Windows Service Error 1079, "The account specified for this service is different from the account specified for other services running in the same process"

Error 1079 appears when several services share one process, which is common for services hosted inside a shared host, and one of them is set to log on with a different account than the others. Windows requires every service in the same process to use the same account.

The fix, in order

  1. Find which services share the process. In an admin Command Prompt, run sc qc followed by the service name and note the binary path. Services with the same path and the same group switch share a process.
  2. In Services, open the Log On tab of the failing service and of the other services in that group, and compare the accounts. One of them does not match the rest.
  3. Change the odd one out to the account the other services use. Enter the password for that account, click Apply, and try starting the service again.
  4. Alternatively, move the service into its own process. In an admin Command Prompt, run sc config with the service name and type= own. This lets it use its own account, but it uses more memory and is best left to the program vendor's guidance.
  5. If the service belongs to a program, reinstalling the program usually restores the correct shared account for all of its services.
  6. Check the Security log in Event Viewer if the logon still fails after the accounts match, since the shared account itself may have a password problem.

If it still happens

If the accounts match and the error continues, restart the PC, since the process grouping is decided at startup. If the service was recently moved between accounts by a script or an installer, the other services in the group may need the same change.

Common questions

Why must services in the same process share an account? A process runs under one account. If two services in that process asked for different accounts, Windows could not satisfy both, so it refuses to start the one that does not match.

Should I use 'type= own' to fix error 1079? It works, but it changes how the service runs and uses more memory. Matching the account to the other services in the group is the cleaner fix, and reinstalling the program does it automatically.

Related errors

Windows Service Error 1069 · Windows Service Error 1083 · Windows Update Error 0x80070005

Was this helpful?