Manage Startup Apps in Windows 10
Edited by Jay
When the Windows operating system starts up, a variety of programs also start up with it. Some run in the background and some run in the foreground, either way, specific applications open every time you power on or reboot your system. Some of these programs are necessary to keep the OS running correctly, and others can be to help save time and keep things more streamlined.
An excellent example of a few programs that would be ideal to start up when Windows boots could be; Anti-virus, VPN, cloud services, or messaging apps. Sometimes when you install a new program, the option to have it run at startup will present itself during the installation phase. Other times, you might have to go into the applications settings and enable it to open when windows boots. And sometimes, the option isn't available during the installation process or via the program's settings, but with the steps outlined in this tutorial, we'll show you how to have any application startup with Windows 10.
For the following VisiHow, we used a Sager laptop running Windows 10 Professional. If you're running Windows 8 or Windows 10 Home, all the instructions still apply.
**Please Note**
To change startup apps in Windows 10, you have to use the Startup folder. You can enable or disable which apps will run at startup from the Task manager, but unless they are there by default (OS related background processes), you must manually copy them to the Startup folder.
Add Programs to Windows 10 Startup Folder
To be able to enable or disable apps during startup, their shortcuts first need to be added to your Startup folder.
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Remove Programs from Windows 10 Startup Folder
Removing applications from Windows Startup is as simple as deleting the shortcuts copied in the previous section of this guide.
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Enable Startup Programs in Windows 10 from the Task Manager
When you have program shortcuts added to your Startup folder, they can be enabled and disabled from the Task Manager.
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Disable Startup Programs in Windows 10 from the Task Manager
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If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.