Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

If it's not about a problem in the program
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Tester100
Posts: 26
Joined: Thu Oct 16, 2014 8:19 am

Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by Tester100 » Mon Oct 27, 2014 12:19 am

Hello! :) I would love to ask you an important question where I wasn't able to find anything through Google, thanks a ton if you will answer.

I'm using Steam a lot (google "Steam games" if you don't know what it is), mostly in Sandboxie. Most games work fine, however, there is a problem. Some games with multiplayer require the SteamService.exe if I would like to host games, and sometimes I would like to be the host. But I don't want to install this service on my real system. Why? It could be a security issue. Here is one reference: http://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/ ... _security/

The question:
Is there any way to start this service in Sandboxie? Letting Steam install the service ends up in weird pointless harddisk activity in the Steam directory, without installing or starting the service when it's finished.

But I need to add some more important information: If I'm starting Steam as an admin outside Sandboxie, Steam will be able to start the SteamService.exe without installing it as a service. However, starting Steam as an admin in Sandboxie will somehow prevent starting the SteamService.exe, even though that it doesn't need an installation if it runs as an admin. I guess this is probably by design of Sandboxie, but how could I change it? There must be somehow a way to run the service in Sandboxie.

Thanks a lot in advance for your answer! I had a little headache about this, because it would be too awesome to start it in Sandboxie.

Tester100
Posts: 26
Joined: Thu Oct 16, 2014 8:19 am

Re: Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by Tester100 » Fri Nov 28, 2014 8:10 am

My issue is still relevant and I really would like to know if there is a way to run the service in Sandboxie. Meanwhile I had installed a second Windows system just to run Steam service without Sandboxie! If somebody has a solution to make it working in Sandboxie, please answer. Thank you so much.

Tester100
Posts: 26
Joined: Thu Oct 16, 2014 8:19 am

Re: Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by Tester100 » Mon Jan 26, 2015 5:26 pm

This issue is still very problematic for me and if someone knows an answer to this, please leave a post! I need to know if it''s possible with Sandboxie with additional configuration to run the Steam service in Sandboxie, or if it isn't possible because of technical reasons, maybe because the Steam service isn't implemented in Sandboxie, or whatever. Thanks for any answers! I really don't know where I could ask something related to this, since this is the official Sandboxie forum anyway.

btm
Posts: 160
Joined: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:31 am

Re: Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by btm » Mon Jan 26, 2015 8:00 pm

Not sure what to tell you. I have steam installed in a box all its own and as long as I don't enable drop rights it loads the steamservice.exe just fine because despite its name it isn't a service in the services.msc sense. More than that none of the multiplayer games I've tried 'NEEDED' it, not to say there aren't some out there that do but for now I cannot duplicate your issue(s).

Even with Drop rights enabled I have yet to encounter anything more than a prompt which I cancel out of upon launch. All my (few) games update and run...I can host or join with no issue.
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Peter2150
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Location: Washington DC

Re: Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by Peter2150 » Mon Jan 26, 2015 8:12 pm

The easiest solution is to install everything on your real system, and then run it sandboxed. You are protected that way. Installing something in a sandbox that needs a service probably won't work. That is exactly what sandboxie is designed to prevent.

btm
Posts: 160
Joined: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:31 am

Re: Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by btm » Mon Jan 26, 2015 8:16 pm

Except despite the name, it isn't a service in the normal sense.....is it? Great more investigating to do to be sure.... grr @ Peter for making me doubt!

Ah yup just checked my separate gaming OS, it does install an actual service there if it is able. Odd that it still loads and works fine for me in the sandboxie installed one while my real system remains clean and there isn't an entry in the sandbox's reg file for it. Great now I'm just plain confused.

Tester100
Posts: 26
Joined: Thu Oct 16, 2014 8:19 am

Re: Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by Tester100 » Tue Feb 10, 2015 3:10 pm

Hey, thanks so much for your answers! :) I really had lost the hope to see an answer.
btm wrote:Not sure what to tell you. I have steam installed in a box all its own and as long as I don't enable drop rights it loads the steamservice.exe just fine because despite its name it isn't a service in the services.msc sense. More than that none of the multiplayer games I've tried 'NEEDED' it, not to say there aren't some out there that do but for now I cannot duplicate your issue(s).
If Steam is installed only in Sandboxie, then the SteamService.exe won't start for me, and very likely for everyone else as well. Because...
Peter2150 wrote:The easiest solution is to install everything on your real system, and then run it sandboxed. You are protected that way. Installing something in a sandbox that needs a service probably won't work. That is exactly what sandboxie is designed to prevent.
Thanks for your answer as well. Since Steam isn't that dangerous or risky, and the lack of solutions will probably force me to do exactly this. Sounds great if it's even safe this way.
btm wrote:Except despite the name, it isn't a service in the normal sense.....is it? Great more investigating to do to be sure.... grr @ Peter for making me doubt!

Ah yup just checked my separate gaming OS, it does install an actual service there if it is able. Odd that it still loads and works fine for me in the sandboxie installed one while my real system remains clean and there isn't an entry in the sandbox's reg file for it. Great now I'm just plain confused.
Hm, really confusing. If there is really no Steam Service installed on your main system, please check your configuration / system. If there is a way to run Steam Service purely in Sandboxie, this would be so awesome, and I would love to know more about it. I know that Steam can run the Steam Service without adding it to the services if Steam is started as an admin without Sandboxie. So I'm confused as well why it's not working in Sandboxie the same way. If you have some free time, please look into this situation. You seriously could become my personal hero :P

Tester100
Posts: 26
Joined: Thu Oct 16, 2014 8:19 am

Re: Important Question regarding SteamService.exe

Post by Tester100 » Fri Mar 13, 2015 1:51 pm

If one of you sees this topic again and you know something more, please post here. I still would love to see more about your results btm. If anybody else knows a solution, workaround or whatever, please post here as well! I still would like to know more ways if possible, because installing the Steam Service on my real system is after all something which I don't really prefer for personal reasons. Maybe somebody from Invincea knows more? :?:

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