Fig 1.0 Double click on the WINDOWS DEFENDER Control Panel icon
Fig 1.1 Click on the TOOLS button
Fig 1.2 Click on the SOFTWARE EXPLORER link
| DISABLE UNWANTED START-UP PROGRAMS/TASKS |
In this section I will teach you how to disable, and re-enable, unwanted programs/tasks from your start-up list using the
Software Explorer tool found inside Windows Defender.
As explained in the How To Correctly Switch On The Computer section, the
Start-Up List is a list of programs/tasks that the computer executes (launches/runs) during its boot-sequence (start-up
process). Hence, Start-Up List.
In some cases you may not want a certain program/task launched (run/executed) during the boot-sequence. This could be
because it is a program/task you do not need launching straight away, feel is not important and/or feel is slowing down
your computer by using too many resources (i.e. too much Memory and CPU/Processing Time). An example of this is an
Updater.
An updater program is a program that puts a task in the start-up list to check for updates (security updates, product
updates and so on). So if you are happy with the program but do not want it checking for updates each time you switch on
the computer you might want to disable the Updater task. Another example is a piece of software that adds a Launcher to
the start-up list. A launcher is a program within the software that executes (launches) some of its smaller tasks/programs
during the boot-sequence, in the background, in order to speed up the launching (execution) of its main program (by you)
later. This is okay if you want to use/launch the main program all the time but not so good if you rarely use/launch the
main program.
To disable, remove from the start-up list, an unwanted program/task first open the Control Panel
and then double click on the WINDOWS DEFENDER icon to launch Windows Defender control panel. From there, click on its TOOLS
button (Fig 1.1 below) to display its Tools & Settings window (Fig 1.2) and then click on the Software Explorer link.
After clicking on the SOFTWARE EXPLORER link the Software Explorer window appears (below) listing the programs/tasks in the start-up list. In this example Microsoft Office OneNote is listed first. Before you can start disabling programs/tasks you must first click on the SHOW FOR ALL USERS button, otherwise you will not be able to disable, enable or remove all of the programs/tasks listed. This is to do with the security side of things. After clicking on the SHOW FOR ALL USERS button (Fig 1.3) a UAC (User Account Control) Security Requester will appear (Fig 1.4).
User Account Control (UAC) is a feature of Windows Vista that helps to prevent unauthorized changes to the computer, such as disabling a program/task or disabling a hardware device. When attempting to disable a program/task the UAC security requester above automatically blocks you off, because it wants to know if you are the one attempting to disable that program/task and not a piece of malicious software for example. In the above case simply click on the CONTINUE button to continue. This will then give you access to the DISABLE, ENABLE and REMOVE buttons of Software Explorer where possible.
Going back to the Microsoft Office OneNote program/task, Fig 1.3 above, you can see that software explorer gives quite a
detailed account of the program/task (in the right-hand pane). For example. It tells you if the program/task was shipped
with Windows Vista or not (Ships With Operating System), its File Path (where it is located on the computer), its
Publisher (Microsoft), its Display Name, its File Name and so on. Being aware of these details help when you are unsure
of a program/task. On top of this software explorer categorizes the programs/tasks.
So the next step is to look through the start-up list in order to identify the program/task you want to Disable, Enable
or Remove. That is if any or all of these actions are possible. It depends on the program/task. For example. Microsoft
(Windows Vista) System programs/tasks tend not to be removable, for obvious reasons. In this example I am going to scroll
down the start-up list to locate my Logitech WebCam program/task, called QuickCam10.exe which can be Disabled, as I do not
use it each time I switch on my computer and therefore do not want its launcher program/task running in the background
each time.
In Fig 1.5 above I have scroll down the left-hand pane to locate my Logitech WebCam program/task called QuickCam10.exe,
selected it and then clicked on the DISABLE button. This then brought up the message requester in Fig 1.6 above asking
me if I am sure I want to disable the application (program/task). I clicked on the YES button of course to disable
(remove from the start-up list) the QuickCam10.exe application (program/task) and therefore stop it from launching
during the boot-sequence (start-up process). And you do the same for each program/task (application) you want disabling.
If you want to enable a program/task again, either before or after restarting your computer from a Disable action, you
can do by following the above procedure but this time click on the ENABLE button.
If you want to completely remove a program/task from the start-up list you can do so by following the above procedure but this time click on the REMOVE button instead. One thing to note about REMOVE though is that unless the main program of the selected program/task has a Start When Logged Onto Windows option inside it (or similar) the start-up list entry of the selected program/task will be gone forever (technical: unless you know how to add it back using the Registry). Therefore, as a beginner it is not wise to use the REMOVE button. DISABLE only removes the registry entry temporarily until you ENABLE the program/task again with software explorer.
Main Programs that tend to use updaters and/or launchers are Purchased Software (because the manufacturer wants to give
you an enriched service and/or advertised upgrades), Security Software (to check for up-to-date security files), Messengers
(Chit-Chat Programs), Software Bundles (that come pre-installed on your computer) and Bulky Software (Office Packages and
Paint Packages). Known updaters include Web Browsers (i.e. Google Chrome), Programming Engines (i.e. Java), Adobe
(Acrobat Reader) and so on.
An Updater can normally be disabled (removed from the start-up list) without any problems but with a Launcher you have to
be careful just in case disabling it actually cripples the main program/software.
Microsoft product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation. As stated here by the Microsoft Corporation.
