Run batch file as a Windows service

Question

NSSM is totally free and hyper-easy, running command prompt / terminal as administrator:

nssm install "YourCoolServiceNameLabel"

then a dialog will appear so you can choose where is the file you want to run.

to uninstall

nssm remove "YourCoolServiceNameLabel"

Why not simply set it up as a Scheduled Task that is scheduled to run at start up?

There's a built in windows cmd to do this: sc create. Not as fancy as nssm, but you don't have to download an additional piece of software.

sc create "ServiceName" start= demand displayname= "DisplayName" binpath= [path to .bat file]

Note

• start=demand means you must start the service yourself
• whitespace is required after =
• I did encounter an error on service start that the service did not respond in a timely manner, but it was clear the service had run the .bat successfully. Haven't dug into this yet but this thread experienced the same thing and solved it using nssm to install the service.

No need for extra software. Use the task scheduler -> create task -> hidden. The checkbox for hidden is in the bottom left corner. Set the task to trigger on login (or whatever condition you like) and choose the task in the actions tab. Running it hidden ensures that the task runs silently in the background like a service.

Note that you must also set the program to run "whether the user is logged in or not" or the program will still run in the foreground.