Desktop Activity Moderator Driver (dam) Service Defaults in Windows 8

Controls activity of desktop applications.

Default Settings

Startup type: System
Display name:Desktop Activity Moderator Driver
Service name:dam
Service type:kernel
Error control:normal
Path:%SystemRoot%\system32\drivers\dam.sys
Registry key:HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\dam

Default Behavior

The Desktop Activity Moderator Driver service is a kernel device driver. In Windows 8 it is being loaded and initialized at Kernel initialization. If Desktop Activity Moderator Driver fails to start, the error details are added to Windows 8 error log. When the operating system startup is complete, the user is being notified that the dam service hasn't been started.

Restore Default Startup Configuration of Desktop Activity Moderator Driver

1. Run the Command Prompt as an administrator.

2. Copy the commands below, paste them into the command window and press ENTER:

sc config dam start= system
sc start dam

3. Close the command window and restart the computer.

The dam service is using the dam.sys file that is located in the C:\Windows\system32\drivers directory. If the file is removed or corrupted, read this article to restore its original version from Windows 8 installation media.