service - executes System-V style init script actions

service [[ -h ] | [ --h ] | [ --help ] | [ -V ] | [ --version ] | [ --status-all ]] | service-name action

service is a command-line interface to execute System V style init script /etc/init.d/name actions.

This manpage documents only the usage and behavior of service. For a discussion of the System V style init script arrangements please see init(8) and the dpkg programmers' manual.

A far more detailed description of sysvinit is available in the sysvinit package documentation.

This is the name of one of the scripts in /etc/init.d.

The standard actions are: start, stop, force-stop, restart, reload, force-reload, and status.

--force-restart runs the script with stop, and, if successful, with start.

Please note that not all init scripts will implement all the actions listed above. Some may do the wrong thing when called with actions they don't support.

--help, --h, -h

Display usage help.

-V, --version

Display version number.

--status-all

Tries to run every initscript with the action status. Most Debian initscripts do not support this action. As some may do the wrong thing when called with unsupported actions this option is a no-op.

service calls invoke-rc.d --force and returns the status returned by it.

/etc/init.d/*

System V init scripts.

Please report any bugs using the Debian bug tracking system, http://bugs.debian.org/, package sysvconfig.

dpkg programmers manual,

/etc/init.d/skeleton,

update-rc.d(8),

init(8),

invoke-rc.d(8).