Re: Re: Re: Re: (tye)Re: Running Perl code from a Windows service

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You are probably right, I haven't tried MessageBox in a service.

I am slightly confused about the model you describe. Are you saying that the service should spawn a process in the context of the current logged on user so the user can interact with it? I am not disagreeing with you here, just seeking clarification. It sounds complicated - what happens when the user logs off? Do you kill the process and spawn a new one with the new logged on user?

Personally, I agree that a service shouldn't need access to the desktop. All the services I have written have been completely in the background, and if I've needed to interact with it, I use a client with sockets or something. But your model sounds a bit confusing. Unless we're talking about the same thing. What do you mean by "Another program, running as a normal program "

Simon Flack ($code or die)
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[John M. Dlugosz]

The ability of the MessageBox is specific to the MessageBox. Other windows can't do that in any documented manner.

No, the service doesn't spawn a process. The user runs the process, if/when desired. For example, in the Startup group is something that adds a tray icon, or a control panel applet or MMC snap-in interacts with the service once you run it.

See "Design a Windows NT Service to Exploit Special Operating System Facilities" by Jeffrey Richter. I just did a search in MSDN to find something on this subject. I've seen it described many times. Jeff says,

The second thing you need to know when writing a service is that it should have absolutely no user interface. Most services will be running on a Windows NT Server machine locked away in a closet somewhere. If your service presents any user interface elements like message boxes, it's unlikely that a user will be in front of the machine to see the message box and dismiss it. Since you shouldn't have a user interface, it doesn't matter whether you choose to implement your service as a GUI application (with WinMain as its entry point) or as a console application (with main as its entry point).

From the October 1997 issue of Microsoft Systems Journal. —John