The Start/Stop Service tab displays the status of the MySQL service. This service starts and stops the MySQL server. Under Service Status, a text message indicates whether or not the service has been started. If the service is running, the button label is Stop Service. Click it to stop the server. If the service is stopped, the button label is Start Service. Click it to start the service.

Under Log Messages, you will find messages that the MySQL server produces when it starts or stops. Messages produced by the server during startup look something like this:

Trying to start the server ...
040119 18:33:41  InnoDB: Started
MySql: ready for connections.
Version: '4.0.16-max-nt-log'  socket: ''  port: 3306
Server was started.

When the server stops, it produces messages such as these:

Trying to stop the server ...
040119 18:31:45  MySql: Normal shutdown
040119 18:31:46  MySql: Forcing close of thread 11  user:
'superuser'
040119 18:31:46  MySql: Forcing close of thread 8  user: 'superuser'
...
Server was stopped.

The details and format of the messages might vary depending on the version of the MySQL server you are using and its configuration.