Restart Services instead of Rebooting the Windows Server 2003

Is your reflex to restart services or reboot the server?

Best Practice (Litmus Test)

Professionals: Prefer to restart faulty services

Amateurs:  Always reboot the server - even if there is no need

Restart services - avoid Reboots

The good news is that Microsoft have reduced the number of actions that require a reboot from over 150 in NT 4.0 to just 7 in Windows 2003.  The bad news is that rebooting the server is no longer as effective in curing problems as it was in NT.  On occasions where rebooting solves a problem, restarting the individual service would work just as well.  Think how much downtime you will save. 

Restart Services (Not Server)

Restarting services is particularly useful when troubleshooting Exchange 2003 or SQL problems.  Rebooting the machine would achieve the same result but would take an age and other services would not be available until the restart is complete.  Stopping and restarting the services is more efficient and also teaches you the dependencies of service.  For example, the Exchange Information Store is dependent on the System Attendant.

Where do you find the settings?  Administrative tools, Services here is a thumbnail:

Or try a flashy VBScript to restart services

Configure services to restart automatically on failure.

7 Main causes of a reboot in Windows 2000/3

1. Installing Active Directory (Run DCPROMO)

2. Changing the DNS IP address or domain suffix

3. Converting from Basic to Dynamic disk

4. Renaming your Machine

5. Install RIS

6. Add or Remove COM Ports

7. Modifying the Schema

Minor causes of a reboot

1. Altering the ISA configuration (why are you still using ISA stuff?)

2. Changing the System Locale (Should have done in during install)

3. Changing the System Font (Why worry on a server?)

4. Removing the GSNW (Just leave it?)

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