> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.specterops.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Frequently Asked Questions

> Common questions and solutions for Merlin users

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="When I double click the pre-compiled Windows agent binary, nothing happens." icon="windows">
    The pre-compiled Merlin Agent for Windows is compiled with an option that prevents the program from showing.
    Double clicking the `merlinAgent-Windows-x64.exe` file will launch the agent and it will connect to the hard coded
    URL (default is `https://127.0.0.1:443/`). The agent will eventually die once it fails to contact the server.

    **Solutions:**

    * Recompile merlinAgent with the hard coded URL of your server
    * Run it from the command line using the `-url` flag to specify your server
    * View the [custom agent](/agent/custom) page for details on building and compiling the agent from source
    * The agent can be compiled without the `-H=windowsgui` so that it doesn't disappear when executed by double clicking the file
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="I get errors when trying to compile Merlin." icon="code">
    The biggest contributor for getting errors while compiling is forgetting to ensure the `GOPATH` environment
    variable is set.

    **Solution:**
    View the [custom agent](/agent/custom) page for details on ensuring the environment is configured properly.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Input and output redirection pipes don't work" icon="terminal">
    Pipes `|` and redirectors `<` and `>` are functions of a shell. By default, Merlin only executes programs in the
    host's PATH variable.

    **Solutions:**

    * Use the `shell` command
    * Specify the shell (i.e `/bin/bash`) when using the `run` command

    Because Merlin spawns a process for every command, the shell is not persistent or interactive.
    This requires the operator to combine multiple commands together so that they are all in the same context/environment.

    **Example:**

    ```bash theme={null}
    Merlin[agent][c1090dbc-f2f7-4d90-a241-86e0c0217786]»shell /bin/sh -c "ls -l > /tmp/out.txt"
    ```
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>