How can I unit test a Windows Service?

Question

.NET Framework: 2.0 Preferred Language: C#

I am new to TDD (Test Driven Development).

First of all, is it even possible to unit test Windows Service?

Answer 1

I have unit tested windows services by not testing the service directly, but rather testing what the service does.

Typically I create one assembly for the service and another for what the service does. Then I write unit tests against the second assembly.

The nice thing about this approach is that your service is very thin. Basically all it does is call methods to do the right work at the right time. Your other assembly contains all the meat of the work your service intends to do. This makes it very easy to test and easy to reuse or modify as needed.