How to change the Systems Management Server 2003 service account

This article discusses the steps that are required to change the Microsoft System Management Server (SMS) 2003 service account.

The SMS 2003 service account provides the site server with access to SMS 2003 services on all systems in a site. Depending on the security mode that you have chosen, you can use one of the following methods to change the SMS 2003 service account:

• If you installed SMS 2003 with Standard security, you can use the SMS Administrator Console to change the SMS 2003 service account, or you can run the SMS 2003 Setup program and modify the SMS 2003 service account name and password.
• If you installed SMS 2003 with Advanced security, the SMS 2003 services run under the context of computer accounts. Therefore, there are no user accounts to change. You must use Active Directory Users and Computers to reset the SMS 2003 computer account.

Change the SMS 2003 service account by using the SMS Administrator Console (Standard security only)

To change the service account by using the SMS Administrator Console, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, point to All Programs, click Systems Management Server, and then click SMS Administrator Console.
2. Expand Site Database, and then expand Site Hierarchy.
3. Right-click SiteName, and then click Properties.
4. In Site Properties, click the Accounts tab, and then click Set.
5. In Windows User Account, specify an existing account and password, and then click OK.

Change the SMS 2003 service account by using the SMS 2003 Setup program (Standard security only)

To change the SMS 2003 service account by using the SMS 2003 Setup program, follow these steps:

1. Double-click autorun.exe. This tool is located in the root of the SMS 2003 Setup CD-ROM.
2. In Systems Management Server 2003 Setup, click SMS 2003.
3. In the Welcome to Systems Management Server 2003 Setup window, click Next.
4. In System Configuration, click Next.
5. In Setup Options, click to select the Modify or reset the current installation button.
6. In Installation Options, click Next.
7. In Security Information, enter a new SMS 2003 service account name and password, and then click Next.
8. Continue to click Next until the Completing the Systems Management Server Setup Wizard window appears, and then click Finish.