Editing xp startup programs

The right pane will contain a list of some of the programs that automatically run at startup. The Data field tells you the path and name of the executable so that you can determine what each program is.

That will kill any programs that run specific to your logon. Constantly running in the background of XP are services—processes that help the operating system run, or that provide support to applications. Many of these services launch automatically at startup. You can disable services at startup by using the System Configuration Utility, similar to the way that you halt programs from running at startup, except that you use the Services tab instead of the Startup tab.

A bigger problem is that disabling services is more of shot in the dark than disabling programs. When you disable a program, you can get a sense of what the program does. A better way of disabling services at startup is via the Services Computer Management Console, shown in Figure Run it by typing services. The Services Computer Management Console includes a description of all services, so that you can know ahead of time whether a particular service is one you want to turn off.

After you run the console, click on the Extended tab. This view will show you a description of each service in the left pane when you highlight the service.

Click on that column to sort together all the services that automatically launch on startup. Then highlight each of those services and read the descriptions. When you find a service you want to disable, right-click on it and choose Properties. Table lists some common services you might want to halt from running at startup. Automatically checks for Windows updates. Allows a remote user to log in to your computer and run programs.

This will not be found on all versions of XP Pro. Automatically configures a WiFi Skip to main content. Click the application name in the Name column that you want to disable, and then click Disable.

By default, Windows Defender is installed as part of the Windows Vista installation. For more information about how to use Windows Defender to scan for spyware and for other potentially unwanted software, visit the following Microsoft Web site:. Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry.

However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:.

To do this, follow these steps:. If you do not want a program to run at Startup, find that particular program, and then delete its entry from one of these registry keys.

You can add entries here also. But we recommend that you use the Windows Run at Startup policy setting to add programs that you want to run at Startup.

As we said before do not disable any startup programs unless you sure they're not important. If your computer is still struggling you can also disable services that run when it starts. You should never disable any services where the Manufacturer is listed as Microsoft Corporation. In general you should be wary of disabling any startup services, but there are some that can switched off. We recommend ticking 'Hide all Microsoft services' and then looking through the list and deselecting anything you think isn't essential.

Click OK to make the changes. Any changes you make in Startup or Services can be reversed easily enough. Go to the relevant tab, scroll down to the bottom and you'll see a list of all disabled items and when they were disabled.

Select the tick-box next to any that you want to reenable.