Windows XP Professional SP2 Service Configuration
Unneeded services take up valuable resources and may even pose security risks. Which services to set to manual, and which ones to disable? I came across Black Viper’s recommendations some time ago, but unfortunately his website has disappeared. However, all is not lost as it has been archived (with thanks to The Wayback Machine).
In summary, disable the following services (my comments in square brackets):
- Computer Browser
- Error Reporting Service
- Indexing Service [may also be disabled via the drive’s property pages]
- Net Logon [if you’re not on a network]
- NetMeeting Remote Desktop Sharing
- Network Location Awareness (NLA)
- Network Provisioning Service
- Performance Logs and Alerts
- Portable Media Serial Number Service
- QoS RSVP
- Remote Desktop Help Session Manager
- Remote Registry Service
- Secondary Logon [careful - needed to perform “Run as …”]
- Security Center
- Server
- Smart Card
- SSDP Discovery Service
- System Restore Service [may also be disabled via the “My Computer” property pages]
- TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper Service
- Telnet
- Uninterruptible Power Supply [if you don’t have UPS]
- Universal Plug and Play Device Host
- WebClient
- Windows Time [may also be disabled via the “Date and Time” applet in the Contol Panel]
- WMI Performance Adapter
And set the following services to manual:
- Distributed Link Tracking Client
- Help and Support
- Logical Disk Manager
For further reading, take a look at Jason A. Nunnelley’s article and Simon Sheppard’s list.
Update 25 September 2008
See also Services Guide for Windows XP - contains info on XP SP2.
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