Notes for a Happier Computer and User

www.BlackViper.com: Windows XP Service Pack 2 Service Configurations
An * (asterisk) indicates changes from Service Pack 1a to Service Pack 2.
Notes for a Happier Computer and User

* Do not use "msconfig" to disable services, type "services.msc" in the Run box instead! (Why?)
* Before disabling any service, check out the service information about each by selecting the service name links provided.
* Service settings are global, meaning changes apply to all users.
* An "*" (asterisk) indicates changes from Service Pack 1a to Service Pack 2.
* For an easy method of creating multiple Service Configurations, please check out the Windows XP Services Profile Guide.
* All of these services are "Standard" with Windows XP after the installation of Service Pack 2. If you discover something other than these listed here running, another program installed them. View a listing of the more common ones.
* Still unsure? Put your setting to "Manual" or the listing under "Safe." Manual allows Windows XP to start the service when it needs to (or when ever it feels like it), but not at boot up. Depending on your configuration, not all services will start when required while in "Manual" mode. If you find you need a service, place it in Automatic.
* After adjusting your service settings, reboot your computer.
* If you do not have some of these services listed, do not panic! If your computer manufacture "pre-installed" your XP, they choose not to have certain services installed for you. This is, in most cases, a fact with OEM versions of Windows XP Home.
* Before E-Mailing me, see if your question has been addressed in the FAQ!
* Disabling all of the "unneeded services" frees up 12-70 MB of RAM, depending on system.
* Viewing Instructions: If the information is hard to read, please check out your viewing options.

Table Header Information

* Display Name ~ How it displays in the Services Control Panel.
* Process Name ~ Name of the Process running in the background (displays in Task Manager by hitting Ctrl+Alt+Del).
* DEFAULT Home ~ What Bill G. thinks should be running on Windows XP Home.
* DEFAULT MCE 2005 ~ What Bill G. thinks should be running on Windows Media Center Edition 2005.
* DEFAULT Pro ~ What Bill G. thinks should be running on Windows XP Professional.
* DEFAULT Pro x64 ~ What Bill G. thinks should be running on Windows XP Professional x64 Edition.
* DEFAULT Tablet PC 2005 ~ What Bill G. thinks should be running on Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005
* "SAFE" Configuration ~ This is the configuration that 95% of the people will be able to use with little or no side effects. It will also minimize the amount of "errors" that is reported in the Event Viewer. This does not guarantee it will work for you, but if adjusting your services scares you, this configuration would be a good starting point.
* Power User Configuration ~ This is the power user setup. A great way to test this setup is here. This setup is a system that connects through a network (such as a gateway / router) to the internet, provides file and print sharing resources and gaming enjoyment. Some things may not function with this setup. No passwords save. Its use is not for a computer with analog modems or some direct DSL/cable connections. Try the "Safe" Configuration first.
* Bare Bones Configuration ~ This is the super geek setup. A great way to test this setup is here. This setup is a system that connects through a network (such as a gateway / router) to the internet with a static IP address. This system does not provide file and print sharing resources, nor have the ability to print. Its use is not for a computer with analog modems or many direct DSL/cable connections. You can use this configuration for extreme tweaking and testing purposes. Many things may not function with this setup. No passwords save. The Event Log will display "errors" of not being able to start certain services. Built in Windows CDR-RW functions may no longer work. Please do not ask, "How do I fix" questions while using this configuration. The answer will be "Use SAFE." This information's intention is for reference only.

Configuration Information

* Automatic ~ With a service in this state, it will start at boot time. Some services, when no longer required, will also automatically stop when not needed. However, this is very rare. If you find you do not need a service, place it into Manual or Disabled.
* Manual ~ Manual mode allows Windows to start a service when needed. However, very few services will start up when required in Manual mode. If you find you need a service, place it into Automatic.
* Disabled ~ This setting will stop a service from starting, even if needed. Errors in the Event Viewer will show up complaining of that fact. Some services, while Disabled, will constantly complain. However, this situation is taken care of if placed in Manual. The service descriptions identifies those that should be in Manual vs. Disabled.

Black Viper's Windows Service Pack 2 Service Configurations
Display Name Process Name DEFAULT
Home DEFAULT
MCE 2005 DEFAULT
Pro DEFAULT
Pro x64 DEFAULT
Tablet PC Edition 2005 "SAFE" Power User Bare Bones
Alerter svchost.exe * Disabled * Disabled Disabled * Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
Application Experience Lookup Service svchost.exe Not Available Not Available Not Available Automatic Not Available Automatic Disabled Disabled
Application Layer Gateway Service alg.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Application Management svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
Automatic Updates svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Background Intelligent Transfer Service svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
ClipBook clipsrv.exe Disabled * Disabled Disabled * Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
COM+ Event System svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Automatic Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
COM+ System Application dllhost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Computer Browser svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
Cryptographic Services svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
DCOM Server Process Launcher * svchost.exe * Automatic * Automatic Automatic * Automatic Automatic Automatic * Automatic Automatic
DHCP Client svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled
Distributed Link Tracking Client svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Manual Disabled Disabled
Distributed Transaction Coordinator msdtc.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
DNS Client svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Error Reporting Service svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
Event Log services.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic
Fast User Switching Compatibility svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Not Available Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Fax fxssvc.exe Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
FTP Publishing * inetinfo.exe Not Available Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
Display Name Process Name DEFAULT
Home DEFAULT
MCE 2005 DEFAULT
Pro DEFAULT
Pro x64 DEFAULT
Tablet PC Edition 2005 "SAFE" Power User Bare Bones
Help and Support svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Manual * Disabled Disabled
HID Input Service svchost.exe Not Available Not Available Not Available Automatic Not Available Disabled Disabled Disabled
HTTP SSL * svchost.exe * Manual * Manual Manual * Manual Manual Manual * Disabled * Disabled *
Human Interface Device Access svchost.exe Disabled Disabled Disabled Not Available Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
IAS Jet Database Access svchost.exe Not Available Not Available Not Available Manual Not Available Disabled Disabled Disabled
IIS Admin inetinfo.exe Not Available Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
IMAPI CD-Burning COM Service imapi.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual * Disabled Disabled
Indexing Service cisvc.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
IPSEC Services lsass.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic * Disabled Disabled
IPv6 Helper Service * svchost.exe * Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed *
Logical Disk Manager svchost.exe Manual Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Manual Disabled Disabled
Logical Disk Manager Administrative Service dmadmin.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Media Center Receiver Service ehRecvr.exe Not Available Automatic Not Available Not Available Not Available Automatic Disabled Disabled
Media Center Scheduler Service ehRecvr.exe Not Available Automatic Not Available Not Available Not Available Automatic Disabled Disabled
Message Queuing mqsvc.exe Not Available Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
Display Name Process Name DEFAULT
Home DEFAULT
MCE 2005 DEFAULT
Pro DEFAULT
Pro x64 DEFAULT
Tablet PC Edition 2005 "SAFE" Power User Bare Bones
Message Queuing Triggers mqtgsvc.exe Not Available Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
Messenger services.exe Disabled * Disabled Disabled * Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
MHN svchost.exe Not Available Manual Not Available Not Available Not Available Manual Disabled Disabled
MS Software Shadow Copy Provider dllhost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Net Logon lsass.exe Manual Manual Manual * Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
NetMeeting Remote Desktop Sharing mnmsrvc.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
Network Connections svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual
Network DDE netdde.exe Disabled * Disabled Disabled * Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
Network DDE DSDM netdde.exe Disabled * Disabled Disabled * Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
Network Location Awareness (NLA) svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled * Disabled Disabled
Network Provisioning Service * svchost.exe * Manual * Manual Manual * Manual Manual Disabled * Disabled Disabled
NT LM Security Support Provider lsass.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled
Peer Name Resolution Protocol * svchost.exe * Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed *
Peer Networking * svchost.exe * Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed *
Peer Networking Group Authentication * svchost.exe * Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed *
Peer Networking Identity Manager * svchost.exe * Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed * Not Installed * Not Installed *
Performance Logs and Alerts smlogsvc.exe Manual Manual Manual Automatic Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Plug and Play services.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic
Portable Media Serial Number Service * svchost.exe * Manual * Manual Manual * Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
Print Spooler spoolsv.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled
Protected Storage lsass.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
QoS RSVP rsvp.exe Manual Manual Manual Not Installed Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
Remote Access Auto Connection Manager svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Remote Access Connection Manager svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Remote Desktop Help Session Manager sessmgr.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic
Display Name Process Name DEFAULT
Home DEFAULT
MCE 2005 DEFAULT
Pro DEFAULT
Pro x64 DEFAULT
Tablet PC Edition 2005 "SAFE" Power User Bare Bones
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Locator locator.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled
Remote Registry svchost.exe Not Available Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
Removable Storage svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
RIP Listener svchost.exe Not Installed * Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
Routing and Remote Access svchost.exe Disabled Disabled Disabled * Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
Secondary Logon svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
Security Accounts Manager lsass.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Security Center * svchost.exe * Automatic * Automatic Automatic * Automatic Automatic Automatic * Disabled Disabled
Server svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Shell Hardware Detection svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Simple Mail Transport Protocol (SMTP) inetinfo.exe Not Available Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
Simple TCP/IP Services tcpsvcs.exe Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
Smart Card SCardSvr.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
SNMP Service snmp.exe Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
SNMP Trap Service snmptrap.exe Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
SSDP Discovery Service svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
System Event Notification svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
System Restore Service svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Task Scheduler svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper Service svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
Display Name Process Name DEFAULT
Home DEFAULT
MCE 2005 DEFAULT
Pro DEFAULT
Pro x64 DEFAULT
Tablet PC Edition 2005 "SAFE" Power User Bare Bones
TCP/IP Printer Server tcpsvcs.exe Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed
Telephony svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Telnet tlntsvr.exe Not Available Disabled Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled Disabled
Terminal Services svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Themes svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Uninterruptible Power Supply ups.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
Universal Plug and Play Device Host svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Automatic Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Virtual Disk Service vds.exe Not Available Not Available Not Available Manual Not Available Disabled Disabled Disabled
Volume Shadow Copy vssvc.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
WebClient svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
Windows Audio svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic
Windows Firewall / Internet Connection Sharing * svchost.exe * Automatic * Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled
Windows Image Acquisition (WIA) svchost.exe Manual Manual Manual Automatic Manual Manual Disabled Disabled
Windows Installer msiexec.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual
Windows Management Instrumentation svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic
Windows Management Instrumentation Driver Extension svchost.exe Not Available Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled
Windows Time svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
Windows User Mode Driver Framework wdfmgr.exe Not Available Manual Not Available Manual Not Available Disabled Disabled Disabled
Wireless Zero Configuration svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Disabled Disabled Disabled
WMI Performance Adapter wmiapsrv.exe Manual Manual Manual Manual Manual Disabled Disabled Disabled
Workstation svchost.exe Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic Automatic
World Wide Web Publishing * inetinfo.exe * Not Available Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed Not Installed

An "*" (asterisk) indicates changes from Service Pack 1a to Service Pack 2.
Renamed or Removed Services:

* Fax Service - This service is renamed to Fax * after the installation of Service Pack 2.
* FTP Publishing Service - This service is renamed to FTP Publishing * after the installation of Service Pack 2.
* Internet Connection Firewall / Internet Connection Sharing - This service is renamed to Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing * after the installation of Service Pack 2.
* Portable Media Serial Number - This service is renamed to Portable Media Serial Number Service * after the installation of Service Pack 2.
* Smart Card Helper - This service has been removed and combined with Smart Card after the installation of Service Pack 2.
* Upload Manager - This service is removed after the installation of Service Pack 2.
* World Wide Web Publishing Service - This service is renamed to World Wide Web Publishing * after the installation of Service Pack 2.