How to Run SpeedFan as a Windows Service with AlwaysUp

SpeedFan is a free utility that monitors voltages, fan speeds and temperatures on computers with hardware monitor chips.

To configure SpeedFan with AlwaysUp:

1. Download and install SpeedFan, if necessary.

2. Download and install AlwaysUp, if necessary.

3. Start AlwaysUp.

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

   

5. On the General tab:

   • In the Application field, enter the full path to the SpeedFan executable, speedfan.exe. If you installed SpeedFan in the default location, this will be:

     C:\Program Files\SpeedFan\speedfan.exe

     or, on a 64-bit system:

     C:\Program Files (x86)\SpeedFan\speedfan.exe

   • In the Arguments field, enter /NOSMBSCAN. This prevented SpeedFan from scanning the SMBus and hanging when it started on our PC, so we recommend it for you too. Feel free to add any other of SpeedFan's command line parameters here as you see fit.

   • In the Name field, enter the name that you will call the application in AlwaysUp. We have specified SpeedFan but you can specify another name if you like.

   

6. Click the Save >> button. In a couple of seconds, an application called SpeedFan will show up in the AlwaysUp window. It is not yet running though.

   

7. To start SpeedFan from AlwaysUp, choose Application > Start "SpeedFan". The status will change to Running:

   

   On Windows 8, 7, Vista, Server 2012 or 2008, SpeedFan will be running in Session 0. Select Tools > Switch to Session 0 to transport yourself to the austere Session 0 desktop where SpeedFan's window will be visible:

   

8. That's it! Next time your computer boots, SpeedFan will start up immediately, without anyone needing to log on. Please restart your PC now and test that SpeedFan works as expected after Windows comes back to life.

   And please feel free to edit SpeedFan in AlwaysUp to check out the many other settings that may be appropriate for your environment. For example, send email alerts if it stops, boost SpeedFan's priority, etc.

SpeedFan not working properly as a Windows Service?

• From AlwaysUp, select Application > Report Activity > Today... to bring up a HTML report detailing the interaction between AlwaysUp and SpeedFan. The AlwaysUp Event Log Messages page explains the more obscure messages.
• Consult the AlwaysUp FAQ for answers to commonly asked questions and troubleshooting tips.
• Contact us and we will be happy to help!