Question

I have used this question to learn install my python script as a service with ActivePython. I am able to install my script and remove it, as I would expect, but my problem is that once I start the script running, I then lose the ability to stop it or remove it. It just runs permanently and I cannot get rid of it. The answer to the linked question mentions checking a flag to stop the script. Can someone explain how to do this?

Right now the script does very little. just prints lines to a file every few seconds. I want to get it working before I move on to more complicated things.

import pythoncom
import win32serviceutil
import win32service
import win32event
import servicemanager
import socket
import time


class AppServerSvc (win32serviceutil.ServiceFramework):
    _svc_name_ = "PythonTest"
    _svc_display_name_ = "Python Test"
    _svc_description_ = "This is a test of installing Python services"

    def __init__(self,args):
        win32serviceutil.ServiceFramework.__init__(self,args)
        self.hWaitStop = win32event.CreateEvent(None,0,0,None)
        socket.setdefaulttimeout(60)

    def SvcStop(self):
        self.ReportServiceStatus(win32service.SERVICE_STOP_PENDING)
        win32event.SetEvent(self.hWaitStop)

    def SvcDoRun(self):
        servicemanager.LogMsg(servicemanager.EVENTLOG_INFORMATION_TYPE,
                          servicemanager.PYS_SERVICE_STARTED,
                          (self._svc_name_,''))
        self.main()

    def main(self):
        i=0
        while True:
            f=open("C:\\hello.txt","a")
            f.write("hello"+str(i)+"\n")
            f.close()
            i=i+1
            time.sleep(5)


if __name__ == '__main__':
    win32serviceutil.HandleCommandLine(AppServerSvc)

Answer 1

Of course you can’t stop it, you’re stuck in an infinite loop. Replace:

time.sleep(5)

with this:

if win32event.WaitForSingleObject(self.hWaitStop, 5000) == win32event.WAIT_OBJECT_0: 
    break

Should do the trick.