Understanding Services

Windows Vista services are long-running applications that run in the background and typically start up on boot and run independently of users logging on. Services handle low-level tasks that manage authentication, networking, and other tasks that need little or no user interaction to function. Third-party services such as firewalls and antivirus software can also run on Windows Vista.

Windows services are implemented using the Services API and are managed by the Service Control Manager (SCM). The SCM maintains a database of information concerning the services installed on the system and exposes these services to management using both user interface and command-line tools. Using these tools, administrators can:

  • Configure a ...

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