Infohub (Flow)How-to

Installing Infohub

What the installer puts where, what it registers, and how to get from a fresh MSI to a working instance.

Updated 15 Oct 2026Infohub Docs

Infohub ships as a single signed 64-bit MSI that installs per-machine. This article covers what it does, so that when something needs checking afterwards you know where to look.

Download Infohub#

Download the Windows installer — Flow 7.2.0835.880.msi, one package for every component. Prefer Linux or containers? See Installing Infohub Beyond the Wizard for the Linux archives and the Docker Hub images. Every package for this release is listed on Download Infohub.

Check Hardware and Software Requirements first. The components need .NET 8; the installer checks for it and tells you what is missing.

Before you start#

Confirm the prerequisites in Hardware and Software Requirements.
Have local administrator rights on the target machine.
Know which SQL Server you will use and be able to reach it.
Decide which account the Flow Bootstrap service will run as. NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM is the default; a domain account is needed if Infohub must authenticate to SQL Server or a data source with Windows credentials.

What the installer offers#

The MSI presents three features.

Feature	Description in the installer	Install it on
Flow	"Collect. Calculate. Visualize."	Always — this is the parent feature
Bootstrap	"Communication platform for all Flow components."	Every server that will run Infohub components
Config	"Configuration environment for measures, events, shifts, calculations, etc."	Any machine where someone builds the model

For a single-server installation, install all three. For a modeller's workstation, Config alone is enough — Flow Config talks directly to the SQL database and does not need Bootstrap locally. For an additional server that only hosts a Data Engine or a Flow Server, Bootstrap is what you need.

Where things land#

The installer uses two locations, and knowing the difference matters when you are troubleshooting or backing up.

Program files — the binaries, replaced on every upgrade:

%ProgramFiles%\Flow Software\Flow\
+-- Bootstrap\        the Bootstrap service and its utilities
+-- Config\           Flow Config, the CLI, and its supporting assemblies
+-- (licence file)

Program data — configuration and content that must survive an upgrade:

%ProgramData%\Flow Software\Flow\
+-- Bootstrap\
+-- Config\
    +-- Packages\     plugin packages: data sources, consumers, notification services
    +-- Simulator\    the simulator's tag definitions

Note

Plugins live in ProgramData. Data source, consumer, and notification connectors are packages under %ProgramData%\Flow Software\Flow\Config\Packages. That is where to look when a connector is missing from the list of types, and it is why plugins can be added or updated without reinstalling Infohub.

What gets registered#

The installer:

Creates the Flow Bootstrap Windows service, described as the service "used to host a Flow Platform and service objects", running as NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM
Creates an event log source named Flow Bootstrap in a log named Flow
Adds Flow Config shortcuts to the desktop and to the Start Menu under Flow Software\Flow
Takes its product version from Flow Config.exe, so the version shown in Programs and Features is Flow Config's file version

The Bootstrap service is stopped before files are replaced and started again afterwards, so an upgrade does not need a manual service restart.

Running the install#

Run the MSI as administrator.
Select the features you need.
Complete the installation.
If Infohub must use Windows integrated security anywhere, open Services, change the Flow Bootstrap logon account, and restart it.

Creating the database#

Infohub does not create its database during installation. You do that from Flow Config, which builds the schema on a database you point it at.

Open Flow Config.
Supply the SQL Server instance and the database name.
Let Flow Config create and populate the schema.

From the CLI, the equivalent is --create, which is also how the demo and QA models are built:

"Flow Config.exe" --host <server> --database <db> --user <u> --password <p> --create --name "My Plant"

Tip

--create seeds more than an empty database. A new instance is not blank. --create seeds a root metric folder named after the instance and a time scheme called Production. If you intend to have a calendar called Production, use the seeded one rather than creating a second with the same name.

First checks after installing#

Work through these in order; each one rules out a class of problem.

Is the service running? Look for Flow Bootstrap in Services. If it will not start, check the Flow event log.

Does Flow Config connect? Open it and connect to the database. A failure here is SQL connectivity or permissions, and nothing else in Infohub will work until it is resolved.

Does the Platform match this host? Open the deployment view and check that the Platform's host name is this machine. Bootstrap claims a Platform by matching host name, so a mismatch means nothing will ever start. This is the usual cause of a silent installation that appears healthy.

Is the licence in place? See Licensing Infohub.

Can a connection reach anything? Create a Simulator connection and browse its tags. The simulator ships with the product and needs no external system, which makes it the cleanest possible test that the plugin framework is working.

Upgrading an existing installation#

Run the newer MSI over the top. The installer stops the Bootstrap service, replaces the binaries, and restarts it. Content under %ProgramData% is preserved. Same-version reinstalls are permitted, which is useful for repairing a damaged installation.

The database schema is upgraded separately, by Flow Config, the first time a newer Flow Config opens an older database. Read Upgrading to Flow 7.2.0 before upgrading a production instance — in particular, back the database up first, because the schema upgrade is not reversible.

Important

Upgrade Flow Config and the servers together. Flow Config writes the schema version. If one machine is upgraded and another is not, the older Flow Config will refuse the newer database, and an older Bootstrap may not understand newly configured objects. Upgrade every machine in an instance in the same maintenance window.

Uninstalling#

Uninstall from Programs and Features. This removes the binaries, the service, and the event log source. It does not remove the SQL database or the content under %ProgramData%, so a reinstall over the top retains your plugins and your model.