Question

How can I script a bat or cmd to stop and start a service reliably with error checking (or let me know that it wasn’t successful for whatever reason)?

Answer 1

Use the SC (service control) command, it gives you a lot more options than just start & stop.

   DESCRIPTION:           SC is a command line program used for communicating with the           NT Service Controller and services.   USAGE:       sc <server> [command] [service name]  ...        The option <server> has the form '\\ServerName'       Further help on commands can be obtained by typing: 'sc [command]'       Commands:         query-----------Queries the status for a service, or                         enumerates the status for types of services.         queryex---------Queries the extended status for a service, or                         enumerates the status for types of services.         start-----------Starts a service.         pause-----------Sends a PAUSE control request to a service.         interrogate-----Sends an INTERROGATE control request to a service.         continue--------Sends a CONTINUE control request to a service.         stop------------Sends a STOP request to a service.         config----------Changes the configuration of a service (persistant).         description-----Changes the description of a service.         failure---------Changes the actions taken by a service upon failure.         qc--------------Queries the configuration information for a service.         qdescription----Queries the description for a service.         qfailure--------Queries the actions taken by a service upon failure.         delete----------Deletes a service (from the registry).         create----------Creates a service. (adds it to the registry).         control---------Sends a control to a service.         sdshow----------Displays a service's security descriptor.         sdset-----------Sets a service's security descriptor.         GetDisplayName--Gets the DisplayName for a service.         GetKeyName------Gets the ServiceKeyName for a service.         EnumDepend------Enumerates Service Dependencies.        The following commands don't require a service name:       sc <server> <command> <option>         boot------------(ok | bad) Indicates whether the last boot should                         be saved as the last-known-good boot configuration         Lock------------Locks the Service Database         QueryLock-------Queries the LockStatus for the SCManager Database   EXAMPLE:           sc start MyService