Both applications developers and system administrators may want servers to have certain support services and control functionality. For example, servers may need mechanisms to store operational data, and they may need to start or stop in various ways. The dced program provides these support and control mechanisms for servers.
Servers are typically configured by an administrator using the dcecp server object in a script after the server is installed on the host. In addition to configuring the server, this script would commonly include other tasks like create an account and assign a principal name for the server, modify the ACLs and key table files (keytabs) to control access to the server and its resources, and export the server binding information to the Cell Directory Service (CDS) so that clients can find a server that will start dynamically later.
After a server is configured, whether it runs as a persistent daemon or an on-demand (dynamic) process, administrators would again use dcecp if they need to control or modify its behavior. Although server management is typically an administrator's task, you may want a management application to perform these tasks, including the following:
· Configure a server to describe how it can be invoked
· Start a server based on configuration data
· Stop a running server
· Disable a specific service provided by a running server
· Enable a specific service for a running server
· Modify a server's configuration
· Delete a server's configuration, effectively removing the server from dced's control
More:
Two States of Server Management: Configuration and Execution
Enabling and Disabling Services of a Server