Yes media center will record even if you are not logged in.

But will YOUR PC restart after a power failure??

Check your BIOS there is usually an option to state that after
loss of power it will restart. By default most PCs usually don't reboot.



"Geoff" <Geoff@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:FFFF57EF-A5ED-478C-9C8B-FA5AB3033264@microsoft.com...
> Does Windows Media Center run as a service when I'm not logged into Vista?
> If
> my PC is running, say, after a restart due to power failure or a scheduled
> windows update, will Media Center 'know' to start up and record TV shows
> even
> though no user is logged in and running Media Center?