99.9% of the time, Tableau Server installation will be smooth sailing. The wizard is simple and easy, and Tableau’s online help is a wonderful guide. However, if you do have the misfortune of seeing the error message “Tableau Server initialization failed. See install log at C:Program FilesTableauTableau Serverlogstabadmin.log”, go ahead an open up the log to and check for any “FATAL” entries. You’ll more than likely see something like this:

“PGError: FATAL: the database system is starting up”
“Component::InitError: Connect Failed initializing component Components::Repository”
“Connect Failed initializing component Components::Repository”

With error messages like these, there are three common solutions you should try before escalating to Tableau Support:

1. Disable your Anti-virus software. Most anti-virus programs do not pose a problem, but a few can block Tableau’s access to the Postgres database it relies on.
2. Check User Permissions. Even if the user you are currently logged in as has the rights to install programs, they may not be allowed to install a service. Double check that the user permissions or run the installation as an Admin.
3. Check Folder Permissions. For one reason or another, folders can get set to “Read Only.” To check, right click the folder that you are trying to install to (typically C:/Program Files/Tableau), make sure “Read-Only” is not selected.