X-Git-Url: http://git.iain.cx/?a=blobdiff_plain;f=README.txt;h=366e6f37b48aea67d5f8525c404f5d6f24a8326c;hb=2f219930f488b2551326900df5c201de2e9304f2;hp=2d38eaf7152f98c7e242914f0bdb148c21d7a2cb;hpb=44284fb9f67e45b3fe7dcfa272f5ac01bc184022;p=nssm.git diff --git a/README.txt b/README.txt index 2d38eaf..366e6f3 100644 --- a/README.txt +++ b/README.txt @@ -1,5 +1,5 @@ NSSM: The Non-Sucking Service Manager -Version 2.2, 2010-04-04 +Version 2.21, 2013-11-24 NSSM is a service helper program similar to srvany and cygrunsrv. It can start any application as an NT service and will restart the service if it @@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ NSSM also has a graphical service installer and remover. Full documentation can be found online at - http://iain.cx/src/nssm/ + http://nssm.cc/ Since version 2.0, the GUI can be bypassed by entering all appropriate options on the command line. @@ -20,6 +20,41 @@ Thanks Benjamin Mayrargue. Since version 2.2, NSSM can be configured to take different actions based on the exit code of the managed application. +Since version 2.3, NSSM logs to the Windows event log more elegantly. + +Since version 2.5, NSSM respects environment variables in its parameters. + +Since version 2.8, NSSM tries harder to shut down the managed application +gracefully and throttles restart attempts if the application doesn't run +for a minimum amount of time. + +Since version 2.11, NSSM respects srvany's AppEnvironment parameter. + +Since version 2.13, NSSM is translated into French. +Thanks François-Régis Tardy. + +Since version 2.15, NSSM is translated into Italian. +Thanks Riccardo Gusmeroli. + +Since version 2.17, NSSM can try to shut down console applications by +simulating a Control-C keypress. If they have installed a handler routine +they can clean up and shut down gracefully on receipt of the event. + +Since version 2.17, NSSM can redirect the managed application's I/O streams +to an arbitrary path. + +Since version 2.18, NSSM can be configured to wait a user-specified amount +of time for the application to exit when shutting down. + +Since version 2.19, many more service options can be configured with the +GUI installer as well as via the registry. + +Since version 2.19, NSSM can add to the service's environment by setting +AppEnvironmentExtra in place of or in addition to the srvany-compatible +AppEnvironment. + +Since version 2.22, NSSM can rotate existing output files when redirecting I/O. + Usage ----- @@ -54,6 +89,9 @@ with the given options (if you specified any). Don't forget to enclose paths in "quotes" if they contain spaces! +If you want to include quotes in the options you will need to """quote""" the +quotes. + Managing the service -------------------- @@ -64,12 +102,25 @@ action if/when the application dies. With no configuration from you, NSSM will try to restart itself if it notices that the application died but you didn't send it a stop signal. NSSM will -keep trying, pausing 30 seconds between each attempt, until the service is -successfully started or you send it a stop signal. +keep trying, pausing between each attempt, until the service is successfully +started or you send it a stop signal. + +NSSM will pause an increasingly longer time between subsequent restart attempts +if the service fails to start in a timely manner, up to a maximum of four +minutes. This is so it does not consume an excessive amount of CPU time trying +to start a failed application over and over again. If you identify the cause +of the failure and don't want to wait you can use the Windows service console +(where the service will be shown in Paused state) to send a continue signal to +NSSM and it will retry within a few seconds. + +By default, NSSM defines "a timely manner" to be within 1500 milliseconds. +You can change the threshold for the service by setting the number of +milliseconds as a REG_DWORD value in the registry at +HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\\Parameters\AppThrottle. NSSM will look in the registry under HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\\Parameters\AppExit for -string (REG_SZ) values corresponding to the exit code of the application. +string (REG_EXPAND_SZ) values corresponding to the exit code of the application. If the application exited with code 1, for instance, NSSM will look for a string value under AppExit called "1" or, if it does not find it, will fall back to the AppExit (Default) value. You can find out the exit code @@ -86,10 +137,145 @@ but will continue running itself. This emulates the (usually undesirable) behaviour of srvany. The Windows Services console would show the service as still running even though the application has exited. -If the value data is "Exit" NSSM will exit. The Windows Services console -would show the service as stopped. If you wish to provide finer-grained -control over service recovery you should use this code and edit the failure -action manually. +If the value data is "Exit" NSSM will exit gracefully. The Windows Services +console would show the service as stopped. If you wish to provide +finer-grained control over service recovery you should use this code and +edit the failure action manually. Please note that Windows versions prior +to Vista will not consider such an exit to be a failure. On older versions +of Windows you should use "Suicide" instead. + +If the value data is "Suicide" NSSM will simulate a crash and exit without +informing the service manager. This option should only be used for +pre-Vista systems where you wish to apply a service recovery action. Note +that if the monitored application exits with code 0, NSSM will only honour a +request to suicide if you explicitly configure a registry key for exit code 0. +If only the default action is set to Suicide NSSM will instead exit gracefully. + + +Stopping the service +-------------------- +When stopping a service NSSM will attempt several different methods of killing +the monitored application, each of which can be disabled if necessary. + +First NSSM will attempt to generate a Control-C event and send it to the +application's console. Batch scripts or console applications may intercept +the event and shut themselves down gracefully. GUI applications do not have +consoles and will not respond to this method. + +Secondly NSSM will enumerate all windows created by the application and send +them a WM_CLOSE message, requesting a graceful exit. + +Thirdly NSSM will enumerate all threads created by the application and send +them a WM_QUIT message, requesting a graceful exit. Not all applications' +threads have message queues; those which do not will not respond to this +method. + +Finally NSSM will call TerminateProcess() to request that the operating +system forcibly terminate the application. TerminateProcess() cannot be +trapped or ignored, so in most circumstances the application will be killed. +However, there is no guarantee that it will have a chance to perform any +tidyup operations before it exits. + +Any or all of the methods above may be disabled. NSSM will look for the +HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\\Parameters\AppStopMethodSkip +registry value which should be of type REG_DWORD set to a bit field describing +which methods should not be applied. + + If AppStopMethodSkip includes 1, Control-C events will not be generated. + If AppStopMethodSkip includes 2, WM_CLOSE messages will not be posted. + If AppStopMethodSkip includes 4, WM_QUIT messages will not be posted. + If AppStopMethodSkip includes 8, TerminateProcess() will not be called. + +If, for example, you knew that an application did not respond to Control-C +events and did not have a thread message queue, you could set AppStopMethodSkip +to 5 and NSSM would not attempt to use those methods to stop the application. + +Take great care when including 8 in the value of AppStopMethodSkip. If NSSM +does not call TerminateProcess() it is possible that the application will not +exit when the service stops. + +By default NSSM will allow processes 1500ms to respond to each of the methods +described above before proceeding to the next one. The timeout can be +configured on a per-method basis by creating REG_DWORD entries in the +registry under HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\\Parameters. + + AppStopMethodConsole + AppStopMethodWindow + AppStopMethodThreads + +Each value should be set to the number of milliseconds to wait. Please note +that the timeout applies to each process in the application's process tree, +so the actual time to shutdown may be longer than the sum of all configured +timeouts if the application spawns multiple subprocesses. + + +I/O redirection +--------------- +NSSM can redirect the managed application's I/O to any path capable of being +opened by CreateFile(). This enables, for example, capturing the log output +of an application which would otherwise only write to the console or accepting +input from a serial port. + +NSSM will look in the registry under +HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\\Parameters for the keys +corresponding to arguments to CreateFile(). All are optional. If no path is +given for a particular stream it will not be redirected. If a path is given +but any of the other values are omitted they will be receive sensible defaults. + + AppStdin: Path to receive input. + AppStdout: Path to receive output. + AppStderr: Path to receive error output. + +Parameters for CreateFile() are providing with the "AppStdinShareMode", +"AppStdinCreationDisposition" and "AppStdinFlagsAndAttributes" values (and +analogously for stdout and stderr). + +In general, if you want the service to log its output, set AppStdout and +AppStderr to the same path, eg C:\Users\Public\service.log, and it should +work. Remember, however, that the path must be accessible to the user +running the service. + + +File rotation +------------- +When using I/O redirection, NSSM can rotate existing output files prior to +opening stdout and/or stderr. An existing file will be renamed with a +suffix based on the file's last write time, to millisecond precision. For +example, the file nssm.log might be rotated to nssm-20131221T113939.457.log. + +NSSM will look in the registry under +HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\\Parameters for REG_DWORD +entries which control how rotation happens. + +If AppRotateFiles is missing or set to 0, rotation is disabled. Any non-zero +value enables rotation. + +If AppRotateSeconds is non-zero, a file will not be rotated if its last write +time is less than the given number of seconds in the past. + +If AppRotateBytes is non-zero, a file will not be rotated if it is smaller +than the given number of bytes. 64-bit file sizes can be handled by setting +a non-zero value of AppRotateBytesHigh. + +Rotation is independent of the CreateFile() parameters used to open the files. +They will be rotated regardless of whether NSSM would otherwise have appended +or replaced them. + + +Environment variables +--------------------- +NSSM can replace or append to the managed application's environment. Two +multi-valued string (REG_MULTI_SZ) registry values are recognised under +HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\\Parameters. + +AppEnvironment defines a list of environment variables which will override +the service's environment. AppEnvironmentExtra defines a list of +environment variables which will be added to the service's environment. + +Each entry in the list should be of the form KEY=VALUE. It is possible to +omit the VALUE but the = symbol is mandatory. + +srvany only supports AppEnvironment. Removing services using the GUI @@ -111,6 +297,18 @@ To remove a service without confirmation from the GUI, run Try not to remove essential system services... +Logging +------- +NSSM logs to the Windows event log. It registers itself as an event log source +and uses unique event IDs for each type of message it logs. New versions may +add event types but existing event IDs will never be changed. + +Because of the way NSSM registers itself you should be aware that you may not +be able to replace the NSSM binary if you have the event viewer open and that +running multiple instances of NSSM from different locations may be confusing if +they are not all the same version. + + Example usage ------------- To install an Unreal Tournament server: @@ -124,13 +322,41 @@ To remove the server: Building NSSM from source ------------------------- -NSSM is known to compile with Visual Studio 6, Visual Studio 2005 and Visual -Studio 2008. +NSSM is known to compile with Visual Studio 2008. Older Visual Studio +releases may or may not work. + +NSSM will also compile with Visual Studio 2010 but the resulting executable +will not run on versions of Windows older than XP SP2. If you require +compatiblity with older Windows releases you should change the Platform +Toolset to v90 in the General section of the project's Configuration +Properties. Credits ------- +Thanks to Bernard Loh for finding a bug with service recovery. Thanks to Benjamin Mayrargue (www.softlion.com) for adding 64-bit support. +Thanks to Joel Reingold for spotting a command line truncation bug. +Thanks to Arve Knudsen for spotting that child processes of the monitored +application could be left running on service shutdown, and that a missing +registry value for AppDirectory confused NSSM. +Thanks to Peter Wagemans and Laszlo Keresztfalvi for suggesting throttling restarts. +Thanks to Eugene Lifshitz for finding an edge case in CreateProcess() and for +advising how to build messages.mc correctly in paths containing spaces. +Thanks to Rob Sharp for pointing out that NSSM did not respect the +AppEnvironment registry value used by srvany. +Thanks to Szymon Nowak for help with Windows 2000 compatibility. +Thanks to François-Régis Tardy for French translation. +Thanks to Emilio Frini for spotting that French was inadvertently set as +the default language when the user's display language was not translated. +Thanks to Riccardo Gusmeroli for Italian translation. +Thanks to Eric Cheldelin for the inspiration to generate a Control-C event +on shutdown. +Thanks to Brian Baxter for suggesting how to escape quotes from the command prompt. +Thanks to Russ Holmann for suggesting that the shutdown timeout be configurable. +Thanks to Paul Spause for spotting a bug with default registry entries. +Thanks to BUGHUNTER for spotting more GUI bugs. +Thanks to Doug Watson for suggesting file rotation. Licence -------