Note: For Ubuntu 15.04+, see Systemd

General

Determine whether a service is using Upstart or System V:

ls -l /etc/init.d/SERVICENAME

Ex:

ls -l /etc/init.d/cups

If it’s a symlink pointing to /lib/init/upstart-job, it’s using Upstart. Otherwise, it’s using System V/init.

Upstart services

Manage the status of a particular Upstart service:

sudo service plymouth start/stop/restart/status

Or:

sudo initctl start/stop/restart/status plymouth

Show status of all Upstart services:

sudo initctl list

Show configuration for an Upstart service:

sudo initctl show-config plymouth

System V services

Manage the status of a particular System V service:

sudo service apache2 start/stop/restart/status

Show status of all System V services:

sudo service --status-all

Enable/disable a System V service to automatically start at boot:

sudo update-rc.d apache2 enable/disable