A Service API

Environment: VC6, NT/Windows 2000

Service API…

The Service API consists of a set of functions and a couple of callback functions that must be supported. Together, these functions allow an application to run independent of any logged-on user.

At its heart, a service application supports at least three functions:

• The main function. This is just a standard main function with arguments like any console-mode, Win32 application. The main function must call certain functions in a timely manner.

VOID  main( DWORD dwArgc, LPTSTR* lpszArgv );

• The ServiceMain function. This is the entry point for the service. The ServiceMain function must have the following prototype, though it can have a different name:

VOID ServiceMain( DWORD dwArgc,  LPTSTR* lpszArgv );

• The control handler (Handler) function. This function receives requests for the service. The control handler function must have the following prototype, though it can have a different name:

VOID WINAPI Handler(DWORD fdwControl );
Or
DWORD WINAPI HandlerEx(
  DWORD dwControl,     // requested control code
  DWORD dwEventType,   // event type
  LPVOID lpEventData,  // event data
  LPVOID lpContext     // user-defined context data
);

The HandlerEx function is primarily useful for services that need to manage multiple services from a single control handler or for a service that needs to react to device notifications.

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