Keep Bonjour running 24/7 with Service Protector

How to Keep Bonjour Running 24/7 with Service Protector

Automatically restart the Bonjour Windows Service when it crashes or stops for any reason. Ensure that your PC is always serving iTunes, your Apple TVs, printers and other devices.

Bonjour is Apple's Zeroconf implementation. It runs as a Windows Service (on XP and later) and enables PCs to participate in Apple's ecosystem of devices.


To protect the Bonjour Windows Service with Service Protector:

  1. Download, install and configure Bonjour, if necessary.

  2. Download and install Service Protector, if necessary.

  3. Start Service Protector.

  4. Select Protector > Add to open the Add Protector window:

    Add Protector

  5. On the General tab, in the Service to protect dropdown, select Bonjour Service.

    You will notice a green circle on the left if the Bonjour service is already running, as pictured below.

    Bonjour Windows Service: General Tab

  6. Click the Save button. In a couple of seconds, an entry for Bonjour will show up in the Service Protector window. Bonjour is most likely already running in the background but it is not yet being protected by Service Protector:

    Bonjour Windows Service: Created

  7. To start monitoring Bonjour, choose Protector > Start "Bonjour Service". The shield icon will go to green to indicate that Bonjour is being protected:

    Bonjour Windows Service: Running

  8. That's it! Next time your computer boots, Bonjour will start and Service Protector will begin watching the service to quickly restart it if it fails.

    Note that Service Protector has many other settings to ensure that the Bonjour Service operates smoothly. For example, send an email when the service fails, restart Bonjour nightly (in the wee hours), and much more. Double-click on the Bonjour entry and check them out!



Trouble protecting the Bonjour Windows Service?