service
chama scripts localizados em /etc/init.d
, portanto, não há diferenças no resultado nesse caso.
Do man service
:
service runs a System V init script or upstart job in as predictable environment as possible, removing most environment variables and with current working directory set to /.
The SCRIPT parameter specifies a System V init script, located in /etc/init.d/SCRIPT, or the name of an upstart job in /etc/init.