Remote Control worker crashes on Windows — better_sqlite3 NODE_MODULE_VERSION 127 vs 137

Support Bug Reports
, ,
1

Where does the bug appear (feature/product)?

Cursor CLI

Describe the Bug

Remote Control sessions publish successfully and show up in the Cursor mobile app, but the task stays stuck at “Setting up environment” / “Waiting for a worker” indefinitely.

Running agent worker start locally shows the actual failure:

Error starting exec-daemon: The module ‘…\AppData\Local\cursor-agent\versions\2026.09.10-fd3934a\node_modules\better-sqlite3\build\Release\better_sqlite3.node’
was compiled against a different Node.js version using
NODE_MODULE_VERSION 127. This version of Node.js requires
NODE_MODULE_VERSION 137.

This reproduces even after:

  • Fully deleting %LOCALAPPDATA%\cursor-agent and reinstalling clean via irm 'https://cursor.com/install?win32=true' | iex
  • Confirming Remote Control and “Keep this computer awake” toggles are both ON
  • Confirming CLI version is current (2026.09.10-fd3934a)
  • Confirming Cloud Agents work fine — this only affects the local Remote Control worker

Environment:

  • OS: Windows
  • Cursor version: 3.20.21
  • CLI version: 2026.09.10-fd3934a

This has been broken for about 3 weeks. Any fix or timeline on this would be appreciated.

Steps to Reproduce

  1. Open Cursor Desktop on Windows with Remote Control and “Keep this computer awake” both enabled in Settings → Agents
  2. From the Cursor mobile app, select “This PC (Remote Control)” and start a task
  3. Task shows in the mobile app but stays stuck at “Setting up environment” / “Waiting for a worker” indefinitely
  4. To see the actual failure, open a terminal on the PC and manually run:
    cd
    agent worker start
  5. Worker fails immediately with:
    Error starting exec-daemon: The module ‘…\better-sqlite3\build\Release\better_sqlite3.node’
    was compiled against a different Node.js version using
    NODE_MODULE_VERSION 127. This version of Node.js requires
    NODE_MODULE_VERSION 137.
  6. Reproduces even after fully deleting %LOCALAPPDATA%\cursor-agent and reinstalling via:
    irm ‘Cursor CLI — Run Agents in Terminal, GitHub Actions and Automations & Scripts’ | iex
  7. Cloud Agents work fine — issue is isolated to the local Remote Control worker on Windows

Operating System

Windows 10/11

Version Information

Cursor IDE version: 3.20.21

Cursor CLI version: 2026.09.10-fd3934a

Does this stop you from using Cursor

No - Cursor works, but with this issue

7

Hi @JD_Sandhu Thanks for the post. This isn’t caused by your settings or installation. The Windows worker exits before registering, which is why the mobile app remains at “Waiting for a worker.” This is an issue we’re tracking, and I’ve added your report. Reinstalling or updating won’t resolve it currently.

The workaround is to run the worker inside WSL:

  1. In an Administrator PowerShell, run wsl --install and restart if prompted.
  2. In Ubuntu, run curl Cursor - The best way to code with AI | Cursor - The best way to code with AI -fsS | bash`.
  3. Run agent login.
  4. Clone the project inside the WSL filesystem, such as ~/projects rather than /mnt/c, then run agent worker start --name my-pc.
  5. Leave that terminal open and select my-pc in the mobile app.

If step 4 returns an error, paste the exact output here. I’ll post here when there’s an update.

10

But I’m still getting stuck at “Setting up environment” when I start Remote Control from the dropdown (screenshot already sent above). The worker shows as running/green on my end, but the task on mobile just sits there and never actually starts.

I’m on Cursor 3.20.21. Let me know what else you need from me to help track this down.

Thanks,
JD