Powershell script to change service account

Question

Does anyone have a Powershell script to change the credentials used by a Windows service?

Answer 1

I created a text file "changeserviceaccount.ps1" containing the following script:

$account="domain\user"
$password="passsword"
$service="name='servicename'"

$svc=gwmi win32_service -filter $service
$svc.StopService()
$svc.change($null,$null,$null,$null,$null,$null,$account,$password,$null,$null,$null)
$svc.StartService()

I used this as part of by post-build command line during the development of a windows service:

Visual Studio: Project properties\Build Events

Pre-build event command line:

"C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\installutil.exe" myservice.exe /u

Post-build event command line:

"C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\installutil.exe" myservice.exe
powershell -command - < c:\psscripts\changeserviceaccount.ps1

Answer 2

The given answers do the job.

Although, there is another important detail; in order to change the credentials and run the service successfully, you first have to grant that user account permissions to 'Log on as a Service'.

To grant that privilege to a user, use the Powershell script provided here by just providing the username of the account and then run the other commands to update the credentials for a service as mentioned in the other answers, i.e.,

$svc=gwmi win32_service -filter 'Service Name'

$svc.change($null,$null,$null,$null,$null,$null,'.\username','password',$null,$null,$null)

Answer 3

$svc = Get-WmiObject win32_service -filter "name='serviceName'"

the position of username and password can change so try this line to find the right place$svc.GetMethodParameters("change")

$svc.change($null,$null,$null,$null,$null,$null,$null,$null,$null,"admin-username","admin-password")

Answer 4

Considering that whithin this class:

$class=[WMICLASS]'\\.\root\Microsoft\SqlServer\ComputerManagement:SqlService'

there's a method named setserviceaccount(), may be this script will do what you want:

# Copyright Buck Woody, 2007
# All scripts provided AS-IS. No functionality is guaranteed in any way.
# Change Service Account name and password using PowerShell and WMI
$class = Get-WmiObject -computername "SQLVM03-QF59YPW" -namespace
root\Microsoft\SqlServer\ComputerManagement -class SqlService

#This remmed out part shows the services - I'll just go after number 6 (SQL
#Server Agent in my case):
# foreach ($classname in $class) {write-host $classname.DisplayName}
# $class[6].DisplayName
stop-service -displayName $class[6].DisplayName

# Note: I recommend you make these parameters, so that you don't store
# passwords. At your own risk here!
$class[6].SetServiceAccount("account", "password")
start-service -displayName $class[6].DisplayName