
Set-Service ZoanAgentService -StartupType Manual

# Volver a automático
Set-Service ZoanAgentService -StartupType Automatic

Service logs: C:\ProgramData\Zoan\Agent\logs\service.log — useful for diagnosing problems when the Agent does not appear online for no apparent reason.

Execution modes

The Agent can operate in two modes depending on how it is installed and opened:

Mode	How to activate	Characteristics
Attended	You open Zoan Agent from the desktop or menu. The UI is displayed.	You need a Windows session open. Ideal for automations that require viewing the screen (e.g. captures, monitoring).
Desatendido (servicio)	The ZoanAgentService service runs in the background under the LocalSystem account.	No open session required. Boot with the system. Limitations for UI automations that require an interactive session.

The Zoan Cloud portal can direct executions to both attended and unattended modes, depending on how you configure the processes.

Update Agent

The installer turns on automatic updates (Zoan Update Service): the Agent updates itself when it has no executions running, without closing anything on its own, and keeps its connection to Zoan Cloud. When a version is ready, the person sees the Actualización de Zoan lista (Zoan update ready) notice with Instalar ahora (Install now) or Más tarde (Later), and the tray menu shows Actualizar: Agent vX. In the portal, the machine detail shows the installed and available versions. See Settings › Automatic updates.

Uninstallation

Tres formas:

1. Settings → Applications → Zoan Platform → Uninstall (recommended).
2. Panel de Control → Programas → Zoan Platform → Desinstalar.
3. Run ZoanPlatformSetup.exe --uninstall from a console with admin.

The uninstaller uses a 3-step wizard:

1. Confirm — confirms which components are installed and are being deleted.
2. Removing — barra de progreso. Detiene y desregistra ZoanAgentService, borra accesos directos, elimina archivos.
3. Done — confirmation.

Note

Uninstalling does not delete the operation logs on C:\ProgramData\Zoan\ or the packages installed in the packages directory. Delete them manually if you want a complete cleanup.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Causa probable	How to solve
The installer does not open	.NET 8 or WebView2 is missing and the download failed	Install manually from dotnet.microsoft.com and developer.microsoft.com/microsoft-edge/webview2
”Access denied” during installation	You chose “All users” without admin	Close and reopen the installer as administrator, or choose “Current user only”
Agent does not appear after installing	You are not looking at the correct menu. In “Current user” it only appears in your user’s Start menu; in “All users” it appears for everyone.	Search for “Zoan Agent” from the Start menu
”Vincular este equipo” (Link this computer) button is disabled	The Agent was opened as a normal user	Close it and reopen it as administrator (right click → Run as administrator)
“No se pudo contactar a Zoan Cloud”	Firewall, proxy, URL incorrecta	Check the URL, try opening it from Edge on the same machine. If there is a corporate proxy, configure the system proxy
The Agent says “connected” but the portal shows it offline	Heartbeat blocked on network	Verify that port 443 is open outbound from the Agent machine to Zoan Cloud. WebSockets also not blocked
ZoanAgentService service does not start	Permisos o cuenta de servicio cambiada	Get-EventLog -LogName System -Newest 20 to view the specific error

If none of the above resolves, check C:\ProgramData\Zoan\Agent\logs\service.log (service mode) or C:\Users\<TuUsuario>\AppData\Local\Zoan\Agent\logs\ (attended mode) and contact us at soporte@zoansoftware.com with the last 50 lines of the log.