How To Disable Startup Programs In Windows

If you are anything like me, then you will have lots of software on your PC. The trouble with this is that it takes longer and longer for Windows to start up. There are so many programs that add themselves to the list of programs, which start when you boot your computer.  It is good to clear out the programs that are not a necessity. This simple guide will assist you in disabling Startup Programs in Windows 8 or 8.1 or 10, Windows 7, Vista, or XP.

There are some programs that it is obviously a good idea to have them start with Windows, such as anti-virus and firewall software. Other programs starting upon boot however, just waste resources and increases your PC’s startup time. To disable a few of these programs, you can use a tool that is part of Windows, called MSConfig. It is this tool that allows you to quickly see what’s running at startup and then disable the programs you prefer to run later on as needed. This tool can be used to disable startup programs in Windows 7, Vista, and XP.

One way to run MSConfig is; Open the Start menu and type “msconfig.exe” (without the quotes) in the Search box.  When you see “msconfig.exe,” click on it or press Enter, if it is highlighted.* If you are running Windows XP, open the Run dialog box from the Start menu, type “msconfig.exe” in the Open edit box, and click OK.

Next, click the Startup tab on the System Configuration main window. There will now appear a list of all the startup programs displays with a check box next to each one. To prevent a program from starting up with Windows, simply select the check box next to the desired program so there is no longer a check mark in the box. Next click OK and a dialog box will display informing you that you may need to restart your computer for the changes to take affect. Choose either click Restart to restart your computer immediately or if are not yet ready to restart your computer, click Exit without restart.

you want to disable Startup Programs in Windows 8 or 8.1 or 10, follow these instructions;

Open up Task Manager by right-clicking on the Taskbar, or using the CTRL + SHIFT + ESC shortcut key, clicking “More Details,” switching to the Startup tab, and then using the Disable button.

If all else fails and you are uncomfortable using the above instructions, then you can run 3rd party software such as CCleaner from Piriform.  Apart form being a superb system cleaning program, CCleaner also has a tool, which allows you to disable startup programs. 

Open the program and click the Tools button on the left side of the dialog box and click Startup to see the list of startup programs. The Enabled column indicates whether each program is set to start with Windows. To disable a program that is enabled, select the program in the list and click Disable. The next time you start up your PC the changes will have taken effect.

There you have it. So, what are you waiting for? Time to clean up your Startup Programs!

*It is worth noting that MSConfig can also be used to configure several things other than startup programs, so please be careful!