Services and Processes in Windows

Services in Windows are programs that run in the background, performing specific tasks. These tasks can include system startup, network connections, printing, or updates. Services start and stop automatically without requiring user intervention.

Processes are instances of programs or tasks initiated by the system. Each process uses a certain amount of CPU, memory, and other system resources. Processes can be viewed and terminated in Task Manager.

Managing Services and Processes

Task Manager

Task Manager is a tool in the Windows operating system that allows users to monitor and manage running applications, processes, services, and performance. Task Manager is used to check the computer's performance, terminate applications, monitor processes, and track system resource usage (CPU, memory, disk, network).

Task Manager can typically be accessed by right-clicking the Taskbar or the Start Menu or quickly opened by pressing

Ctrl + Shift + Esc on the keyboard.

Processes

Lists all processes running on your computer. Each process represents a program or service being executed in the computer's memory. This tab allows you to terminate a process or view more information about it.

You can identify resource-intensive processes and terminate unresponsive ones.

Performance

Provides graphs and statistics showing the performance of your computer. It is used to monitor CPU, memory, disk, and network usage. This tab can help identify how system resources are being used and diagnose performance issues.

App History

Shows the history of applications used and their resource consumption. It can be used to see how much resources specific applications have used and which applications are used the most.

Helps you identify applications that consume battery or excessively use resources.

Startup

Lists programs that automatically start when your computer boots up. This tab can be used to manage startup programs and prevent unwanted programs from starting automatically.

Users

Lists currently logged-in users. This information is displayed when multiple users are logged in or when a user leaves their session open.

Details

Provides a more detailed view of the Processes tab. It shows additional information, including username, CPU usage, memory usage, etc., for each process.

Services

Lists services. Each service is a background program performing a specific function. This tab allows you to stop, start, or configure services.

Resource Monitor

Resource Monitor is a tool in Windows used by system administrators and advanced users to monitor and manage a computer's performance. It provides a detailed interface showing the computer's CPU, memory, disk, and network usage.

It is a more detailed version of the Performance tab found in Task Manager. This tool shows how the computer's resources are being used through graphs and statistics. It is especially useful for monitoring how much resources a specific application or process is consuming, which disk files are being accessed, network traffic, and more.

Resource Monitor is a handy tool for identifying and resolving performance issues on a computer. For example, if you notice an application consuming excess CPU or memory, you can identify and terminate it using Resource Monitor if necessary. It can also be used to identify and resolve disk or network performance issues.

• Overview: Provides an overview of your system's CPU, memory, disk, and network activity.

• CPU: Monitors how much CPU is being used by any application or process.

• Memory: Shows the amount of RAM being used, free, and available.

• Disk: Displays disk usage and disk activity on the computer.

• Network: Shows information about the amount of data sent and received over your network connection along with your network activity.

Managing Services and Processes with Sysinternals

Sysinternals

Sysinternals is a valuable resource for anyone looking to manage, diagnose, troubleshoot, or monitor a Windows system.

Sysinternals was founded in 1996 by Mark Russinovich and Bryce Cogswell as a website offering free utilities.

These utilities quickly gained popularity due to their effectiveness in handling complex Windows tasks.

Microsoft recognized the usefulness of Sysinternals and acquired the entire project in 2006. Today, Sysinternals remains a free resource offered by Microsoft, providing a powerful suite of tools for IT professionals and developers.

The Sysinternals suite includes a wide range of tools, each designed for a specific purpose. Popular examples include Process Explorer, which provides detailed views of running processes and resource usage; Autoruns, which helps identify programs that start automatically with Windows; and DiskMon, which monitors disk activity in real-time.

Whether you're an experienced IT professional or just looking to gain more control over your Windows system, Sysinternals offers numerous free tools that can help you diagnose issues, optimize performance, and gain deeper insights into how your system operates.

Process Explorer

Have you ever wondered which program has a particular file or directory open? Now you can find out. Process Explorer shows you information about which handles and DLLs processes have opened or loaded.

The display consists of two sub-windows. The top window always shows a list of the currently active processes, including the names of their owning accounts.

Information displayed in the bottom window depends on Process Explorer's mode: when in handle mode, you will see the handles that the process selected in the top window has opened; when in DLL mode, you will see the DLLs and memory-mapped files that the process has loaded.

Process Explorer also has a powerful search capability that will quickly show you which processes have specific handles opened or which DLLs have been loaded.

The tool can be used to see which child processes are spawned by an application and help troubleshoot orphan handles that might be left behind when a process is terminated.

Autoruns

Autoruns is used to view and manage applications, services, codecs, and other startup items that start automatically.

DiskMon

DiskMon is a tool designed to monitor and display all disk activity on your Windows system. It shows detailed information about the disk, such as read/write operations, sector, length, etc.