Using SMART for Customized Monitoring of Windows Services

Abstract

We focus on examining and working with an important category of computer software called Services, which are provided as a part of newer Microsoft Windows operating systems. A typical Windows user transparently utilizes many of these services but is frequently unaware of their existence. Since some services have the potential to create significant problems when they are executing, it is important for a system administrator to identify which services are running on the network, the types of processing done by each service, and any interrelationships among the various services. This information can then be used to improve the overall integrity of both the individual computer where a questionable service is running and in aggregate an entire network of computers. NCSA has developed an application called SMART (Services Monitoring And Reporting Tool) that can be used to identify and display all services currently running in the network. A commercial program called Hyena remotely monitors the services on all computers attached to the network and exports this information to SMART. SMART produces various outputs that the system administrator can analyze and then determine appropriate actions to take. In particular, SMART provides a color coordinated user interface to quickly identify and classify both potentially hazardous services and also unknown services.