diff --git a/scripts/smart-install.js b/scripts/smart-install.js
index 83c1c877..5f24987d 100644
--- a/scripts/smart-install.js
+++ b/scripts/smart-install.js
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@
  */
 
 import { existsSync, readFileSync, writeFileSync } from 'fs';
-import { execSync } from 'child_process';
+import { execSync, spawnSync } from 'child_process';
 import { join, dirname } from 'path';
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'url';
 
@@ -260,10 +260,33 @@ async function main() {
         log('', colors.reset);
         process.exit(1);
       }
-    }
 
-    // Worker will be started lazily when needed (e.g., when save-hook sends data)
-    // Context hook only needs database access, not the worker service
+      // Try to start the PM2 worker after fresh install
+      try {
+        log('🚀 Starting worker service...', colors.cyan);
+        // On Windows, PM2 executable is pm2.cmd, not pm2
+        const localPm2Base = join(NODE_MODULES_PATH, '.bin', 'pm2');
+        const localPm2Cmd = process.platform === 'win32' ? localPm2Base + '.cmd' : localPm2Base;
+        const pm2Command = existsSync(localPm2Cmd) ? localPm2Cmd : 'pm2';
+        const ecosystemPath = join(PLUGIN_ROOT, 'ecosystem.config.cjs');
+
+        // Using spawnSync with array args to avoid command injection risks
+        const result = spawnSync(pm2Command, ['start', ecosystemPath], {
+          cwd: PLUGIN_ROOT,
+          stdio: 'pipe',
+          encoding: 'utf-8'
+        });
+        if (result.status !== 0) {
+          throw new Error(result.stderr || 'PM2 start failed');
+        }
+
+        log('✅ Worker service started', colors.green);
+      } catch (error) {
+        // Worker might already be running or PM2 not available - that's okay
+        // The ensureWorkerRunning() function will handle auto-start when needed
+        log('ℹ️  Worker will start automatically when needed', colors.dim);
+      }
+    }
 
     // Success - dependencies installed (if needed)
     process.exit(0);
diff --git a/src/shared/worker-utils.ts b/src/shared/worker-utils.ts
index 908ca35c..ed12e68f 100644
--- a/src/shared/worker-utils.ts
+++ b/src/shared/worker-utils.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import path from "path";
 import { homedir } from "os";
 import { existsSync, readFileSync } from "fs";
-import { execSync } from "child_process";
+import { spawnSync } from "child_process";
 import { getPackageRoot } from "./paths.js";
 
 // Named constants for health checks
@@ -55,13 +55,23 @@ async function startWorker(): Promise<boolean> {
       throw new Error(`Ecosystem config not found at ${ecosystemPath}`);
     }
 
+    // Try to use local PM2 from node_modules first, fall back to global PM2
+    // On Windows, PM2 executable is pm2.cmd, not pm2
+    const localPm2Base = path.join(pluginRoot, 'node_modules', '.bin', 'pm2');
+    const localPm2Cmd = process.platform === 'win32' ? localPm2Base + '.cmd' : localPm2Base;
+    const pm2Command = existsSync(localPm2Cmd) ? localPm2Cmd : 'pm2';
+
     // Start using PM2 with the ecosystem config
     // CRITICAL: Must set cwd to pluginRoot so PM2 starts from marketplace directory
-    execSync(`pm2 start "${ecosystemPath}"`, {
+    // Using spawnSync with array args to avoid command injection risks
+    const result = spawnSync(pm2Command, ['start', ecosystemPath], {
       cwd: pluginRoot,
       stdio: 'pipe',
       encoding: 'utf-8'
     });
+    if (result.status !== 0) {
+      throw new Error(result.stderr || 'PM2 start failed');
+    }
 
     // Wait for worker to become healthy
     for (let i = 0; i < WORKER_STARTUP_RETRIES; i++) {
@@ -93,10 +103,13 @@ export async function ensureWorkerRunning(): Promise<void> {
 
   if (!started) {
     const port = getWorkerPort();
+    const pluginRoot = getPackageRoot();
     throw new Error(
       `Worker service failed to start on port ${port}.\n\n` +
-      `Try manually running: pm2 start ecosystem.config.cjs\n` +
-      `Or restart: pm2 restart claude-mem-worker`
+      `To start manually, run:\n` +
+      `  cd ${pluginRoot}\n` +
+      `  npx pm2 start ecosystem.config.cjs\n\n` +
+      `If already running, try: npx pm2 restart claude-mem-worker`
     );
   }
 }