What Is Svchost exe Service Host ?
What Is Svchost.exe (Service Host)? GA S REGULAR Menu Lifewire Tech for Humans Newsletter! Search Close GO Software & Apps > Windows 54 54 people found this article helpful entry. Tap-and-hold or right-click the entry and select Open file location. If the location that opens is anything other than either of the following paths, which are where Windows stores authentic copies of svchost.exe, you might have a virus: %SystemRoot%\System32\svchost.exe%SystemRoot%\SysWOW64\svchost.exe Svchost.exe in System32 folder (Windows 11). The second path is where 32-bit services running on a 64-bit machine are located. Not all computers have that folder. Back in Task Manager, select the arrow to the left of the entry to expand it. Located directly under the svchost.exe instance is every service it’s hosting. For other versions of Windows like Windows 7, you can also use Task Manager to see all the services used by svchost.exe, but it isn’t as clearly laid out as it is in newer versions. Do that by right-clicking a svchost.exe instance in the Processes tab, choosing Go to Services, and then reading through the list of highlighted services in the Services tab. Another option is to use the tasklist command in Command Prompt to product a list of all the services used by all the svchost.exe instances. To do that, open Command Prompt and enter the following command:
tasklist /svc find “svchost.exe” Another option you have here is to use a redirection operator to export the results of the command to a text file, which might be easier to read. If you don’t identify something on the list, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have a virus. It could just be a service you don’t recognize but is vital to the essential operations of Windows. There are probably dozens of “virus-looking” services that are entirely safe. If you’re hesitant about anything you see, search online. You can do that in newer versions of Windows through Task Manager: right-click the service and select Search online. For Windows 7, Vista, or XP, note the service in Command Prompt and type it into Google. To shut down a service running in svchost.exe, see the two sets of instructions at the bottom of this page. entry. Right-click the Task Manager entry for the service you want to shut down, and choose Stop. Windows will immediately stop that service. Any system resources it was using will be freed for other services and applications. If you don’t see the option to stop the service, make sure you’re selecting the service itself and not the “Service Host” line. If the service won’t stop because the program is running, exit it. If you can’t, you might be left having to uninstall the software. You can verify that it’s been shut down, or permanently disable it, by locating the same service in the Services program (search for services.msc from the Start menu). To stop it from running again, double-click the service from the list and change the startup type to Disabled.
What Is Svchost.exe (Service Host)?
Definition of svchost.exe and how to delete svchost.exe viruses
By Tim Fisher Tim Fisher Senior Vice President & Group General Manager, Tech & Sustainability Emporia State University Tim Fisher has more than 30 years' of professional technology experience. He's been writing about tech for more than two decades and serves as the VP and General Manager of Lifewire. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on May 13, 2022 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share EmailIn This Article
Expand Jump to a Section What Is Svchost exe Windows Services Using Svchost.exe? Is Svchost exe a Virus Memory Considerations How to Shut It Down Remove an Svchost.exe Virus Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat to Know
Service Host (svchost.exe) is a legitimate system process used in the Windows OS.It's safe if it's stored here: %SystemRoot%\System32\ or %SystemRoot%\SysWOW64\.You can delete svchost.exe if you find it anywhere else. This article explains what svchost.exe is, how to know if it's safe, and what to do if you find a svchost.exe virus.What Is Svchost exe
The svchost.exe (Service Host) file is a critical system process provided by Microsoft in Windows operating systems. Under normal circumstances, this file isn't a virus but a crucial component in many Windows services. The purpose for svchost.exe is to, as the name would imply, host services. Windows uses it to group services that need access to the same DLLs to run in one process, helping to reduce their demand for system resources. Because Windows uses the Service Host process for so many tasks, it's common to see increased RAM usage of svchost.exe in Task Manager. You'll also see many instances of svchost.exe running in Task Manager because Windows groups similar services together, such as network-related services. Given that this is such a critical component, you shouldn't delete it or quarantine it unless you've verified that the specific svchost.exe file you're dealing with is unnecessary or malicious. There can be only two folders where the real version is stored, making it easy to spot a fake. Svchost.exe Processes (Windows 11).Which Software Use Svchost exe
The svchost.exe process starts when Windows starts, and then checks the HKLM hive of the registry (under SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Svchost) for services it should load into memory. Svchost.exe can be seen running in Windows 11, Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows 2000. Beginning with Windows 10 Creator Update (version 1703), for systems running more than 3.5 GB of RAM, every service runs an instance of svchost. If less than 3.5 GB of RAM is available, services are grouped into shared svchost.exe processes just like in previous versions of Windows. A few examples of Windows services that use svchost.exe include: Windows Update Background Tasks Infrastructure Service Plug and Play World Wide Web Publishing Service Bluetooth Support Service Windows Firewall Task Scheduler DHCP Client Windows Audio Superfetch Network Connections Remote Procedure Call (RPC)Is Svchost exe a Virus
Not usually, but it doesn’t hurt to check, especially if you have no idea why svchost.exe is taking up all the memory on your computer. The first step in identifying whether svchost.exe is a virus is determining which services each svchost.exe instance is hosting. Since you probably have multiple instances running in Task Manager, you have to dive a little deeper to see what each process is doing before deciding whether to delete the svchost process or disable the service running inside. Once you know what services are running within svchost.exe, you can see if they’re real and necessary or if malware is pretending to be svchost.exe. If you have Windows 11, 10, or 8, you can “open” each svchost.exe file from Task Manager. Open Task Manager. Select the Processes tab. Scroll down to the Windows processes section and locate a Service Host:tasklist /svc find “svchost.exe” Another option you have here is to use a redirection operator to export the results of the command to a text file, which might be easier to read. If you don’t identify something on the list, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have a virus. It could just be a service you don’t recognize but is vital to the essential operations of Windows. There are probably dozens of “virus-looking” services that are entirely safe. If you’re hesitant about anything you see, search online. You can do that in newer versions of Windows through Task Manager: right-click the service and select Search online. For Windows 7, Vista, or XP, note the service in Command Prompt and type it into Google. To shut down a service running in svchost.exe, see the two sets of instructions at the bottom of this page.