Windows – “net start service” and “sc start”. What is the difference

the "net start/stop" commands can only start or stop services locally, on the same computer. You cannot use it to start or stop services running on another computer.

For this, you could use for instance psservice, part of the PsTools from Sysinternals. With the right parameters, you can control services on a remote computer, providing you have the correct credentials to do it.

Using PsService

The default behavior of PsService is to display the configured services (both running and stopped) on the local system. Entering a command on the command-line invokes a particular feature, and some commands accept options. Typing a command followed by "- " displays information on the syntax for the command.

Usage: psservice [\computer [-u username] [-p password]] command options

Manual means that the service will start only when Windows or another service needs it, or if you invoke something to start the service. You can use the command net start servicename from the command line to enable a manual service. When you reboot, the service will again be off until you restart it.

Disabled, on the other hand, means that the service will stay off, regardless of whether you try to start it or not. Other services or applications which depend on the disabled service may fail.

See the MSFN discussion thread on Manual vs. Disabled for more info.