diff --git a/bin/nova-compute b/bin/nova-compute
index 2a2a0013..a926aa07 100755
--- a/bin/nova-compute
+++ b/bin/nova-compute
@@ -20,7 +20,14 @@
 """Starter script for Nova Compute."""
 
 import eventlet
-eventlet.monkey_patch()
+import os
+
+if os.name == 'nt':
+    # eventlet monkey patching causes subprocess.Popen to fail on Windows
+    # when using pipes due to missing non blocking I/O support
+    eventlet.monkey_patch(os=False)
+else:
+    eventlet.monkey_patch()
 
 import os
 import sys