{"id":9896,"date":"2020-12-14T06:18:06","date_gmt":"2020-12-14T14:18:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/?p=9896"},"modified":"2022-04-03T22:54:44","modified_gmt":"2022-04-04T05:54:44","slug":"autoruns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/software\/autoruns\/","title":{"rendered":"Which Programs Start Automatically? Autoruns Will Help You Find (And Eliminate) Them"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Windows<\/div>\n

News flash: Most of the applications running on your computer were not started by you. Windows launched them automatically — either at boot or when you logged in.<\/p>\n

And while most of those programs exist for a good reason — to help you access the Internet, print a document or play a game — some may be unnecessary. Those freeloaders run all the time, hogging precious resources and slowing down your computer.<\/p>\n

Indeed, this is a huge problem on new Windows laptops and desktops. A myriad of “free”, manufacturer-supplied applications constantly trying to up-sell you antivirus, office, or cloud storage that you don’t want or need will cripple your once-speedy device. Welcome to a very frustrating experience!<\/p>\n

Luckily there is a free and easy way for you to regain control of your computer. Simply follow these steps:<\/p>\n

1. Download and Install Autoruns<\/h2>\n

Autoruns<\/a> is a free utility from Sysinternals (a subsidiary of Microsoft). The program has a simple mandate — to reveal every single application Windows started without your explicit action.<\/p>\n

Autoruns is packaged in a 2.5 MB zip file. Download it from here.<\/a><\/p>\n

Installation is straightforward. Simply extract the contents of the zip file to a new folder. We recommend placing it in C:\\Apps\\Autoruns.<\/p>\n

2. Start Autoruns<\/h2>\n

Launch the Autoruns executable (autoruns.exe). You will have to accept the obligatory license agreement on the first run:<\/p>\n

\"Autoruns<\/a><\/div>\n

The main window will come up. You may notice colorful lines streaming into the interface as Autoruns interrogates your system:<\/p>\n

\"Autoruns<\/a><\/div>\n

You will see a whopping 17 tabs<\/b> — each one representing a location from where applications are launched!<\/p>\n

As its name implies, the Everything<\/b> tab consolidates all tabs.<\/p>\n

3. Look for programs you don’t need<\/h2>\n

Most of the locations will be obscure and unfamiliar. For example, only the most technical folks need to pay attention to “Boot Execute” (low-level tasks that Windows runs to prepare itself) and “LSA Providers” (libraries supporting encryption).<\/p>\n

Three tabs may be most useful:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n

    Logon<\/b>: Programs Windows started after you sign in to your computer. They are usually running visibly on your desktop, either in full-fledged window or squirreled away behind an icon in the task tray area.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  2. \n

    Scheduled tasks<\/b>: Applications and scripts launched at a specific time (or occasion). These are typically short-running maintenance tasks — there to keep one of your main applications in tip-top shape.<\/p>\n

    Windows Task Scheduler<\/a> manages these applications.\n<\/li>\n

  3. \n

    Services<\/b>: Long-running administrative applications started at boot (or in response to operating system events).<\/p>\n

    The Services Control Panel application (services.msc)<\/a> manages services.\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Let’s focus on the Logon tab. <\/p>\n

    Scroll the list to see what applications are started automatically when you sign in. Highlight an entry in the list and the bottom pane will show key details.<\/p>\n

    For example, here we see that version 2.13 of Box<\/a> is configured to start automatically with the “-m” flag:<\/p>\n

    \"Box<\/a><\/div>\n

    Autoruns will help you research unrecognized programs too.<\/p>\n

    Simply right-click an entry and select Search online<\/b> to open a browser search page targeting the underlying executable:<\/p>\n

    \"Easily<\/a><\/div>\n

    Or select Properties<\/b> to dig into the details of the program on your hard drive:<\/p>\n

    \"Easily<\/a><\/div>\n

    And if you are truly adventurous, select Jump to Folder<\/b> to launch the Registry Editor<\/a> and go straight to the application’s registry key.<\/p>\n

    3. Disable or delete unwanted auto-start entries<\/h2>\n

    Once you have identified an application that Windows should not start automatically, you have a couple of options:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. \n

      Un-check the box on the left to disable<\/b> the application startup. The entry will remain there, making it easy to re-enable the item at a later date.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

    2. \n

      Delete<\/b> the entry. This will remove the application from the startup list. Only delete if you are confident and you will never want to re-enable the automatic launch in the future.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Note that deleting the Autoruns entry only removes the launch at startup. It does not uninstall the underlying application, which you can still run manually.<\/b><\/p>\n

      For example, that entry for Box is not needed because we already run Box Sync at boot with AlwaysUp<\/a>. Let’s get rid of it:<\/p>\n

      \"Autoruns:<\/a><\/div>\n

      Similarly, we can deactivate Java’s periodic update by unchecking the box beside “SunJavaUpdateSched”:<\/p>\n

      \"Autoruns:<\/a><\/div>\n

      We may want to reactivate that entry at some time.<\/p>\n

      \nEnjoy!<\/p>\n