Understanding systemd User Services

systemd allows users to create and manage their own services without needing root access. This is particularly useful for running applications that only need to operate under a specific user account.

Key Features of User Services

• User-Specific: User services are linked to a specific user account and are stored in the user’s home directory.
• Location: User services are typically found in ~/.config/systemd/user/. This is where you create your service files.
• Startup Behavior: These services start automatically when the user logs in and stop when the user logs out.

Create the Service file

touch ~/.config/systemd/user/myservice.service

Edit the Service File

[Unit]
Description=My Custom Service

[Service]
ExecStart=/path/to/your/application

[Install]
WantedBy=default.target

Enable the Service

systemctl —user enable myservice.service

Start the Service

systemctl —user start myservice.service

Check Status

systemctl —user status myservice.service

Stop the Service

systemctl —user stop myservice.service

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