Dooes upgrading my perl version to 5.8.6 make a difference??

Sorry, I wouldn't know. Shortly after I upgraded to 5.8, I dumped 5.6 and never looked back. If you're stuck w/ 5.6, you'll likely need to either get a VC++ environment and build from scratch from CPAN sources, or try the other suggestion (i.e., system("sc stop $service"); ). You might check AS's PPM page for instructions on accessing older version repositories.

However, if you have the option, I'd highly recommend upgrading to 5.8.6+. 5.6 is getting a bit long in the tooth at this point, and you'll find an increasing number of modules now require 5.8, in part because it provides so many feature enhancements.