Creates a subkey and entries for a service in the registry and in the Service Control Manager database.

For examples of how to use this command, see Examples.

Syntax

sc [<ServerName>] create [<ServiceName>] [type= {own | share | kernel | filesys | rec | interact type= {own | share}}] [start= {boot | system | auto | demand | disabled}] [error= {normal | severe | critical | ignore}] [binpath= <BinaryPathName>] [group= <LoadOrderGroup>] [tag= {yes | no}] [depend= <dependencies>] [obj= {<AccountName> | <ObjectName>}] [displayname= <DisplayName>] [password= <Password>]

Parameters

Parameter

Description

Specifies the name of the remote server on which the service is located. The name must use the Universal Naming Convention (UNC) format (for example, \\myserver). To run SC.exe locally, omit this parameter.

Specifies the service name returned by the getkeyname operation.

type= {own | share | kernel | filesys | rec | interact type= {own | share}}

Specifies the service type. The default setting is type= own.

Value	Description
own	Specifies that the service runs in its own process. It does not share an executable file with other services. This is the default setting.
share	Specifies that the service runs as a shared process. It shares an executable file with other services.
kernel	Specifies a driver.
filesys	Specifies a file system driver.
rec	Specifies a file system recognized driver (identifies file systems used on the computer).
interact	Specifies that the service can interact with the desktop, receiving input from users. Interactive services must be run under the LocalSystem account. This type must be used in conjunction with type= own or type= shared. Using type= interact by itself will generate an "invalid parameter" error.

start= {boot | system | auto | demand | disabled}

Specifies the start type for the service. The default setting is start= demand.

Value	Description
boot	Specifies a device driver that is loaded by the boot loader.
system	Specifies a device driver that is started during kernel initialization.
auto	Specifies a service that automatically starts each time the computer is restarted. Note that the service runs even if no one logs on to the computer.
demand	Specifies a service that must be started manually. This is the default value if start= is not specified.
disabled	Specifies a service that cannot be started. To start a disabled service, change the start type to some other value.

error= {normal | severe | critical | ignore}

Specifies the severity of the error if the service fails when the computer is started. The default setting is error= normal.

Value	Description
normal	Specifies that the error is logged. A message box is displayed, informing the user that a service has failed to start. Startup will continue. This is the default setting.
severe	Specifies that the error is logged (if possible). The computer attempts to restart with the last-known good configuration. This could result in the computer being able to restart, but the service may still be unable to run.
critical	Specifies that the error is logged (if possible). The computer attempts to restart with the last-known good configuration. If the last-known good configuration fails, startup also fails, and the boot process halts with a Stop error.
ignore	Specifies that the error is logged and startup continues. No notification is given to the user beyond recording the error in the event log.

binpath= <BinaryPathName>

Specifies a path to the service binary file. There is no default for binpath=, and this string must be supplied.

group= <LoadOrderGroup>

Specifies the name of the group of which this service is a member. The list of groups is stored in the registry in the HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\ServiceGroupOrder subkey. The default value is null.

tag= {yes | no}

Specifies whether or not a TagID is to be obtained from the CreateService call. Tags are used only for boot-start and system-start drivers.

depend= <dependencies>

Specifies the names of services or groups that must start before this service starts. The names are separated by forward slashes (/).

obj= {<AccountName> | <ObjectName>}

Specifies the name of an account in which a service will run, or specifies a name of the Windows driver object in which the driver will run.

displayname= <DisplayName>

Specifies a friendly name that can be used by user interface programs to identify the service.

password= <Password>

Specifies a password. This is required if an account other than LocalSystem is used.

Displays help at the command prompt.

Remarks

For each command-line option, the equal sign is part of the option name.
A space is required between an option and its value (for example, type= own. If the space is omitted the operation will fail.

Examples

The following examples show how you can use the sc create command:

sc \\myserver create NewService binpath= c:\windows\system32\NewServ.exe
sc create NewService binpath= c:\windows\system32\NewServ.exe type= share start= auto depend= "+TDI Netbios"

Additional references

Command-Line Syntax Key

Sc create

Syntax

Parameters

Remarks

Examples

Additional references