A Windows Services manager tool to easily view and control Windows services (start, stop, restart). Designed as a lightweight GUI utility for power users and administrators who need quick control and organization of services on Windows machines.

• Features
• Roadmap
• Screenshots
• Requirements
• Installation
• Usage
• Saved Services List (Favorites)
• Permissions
• Development
• Contributing
• License

• List all installed Windows services with their current status.
• Start, Stop and Restart services from the UI.
• Filter and search services by name, display name or status.
• Sort services by name, status or startup type.
• Edit service properties (startup type, display name and description) where supported.
• Simple, responsive UI with logging support (NLog) for troubleshooting.

• Remove/uninstall entries (where permitted by Windows and the current user privileges).
• Save a custom list of services (favorites) to quickly access important services in a dedicated tab.
• Export/Import saved lists for sharing or backups.

• Windows 10 or newer (desktop) with .NET 10.0 runtime installed.
• Administrator privileges to control services (start/stop/restart/edit/remove).
• Optional: Visual Studio 2022/2026 or .NET SDK to build from source.

There are two main ways to run WinServicesTool:

1. Download a prebuilt binary (from Releases) and run the executable.
2. Build from source.

Build from source

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/dougcunha/WinServicesTool.git
   cd WinServicesTool

2. Open the solution WinServicesTool.slnx in Visual Studio or build with the .NET SDK:

   dotnet build WinServicesTool/WinServicesTool.csproj -c Release

3. The compiled executable will be under WinServicesTool/bin/Debug/net10.0-windows/ (or Release).

1. Run the WinServicesTool.exe as administrator:

   # Right-click the executable and choose "Run as administrator" or
   Start-Process -FilePath .\WinServicesTool.exe -Verb RunAs

2. Browse the list of services.

3. Use the filter box to find services by name or status.

4. Select a service and use the Start / Stop / Restart buttons.

5. To persist a set of services, add them to the "Saved Services" tab (Favorites).

Notes

• Some operations (like uninstalling or changing startup type) may be blocked by Windows or require elevated permissions.
• The app uses System.ServiceProcess.ServiceController and standard Windows APIs — behavior follows Windows service security rules.

You can create and maintain a list of frequently used services. Features:

• Add / Remove services from your saved list.
• Quickly switch to the saved list tab to view only those services.
• Export saved lists to a file for backup or sharing.
• Import saved lists to restore or load a friend's / team list.

File format for Export/Import

• The app serializes the saved list into a simple JSON file with service names and optional metadata.

The tool requires administrator rights to perform most actions on services. Without elevated permissions the app will still list services but will be limited to read-only operations for many services.

Tips to run as admin:

• Right-click the .exe and choose "Run as administrator".
• Use PowerShell to start with elevation: Start-Process -FilePath .\WinServicesTool.exe -Verb RunAs.

Project details:

• Language: C#
• Framework: .NET 10.0 (Windows Desktop)
• Logging: NLog

Open the solution in Visual Studio and run.

Recommended tasks

• Run the project from Visual Studio with Administrator privileges when testing service control features.
• Modify nlog.config to adjust logging verbosity and targets.

Building and running from command-line

dotnet build WinServicesTool/WinServicesTool.csproj -c Debug
Start-Process -FilePath "WinServicesTool/bin/Debug/net10.0-windows/WinServicesTool.exe" -Verb RunAs

Contributions are welcome. Please follow these guidelines:

1. Fork the repository and create a feature branch.
2. Keep commits small and focused.
3. Add tests where feasible and run them locally.
4. Open a pull request describing the change and why it's needed.

Suggested improvements

• Add unit/integration tests for non-UI logic.
• Add automated packaging and CI (GitHub Actions) to build releases.
• Add localization support for multiple languages.

Code of Conduct

This project follows a standard open-source code of conduct. Be respectful and inclusive.

• The application uses Windows service APIs and requires admin rights for control operations; never run untrusted builds with elevated privileges.
• Report security issues via the repository's issue tracker and avoid disclosing them publicly until fixed.

This project is licensed under the terms in LICENSE.txt.