⚡ WinKeep

nohup for Windows

Keep your processes running after SSH disconnects.

Install • Usage • Why WinKeep? • Contributing

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The Problem

You SSH into your Windows server, start a long-running process, close your laptop, and... everything dies.

Windows has no nohup. No screen. No tmux. Your processes are tied to your SSH session.

The Solution

winkeep run -- python server.py

That's it. Close SSH. Come back tomorrow. Your process is still running.

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Install

PowerShell (Recommended)

irm https://winkeep.dev/install.ps1 | iex

Command Prompt

curl -L https://winkeep.dev/install.bat -o install.bat && install.bat

Go

go install github.com/kelvinzer0/winkeep/cmd/winkeep@latest

Manual Download

Download the latest binary from GitHub Releases or SourceForge.

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Usage

Run a background process

winkeep run -- python server.py
winkeep run --name myapp -- node app.js
winkeep run --session myproject -- npm start

Manage processes

winkeep list                        # List all background processes
winkeep logs <id>                   # View process output
winkeep logs <id> --tail 100        # Last 100 lines
winkeep kill <id>                   # Stop a process

Session management

winkeep session create myproject    # Create a session
winkeep session list                # List sessions
winkeep session kill myproject      # Kill all processes in session

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Why WinKeep?

Feature	WinKeep	nohup (Linux)	NSSM	pm2
Zero config	✅	✅	❌	❌
Single binary	✅	✅	❌	❌
Session management	✅	❌	❌	✅
Log capture	✅	✅	✅	✅
Works on Windows	✅	❌	✅	⚠️
No runtime required	✅	✅	✅	❌

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How It Works

WinKeep uses OS-level process detachment:

• Windows: CREATE_NEW_PROCESS_GROUP + DETACHED_PROCESS flags
• Linux/macOS: setsid to create a new session

Process metadata and logs are stored in:

• Windows: %APPDATA%\winkeep\
• Linux/macOS: ~/.config/winkeep/

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Build from Source

# Requires Go 1.22+
make build          # Build for current platform
make build-all      # Build for all platforms
make release        # Build release binaries

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Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create your feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

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Star History

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License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.

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Made with ❤️ for the Windows SSH community