Host a windows program as windows service

Question

Hi, is there any free solution to run a third party windows program as windows service in windows server? it would be better that the solution can allow one of multiple RDP users to take control of the program to perform administrative work by accessing the UI of the program. Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

If your program has UI then it should not run as a service. To be more precise, it cannot run as a service because the new service model post-Vista will prevent it from doing any user interaction.

Non-interactive programms can be converted into services with an old tool from the windows tool Kit, anysrv.exe

Newly writtten application that need to interact with an user from a service must split the application into two processes, a service process and an ordinary user process that displays the UI and runs in a user sessions. The two can interact via IPC means like shared memory, pipes, sockets, messages etc.