.NET windows service randomly stops and will not start due to a login failure.

Question

Hi everyone,

I created a service which monitors a few servers and file shares for exchange. Written in VB.NET 2.

The service is installed and running fine(ish) but randomly and without any warning or entries in the event log it stops.

Upon noticing it stops (the web front end that it generates stops working) we have to manage ther hosting server to attempt to start it again.

If we simply try to restart it, it fails to start with a logon failure.

We then go in to the properties and re-enter the service account password, start the service again and it works fine (until the next unannounced stop)

As mentioned there are no event log entries and no pattern to the stopping.

Just wondering if anyone else has had this kind of problem and if there is anything i can do to remedy this?

Thanks guys.

Answer 1

This could be caused by:

• An expired user password (Make sure the user account is configured with the Password never expires option checked). This is a frequent problem, although it is probably not the case here as re-entering the password is enough to make it work again.

• Another batch job or service using the WRONG password for the account and thus locking out the service.