Corionis Service Manager.NET vs NSSM

Corionis Service Manager.NET (CSM) is a free Windows tray application for monitoring and managing Windows services chosen by the user. It can start or stop selected services and change their startup type. When a monitored service changes state, CSM displays a notification and logs it; file logging is optional. Users can reorder the service list by dragging items and edit the names displayed in the application. An optional updater can be set to check daily, weekly, or monthly. CSM installs for the current user, so each user on a system may have a separate copy. Monitoring works without administrator privileges, but service management controls are disabled unless those privileges are available. The maker says it was tested on Windows 7 through Windows Server 2016, supports 32-bit and 64-bit systems, and requires Microsoft .NET Framework 4.7.2. This version is a complete rewrite of the original, written in Microsoft C# and .NET. The release is MIT licensed and provided without warranty or guarantee. There is no restart button because the application cannot accurately determine when a service has finished shutting down and is safe to start again.

NSSM is a Windows service helper that runs an application as a service, watches its process, and responds when it exits. A graphical interface installs or removes services, while command-line options support scripted configuration. On exit, NSSM can restart the application, ignore the event, terminate itself, or exit uncleanly so Windows recovery actions can run. It records its own progress in the Windows system Event Log and can redirect the monitored program’s input and output. Output files can rotate at a configurable size, including while the program continues running. Administrators can set process priority and CPU affinity, and start, stop, or query services. NSSM provides 32-bit and 64-bit binaries and says it should work on Windows 2000 or later. It is public domain, with source usable for any purpose. The site lists version 2.24 from 2014-08-31 as latest, plus a 2017 prerelease. Administrator access is required; documented bugs affect newer startup, XP, and large log rotation.