The service is logged on as the name given by the string in this column. If the service type is SERVICE_WIN32_OWN_PROCESS use an account name in the form: DomainName\UserName. If the account belongs to the built-in domain it is permitted to specify .\UserName. The LocalSystem account must be used if the type of service is SERVICE_WIN32_SHARE_PROCESS or SERVICE_INTERACTIVE_PROCESS. The CreateService function uses the LocalSystem account if StartName is specified as null and most services therefore leave this column blank.

This string is the password to the account name specified in the StartName column. Note that the user must have permissions to log on as a service. The service has no password if StartName is null or an empty string. The Startname of LocalSystem is null, and therefore the password in this instance is null, so most services leave this column blank.

Note that after deleting a service that was installed with a user name and password, the installer cannot rollback the service without first using a custom action to get the password. The installer can acquire all the necessary information about the service except the password, which is stored in a protected part of the system. The custom action acquires the password by prompting the user, reading a property from the database, or reading a file. The custom action must then call ChangeServiceConfig, to supply the password, before reinstalling the service.

Windows Installer does not write the value entered into the Password field into the log file.