Download Helix Internet Monitor.
A small Windows service that measures your connection around the clock, and a desktop app to read what it found. Free, no account needed; it contributes its measurements anonymously to the public rankings, and one switch turns that off.
- Administrator once, to install. Running it afterwards needs no elevation.
- Windows will warn you. The installer is not code-signed: click More info, then Run anyway. Why, and how to check the file.
- No account. It contributes anonymously from the first start — measurements under your network’s provider, nothing that names you — and Settings turns that off. An account is for seeing your own history from anywhere.
- Windows only. No macOS, Linux or mobile build yet; the console works in any browser.
Looking for Helix AI NMS+? It is a hosted platform with nothing to install — what it does, or open the console (opens in a new tab).
Windows will say it protected your PC. Here is what that means.
What you will see. A blue SmartScreen box, “Windows protected your PC”, with only a Don’t run button. Click More info, then Run anyway. The usual administrator prompt follows, because the installer registers a Windows service.
What the warning means
The file carries no code-signing certificate, and Microsoft’s reputation service has not seen it downloaded enough times to vouch for it. It does not mean anything was found in it. Every unsigned installer gets this warning, and it is a warning worth taking seriously in general — which is why this page does not tell you to ignore it, it tells you how to check the file instead.
Check the file before you run it
In PowerShell, in the folder you downloaded to:
Get-FileHash .\HelixInternetMonitor-Setup.exe -Algorithm SHA256It should print 7109ba02fbeede5ab429ed2138a93e534aa6f96f0e2dcda0b283e491f47b91a1. If it does not, do not run the file.
Why it is unsigned
A signing identity has to be obtained, held securely and used consistently across the service, the app and the installer. A makeshift signature — self-signed, or borrowed — gives a green tick that means nothing, which is worse than an honest warning. Signing is a known gap with a plan behind it.
Antivirus may object too
A privileged service that sends ICMP is the exact shape endpoint protection flags on heuristics. Nothing is packed or obfuscated. If your product quarantines it, that is a false positive we would like to hear about.
What you need.
| Operating system | Windows 10 or Windows 11 |
|---|---|
| Architecture | x64 only. The installer refuses 32-bit; ARM64 is not built yet |
| WebView2 runtime | Ships with Windows 11 and current Windows 10. On an older Windows 10 build install it yourself first — the installer does not fetch it |
| Privileges | Administrator to install. The desktop app never runs elevated, and measuring needs no elevation |
| Account | None. The agent contributes anonymously from the first start, which one switch in Settings turns off; an account is only for your own history and sharing |
| Other platforms | No macOS, Linux, iOS or Android agent yet; the console works in any current browser |
What the installer does to your machine.
It installs
- Two binaries into %PROGRAMFILES%\Helix Internet Monitor — an existing install location is reused
- A Windows service, HelixCoreService, set to start automatically as LocalSystem
- A Start Menu shortcut, and a desktop shortcut if you tick it
- An optional Start with Windows entry for the app; the measuring service starts with Windows regardless
- An Add/Remove Programs entry, so it uninstalls the ordinary way
Upgrading
Run the new installer over the old install. It deregisters the previous service before it overwrites the binary — a running service holds its own file open, so the order matters. Your measurement history is not touched. Once installed, the service updates itself: new releases arrive within minutes, verified against a signature the cloud does not hold.
Silent install
For a scripted or managed rollout:
HelixInternetMonitor-Setup.exe /S
"C:\Program Files\Helix Internet Monitor\uninstall.exe" /SInstalled somewhere else? The uninstall entry in the registry carries the exact command, as QuietUninstallString. MSI and MSIX packaging for Intune and Group Policy is not in this release.
Uninstalling
Stops and deregisters the service and removes the shortcuts, binaries and registry entries. It deliberately leaves %PROGRAMDATA%\Helix in place: that folder is your measurement history, and an uninstall is not a request to destroy it. A reinstall picks it back up; delete it yourself for a clean slate.
Why there is a background service at all.
So measuring does not depend on you looking
The outage happens while the window is closed. A service starts with the machine and keeps a continuous record, so the evidence is there when you go looking for it.
So the app never needs elevation
The service is privileged; the desktop app is not, and cannot be made to be. They talk over a local named pipe open to the users of this machine and nobody wider. The app can view and configure; it cannot make the service run anything.
Installed it?
It starts measuring straight away. Signing in to your account online is a separate, optional step. Your own provider sees your line only once it has proved it runs your network, and one switch turns that off — nothing but you ever turns it back on.