What's the best way in C# to set up a utility app that can be run from the command line and produce some output (or write to a file), but that could be run as a Windows service as well to do its job in the background (e.g. monitoring a directory, or whatever).
I would like to write the code once and be able to either call it interactively from PowerShell or some other CLI, but at the same time also find a way to install the same EXE file as a Windows service and have it run unattended.
Can I do this? And if so: how can I do this?
Yes you can.
One way to do it would be to use a command line param, say "/console", to tell the console version apart from the run as a service version:
create a Windows Console App and then
in the Program.cs, more precisely in the Main function you can test for the presence of the "/console" param
if the "/console" is there, start the program normally
if the param is not there, invoke your Service class from a ServiceBase
// Class that represents the Service version of your app
public class serviceSample : ServiceBase
{
protected override void OnStart(string[] args)
{
// Run the service version here
// NOTE: If you're task is long running as is with most
// services you should be invoking it on Worker Thread
// !!! don't take too long in this function !!!
base.OnStart(args);
}
protected override void OnStop()
{
// stop service code goes here
base.OnStop();
}
}
...
Then in Program.cs:
static class Program
{
// The main entry point for the application.
static void Main(string[] args)
{
ServiceBase[] ServicesToRun;
if ((args.Length > 0) && (args[0] == "/console"))
{
// Run the console version here
}
else
{
ServicesToRun = new ServiceBase[] { new serviceSample () };
ServiceBase.Run(ServicesToRun);
}
}
}
The best way to accomplish this from a design standpoint is to implement all your functionality in a library project and build separate wrapper projects around it to execute the way you want (ie a windows service, a command line program, an asp.net web service, a wcf service etc.)
Yes it can be done.
Your startup class must extend ServiceBase.
You could use your static void Main(string[] args) startup method to parse a command line switch to run in console mode.
Something like:
static void Main(string[] args)
{
if ( args == "blah")
{
MyService();
}
else
{
System.ServiceProcess.ServiceBase[] ServicesToRun;
ServicesToRun = new System.ServiceProcess.ServiceBase[] { new MyService() };
System.ServiceProcess.ServiceBase.Run(ServicesToRun);
}
A Windows Service is quite different from a normal Windows program; you're better off not trying to do two things at once.
Have you considered making it a scheduled task instead?
windows service vs scheduled task
Related
I'm trying to run some console app as windows service, I followed this question, and I made a few changes to make it fit to my app.
My main code looks like that:
public static class Program
{
public class Service : ServiceBase
{
public Service(string serviceName)
{
this.ServiceName = serviceName;
}
protected override void OnStart(string[] args)
{
Program.Start(args);
}
protected override void OnStop()
{
Program.Stop(this.ServiceName);
}
}
#endregion
static void Main(string[] args)
{
if (!Environment.UserInteractive)
// running as service
using (var service = new Service("TestService"))
ServiceBase.Run(service);
else
{
// running as console app
Start(args);
}
}
private static void Start(string[] args)
{
while(true)
{
//DO SOMTHING
}
}
private static void Stop(string serviceName)
{
//Writing to log that 'serviceName' stopped
}
}
I tried to run the following console app as a service, by using the following steps:
1) Use the command: sc create ServiceTestName123 binPath= "PATH TO THE EXE FILE IN THE PROJECT DEBUG FOLDER".
2) Use the command: sc start ServiceTestName123 "parameter1".
And I got an error:
"StartService FAILED 1053:
The service did not respond to the start or control request in a timely fashion"
I read about the error in the internet and found out that I can try to solve this problem by running the start function with another thread, so I updated the OnStart function to the following function:
protected override void OnStart(string[] args)
{
Thread t = new Thread(() => Program.Start(args));
t.Start();
}
After trying to re-create the service (delete the old one and create the service again with the new OnStart function) and re-run it I got the same error.
By the way, when I ran this code as console app it worked properly.
Could someone please explaing me what am I doing wrong?
Thanks a lot.
I tried your exact steps and it worked for me. I will highlight a few key points that I came across
OnStart should definitely return in a timely fashion. i.e. the work should happen in a separate process/thread. I used your code for thread and it worked fine for me.
Make sure the executable is on a local drive which can be accessed from your "Local System" account without any permission issues.
Make sure when you create the service, you provide the absolute path and not relative path.
Make sure the sc create ... command responds back with [SC] CreateService SUCCESS
Check the service was created in the service control panel
Make sure you can start it from the service control panel before attempting it from command line
Also, open task manager or process explorer to make sure the service executable is running or not (irrespective of what status is returned by service control panel or scm start)
For debugging, I logged the information into a local temp file - again watch out for permissions issues with Local System account.
If for whatever reasons you have to delete the service, make sure that it indeed disappeared from the service control panel
To debug what's going on, you can attach the debugger at the very beggining of your program start up.
This way, you can check what your program is doing.
You can also check in the Windows ever viewer, the error that windows is throwing.
Put this line at the start trace of your program:
System.Diagnostics.Debugger.Launch()
I have created a Windows Service in Visual Studio 2012 that should run 2 services when executed.
static void Main()
{
// creates an array to hold all services that will run in this application
ServiceBase[] ServicesToRun;
ServicesToRun = new ServiceBase[]
{
// services added here
new Service1(),
new Service2()
};
ServiceBase.Run(ServicesToRun);
}
I have already read various possible answers in various forums, etc. but I have not found a working solution for me.
I have added a Service Installer for each service and I also have one project installer.
When I install the service through the Developer Command Prompt I can see the Windows Service in the Computer Manager but I can also see Service1 and Service2.
When I run the Windows Service, it will only run Service1 and not Service2. However, both Service1 and Service2 can be started individually.
Anyone any suggestions? Been stuck on this for some time now!
EDIT
In the Service1 and Service2 OnStart() I have the following code:
CheckService();
try
{
motorTimer = new Timer();
// timer sets intervals for when quotes are checked after start up
motorTimer .Elapsed += new ElapsedEventHandler(QuoteTimerElapsed);
motorTimer .Interval = Convert.ToDouble(ConfigurationSettings.AppSettings["ServiceCheckInterval"]);
motorTimer .Start();
}
catch (Exception ex)
{
MotorServiceCheckLogDetail(ex.ToString());
OnStop();
}
As an answer to my problem I took the following approach. It might not be perfect and I slightly changed my approach but it was a way I was able to get my Service to work how I wanted.
Instead of creating 1 service with multiple 'services' being run within it, I created one service that instantiated various classes. I was able to include the functionality required in these classes and call the class when required.
As I say, this isn't the perfect answer to my original problem but it was a work around I discovered and as a result it may help others if they read this SO post.
I have already heard/read some problem that people are facing when they are using timer in windows service. Instead of using timer I'd recommend in OnStart method start a task that uses loop with integrated delay. something like following:
Task _task;
CancellationTokenSource _terminator;
protected override void OnStart()
{
_terminator = new CancellationTokenSource();
_task = Task.Factory.StartNew(TaskBody, _terminator.Token);
}
private void TaskBody(object arg)
{
var ct = arg as CancellationToken;
if (ct == null) throw new ArgumentException();
while(!ct.sCancellationRequested)
{
YourOnTimerMethod();
ct.WaitHandle.WaitOne(interval)
}
}
public override void OnClose()
{
_terminator.Cancel();
_task.Wait();
}
I had the same problem. Seems that the OnStart method is called only on the first Service passed to ServiceBase.Run.
my windows service codes looks like this :
namespace Windows_Service
{
static class Program
{
static void Main()
{
try
{
if (IsInstalled())
{
ServiceBase[] ServicesToRun = new ServiceBase[]
{
new My_Service()
};
ServiceBase.Run(ServicesToRun);
}
else
{
InstallService();
StartService();
}
}
catch
{
}
}
...
for the first time when i run the exe file my goal service is installed and runned.
for the second time and abow when i click on exe file i got this message :
Cannot start service from the command line or debugger. A windows
Service must first be installed(using installutil.exe) and then
started with the ServerExplorer, Windows Services Afministrative tool
or the NET START command.
i want to filer this message and prevent this message to comes up.
as you know my project type in windows service and i could n't use the below way :
How To Pre-Filter Windows Messages
what is the solution and how can i remove that message?
thanks in advance
First time posting long time reader.
I built a working filewatcher inside of a windows forms application functioning 100% properly before moving it to a windows Service and am now recieving two seperate issues. This file watcher reads a flatfile for line updates(lastwrite), deletes/recreates file(streamwriter), and finally parses through a strongly typed data set and then uploads to an SQL server.
(This is my first Windows Service)
Questions:
1. Does the double event trigger in filewatcher effect the service differently then a forms application?
2. Does anyone have an answer about why the thread will break if the class I am calling has no issue?
3. Are there any known issues with Windows Authentication through a windows service?
4. Does anyone have any strong debug methods for windows services?
Here is my code from the windows Service, thanks in advance and my apologies if there is a silly mistake in the code, again first time making a windows service.
FileMonitor m_FileMonitor;
public WindowsService()
{
InitializeComponent();
}
protected override void OnStart(string[] args)
{
try
{
Thread myThread = new Thread(DoTheWork);
myThread.Start();
}
catch
{
}
}
void DoTheWork()
{
m_FileMonitor = new FileMonitor(Properties.Settings.Default.PathToFileToWatch, Properties.Settings.Default.PathToErrorLog);
}
protected override void OnStop()
{
// TODO: Add code here to perform any tear-down necessary to stop your service.
}
For debugging, make sure your project type is Windows Application, and then use this:
[DllImport("kernel32")]
static extern bool AllocConsole();
private static void Main(string[] args)
{
var service = new MyService();
var controller = ServiceController.GetServices().FirstOrDefault(c => c.ServiceName == service.ServiceName);
if (null != controller && controller.Status == ServiceControllerStatus.StartPending)
{
ServiceBase.Run(service);
}
else
{
if (AllocConsole())
{
service.OnStart(args);
Console.WriteLine("Press any key to exit...");
Console.ReadKey();
service.OnStop();
}
else
{
throw new Win32Exception(Marshal.GetLastWin32Error());
}
}
}
If the code is running because the Windows Service was started, it will run as a Windows Service. Otherwise it will allocate a console, run the service, then wait for a key press before exiting the service. You could build on this for testing pause and continue.
For debugging:
You have to use the ServiceBase.Run method in Main() to execute as a windows service, but you can make a switch in the main method to run the same application as a normal console application (e.g. --standalone). I'm using this on all my services to make them easy to debug.
Regarding the other problems:
I'm not completely sure which problems you encounter and what you mean by "class break" and "double event trigger".
Windows services run under a special service account, which might or might not have permissions to watch the directory you are interested in. You can change the service account or give it permission for the directory if you need to.
Links:
Here is a link to a codeproject article who seems to have implemented a file watcher windows service. Maybe it helps:
http://www.codeproject.com/Articles/18521/How-to-implement-a-simple-filewatcher-Windows-serv
I'd like to create an application using C# that...:
Can be run as a Windows application, with a GUI (it'll indicate progress, status, etc.)
OR
Can be run as a Windows service, without a GUI
Is it possible? Can someone get me started?
I guess the alternative is that I could create a Windows service, and then a separate GUI application which can poll the Windows service to fetch data from it (progress, status, etc.).
In that case... how can I fetch data from the Windows service from my GUI application?
I'm doing something similar to what you're asking for. I have programmed it so that if you send the command line parameter "/form" to the executable, it will pop up a windows form instead of running as a service.
As far as running the background job itself, in both cases you will need to do some sort of threading (perhaps with a timer) to do the work and report status back to your form asynchronously. This would be a whole different discussion topic on creating threaded GUI apps.
The "form or service" code goes something like this:
static class Program
{
/// <summary>
/// The main entry point for the application.
/// </summary>
private static void Main(string[] args)
{
if (args.Length > 0 && args[0] == "/form")
{
var form = new MainForm();
Application.Run(form);
return;
}
var ServicesToRun = new ServiceBase[]
{
new BackgroundService()
};
ServiceBase.Run(ServicesToRun);
}
}
I've never done an app that can be run as a windows service or a GUI, but we have a lot of apps that you can switch between console app and windows service using a compiler flag. (I just saw the answer with the cmd line arg - that might even be better!)
We usually then just use a compiler flag to switch between the two. Here's an example... I didn't completely think this through, but it might give you a start:
#define RUN_AS_SERVICE
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using System.ServiceProcess;
namespace WindowsFormsApplication1
{
static class Program
{
/// <summary>
/// The main entry point for the application.
/// </summary>
[STAThread]
static void Main()
{
#if RUN_AS_SERVICE
System.ServiceProcess.ServiceBase[] ServicesToRun;
ServicesToRun = new System.ServiceProcess.ServiceBase[]
{
new MyService()
};
System.ServiceProcess.ServiceBase.Run(ServicesToRun);
#else
// Run as GUI
Application.EnableVisualStyles();
Application.SetCompatibleTextRenderingDefault(false);
Application.Run(new Form1());
#endif
}
}
public class MyService : ServiceBase
{
protected override void OnStart(string[] args)
{
// Start your service
}
protected override void OnStop()
{
// Stop your service
}
}
}
Build the actual application in libraries. You can then add any UI (I say this loosely, as service is not really a UI) you desire. As long as you think of the app as a windows aplication and a service application, you are developing two applications. If you think of the application as the business problem it solves, you will then think of the windows forms UI and the service UI, which is much saner for your needs.
While this may sound sane, you would be surprised how many applications need a complete overwrite to become a different UI type. thank you for the question. It convinces me there is a need for the book I am writing. :-)
You should go with the latter option. Create your service and then a seperate GUI app. Most of the plumbing for doing all this is already provided for you in the framework. Have a look at the ServiceController class.
I saw this thread, it might have some more info for you
How to write c# service that I can also run as a winforms program?