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Community Newsletter: Q&A: How do I disable unnecessary programs running in my PC’s background?
- 9/25/08 12:59 PM
Fast, easy, FREE start-up guard and info
by yarlq - 9/20/08 12:00 PM In reply to: Disable start up programs by tims4For my (no) money, you can't beat WinPatrol.
It gives you a heads-up on any new start-up attempt, and provides info on the item.
For 30 bucks you can upgrade to WinPatrol Plus which has more info on each startup - legal and illegal/highjackers - than I can handle. It's also a lifetime subscription - pay once and you have it and all updates forever.
It's also a small footprint, very user-friendly, and the base program is FREE right here: http://www.winpatrol.com/wpsetup.exe
Pulling it all together.
by MarkFlax - 9/13/08 10:07 AM
In reply to: How do I disable unnecessary programs running in my PC’s background? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi Kate.
You asked a good question, and you have received many different and good answers here. You may have realized, looking through the replies that there is no simple, one button answer to your question. For a smooth running, and quicker loading and shutdown system, you need to look at a range of possible causes and suggestions. If I may, I will try pull some of these replies together, to give you a comprehensive list of “things to try”.
Hardware;
You didn't mention much about your computer system, except to say you are running Windows XP, but often the most significant change you can make to improve the performance of your computer is to look at the hardware, and see what, if anything, can be improved. In particular memory is a good place to start.
Memory means RAM, or Random Access Memory. This is where software is loaded into from the hard disk for quicker retrieval as and when you use the software. Windows XP will run on quite low memory, like 128 MB, (Mega Bytes), but it struggles. The more memory the better, and many users have up to 2 GB, (Giga Bytes), of memory. Memory is quite cheap nowadays, and if the RAM you have already installed is less than, say, 512 MB, then increasing it to 1 GB or even 2 GB will significantly increase performance.
However, your question is about Startup and Shutdown, and whilst adding RAM will help improve overall performance, it will not specifically improve startup times, and so you will need to consider the following steps.
These break down into 4 major areas;
Startup files,
Processes,
Services, and
Anti-Malware.
Many people will suggest you use utility software to manage some of these steps but I don’t believe you would learn much about your computer or the Operating System, (OS), by relying wholly on such 3rd party software. It would be more beneficial, I feel, to find out these things for yourself, so that you can have more control over what is happening ‘behind the scenes’ in your computer. So while I will suggest some utility software, these will only be to give you more information, and not to take that control away from you.
However, if you prefer to use specific software to handle these steps, there certainly has been a number of good suggestions which software you can try.
1] Startup files;
These are the applications that load when you turn on the computer and Windows starts. They load into RAM from the hard disk, and are available, either for the OS, or for you, to use when needed. Some software is required at Startup, eg anti-virus utilities, firewall, etc, but many are not.
The trouble is, whenever you install a software application, it will often attempt to set itself to load at startup so that it is available for you straight away. The software developers want you to use their software exclusively, but as a result, the Startup files list grows longer and longer, and so the computer takes longer to boot up. If you want to avoid this, then the best way to do so in future is to watch the install process and look out for any options that ask if you want (this application) to “Load at Startup”, or similar wording. You can then decide whether you really want this software always available as soon as Windows has finished loading, or whether you just want to use the software whenever you decide. The more software applications that load on startup, the slower that startup will become.
The trouble is, some software, (I can name a few like Real Player or Quicktime), will load components of their software at startup whether you want them to or not.
This is my first software utility recommendation. A very small utility called Startup Monitor, only 60 KB, that monitors whatever attempts to run at startup. If anything tries to install itself there, Startup Monitor pops up a small window asking if you want to allow this change. This, itself, needs to be loaded into the Startup file, but it is very small, and very transparent, appearing only when something attempts to set itself to load at startup.
The utility is here; http://www.mlin.net/StartupMonitor.shtml
If you want to check what is already set to run at startup, then you can use XP’s own utility called the System Configuration Utility, generally known as Msconfig. You can access this by going to Start > Run, type in msconfig and click OK.
When this utility starts, you will see a window with a number of tabs. Click the Startup tab and a list of software that is set to run/load at startup will be displayed. To disable any of the entries, simply remove the tick, then click Apply, then OK.
What you remove is up to you, and this is where you stay in control. If you are not sure what any entry is, make a note of the Startup Item name, then search Google or Yahoo for that item, and see what other people say. The difficulty with giving advice about this is that each system is different, and some will need startup items that others may not, or vice versa.
The general rule for software you install is, if it is software that you will always want to use immediately Windows has finished loading, then leave it in. But if it is software that you will only want to use, ‘at some stage after’ Windows has loaded, then it is probably safe to remove it from the list.
Some software you may not know too much about, even though you installed it. For instance, I use Acronis TrueImage, which is backup software, and this has installed two entries, TrueImageMonitor and TimounterMonitor into my msconfig. I am not sure what they both do, but am satisfied that they are necessary for the purpose I installed the software.
When you are more comfortable with this, and you find an entry in MSCONFIG that you want to check, then besides the Startup Item column you will also find the Command column entry useful. It tells you where this software is located on your hard disk. If you cannot see the full entry, then find the column header divider, and drag it to the right.
2] Processes;
You can see what Processes are running on your system by opening another XP utility called the Task Manager.
There are two quick ways you can open this utility, either by pressing the CTRL + ALT + Del keys together, or by right clicking the Taskbar, and selecting Task Manager from the list.
Processes are a combination of services and applications that are running on your computer at any one time. Computer systems are different, so it is not easy to say how many Processes you should have running, but anything from 30 upwards. If you have more than 45-50, then I would start to look at what you have running. My own system shows 38 running processes at the moment.
You can use Google to check each process name, or you can use a web site utility like AnswersThatWork to check each process, and find out whether or not the process is required, not needed, or indicating a virus/spyware infection.
A word about that Answers That Work web site though. If it suggests you use their “Ultimate Trouble Shooter” to look at or remove such entries, then this is not really needed.
If you find a process that you do not want to continue running, you can End Process. But that process will likely start again the next time you turn on the computer. In that case you will need to use the information you have gathered from Google or from Answers That Work to hunt down the software files and find out more about what it is, and how to stop it from running permanently.
The Task Manager can be useful if any application you are using freezes and you cannot close it down. If you open the Task Manager, and find the faulting application in the Application tab, then highlight it, you can click the End Task button. If that fails to close down the application, then you can click the Processes tab, highlight the process that relates to the application, and then click the End Process button.
3] Services;
To find out what Services are available on your computer, (either set to Automatic, manual, or disabled), open up the Services Console. To do this, go to Start > Run, type in services.msc.
When the Services console opens, you can enlarge the window by dragging the bottom right corner down. If you look for the tabs at the bottom of the screen, find and click the “Extended” tab, to show more details on each highlighted services.
Windows XP uses many services, mostly in the background. They are, in general, required services, and disabling them might stop XP from working correctly. But nevertheless, some XP services are not required, and can significantly slow down performance, including startup. As well as Windows, other software developers create and set services to run, and again, whilst some are best left alone, others may not be needed.
There are some I would recommend straightaway that you disable;
a) Indexing Service. This runs in the background, quietly indexing all the systems files. If you use a lot of documents and need to find them, or any of their contents, quickly, then this service is useful. But otherwise it can slow down performance and is not needed by most users. Mine is disabled.
b) Messenger. Not to be confused with Windows Messenger, this service often gets hijacked by people on the internet who use it to send bogus and scam messages. Mine is disabled.
To disable a service, or change its run type to Manual, highlight the service then double click the highlight. In the Properties window that displays find the field “Startup type:”, and change to disabled or manual as you wish. Manual just means that the service is only loaded as and when required.
It is not easy checking all these services, so I would recommend another web site resource, this one by The Elder Geek. His web site is http://www.theeldergeek.com/services_guide.htm
There you will find a list of the most common services. Others that are not listed you would need to check on Google.
4] Anti-malware;
It is a sad fact today that the internet is not safe for the unprotected computer, and we need to arm our systems to the teeth.
This generally means one firewall, running in the background, one well known anti-virus utility, updated regularly and also running in the background, and ‘more than one’ anti-spyware utility, all of which need to be updated regularly, and only one running in the background. The others are used for random scans.
Viruses and spyware, and hackers, will want their malware to run at startup, and these can significantly slow down the boot up time, as well as place your computer and any personal information it holds, at risk.
Whilst these scanners and the firewall may also affect boot up time, I believe the small cost in time is well worth the comfort that we know we are doing our best to keep the computer clean of malware.
I hope some of this helps.
Mark
Startup Programs Disabling
by bobhist - 9/19/08 5:08 PM In reply to: Pulling it all together. by MarkFlax
I am amazed that people would advise msconfig for this purpose. It is only a temporary fix. Once you access the program again, it reconfigures to startup. Use services.msc for a permanent fix Start>Run>Services.msc>Enter. Another best solution is Autoruns, a free MS program. but read the instructions before using.
Incorrect
by feskridge - 9/19/08 5:57 PM In reply to: Startup Programs Disabling by bobhistThat is not true. MSCONFIG permanently disables the programs you tell it to, but leaves an empty checkbox in case you want to re-enable it. This is also true of Microsoft's Autoruns program.
Incorrect again
by jacklwagner - 9/19/08 8:14 PM In reply to: Incorrect by feskridgeMany programs that have been disabled in msconfig will just create a new instance of the start up command and you will end up with multiple commands at subsequent startups, the disabled ones unchecked and the new one checked.
The start up is best disabled inside the program set up or by finding the particular file and disabling it. AnswersThatWork tells you how to do this.
Jack
Using regedit doesn't make much difference either.
by BigGuns149 - 9/19/08 11:53 PM In reply to: Incorrect again by jacklwagnerYou can rem individual lines in the registry just like lines in DOS batch files of yore. Ultimately when you restart said program it isn't unusual that it will ask you whether you want to return the program to defaults assuming it even runs. iTunes will bug you if you turn off ipodhelper. Meanwhile some system utilities won't run if their favorite service isn't active. Within XP if you currently have admin privileges the program could theoretically turn itself back on startup without your permission, but I would stay away from any program that has behavior like that.
Therefore, what is wrong with some users who are more comfortable using msconfig?
msconfig redoux
by jacklwagner - 9/20/08 11:30 AM In reply to: Using regedit doesn't make much difference either. by BigGuns149Nothing wrong with using msconfig. Just making others aware that this may not be a "permanent" solution, as noted in other posts in this thread. I have used it in the past and ended up with maybe six instances of the same persistent programs.
Jack
MSConfig only a partial fix
by porsche10x - 9/21/08 9:43 AM In reply to: msconfig redoux by jacklwagnerThe problem with using MSConfig is that it doesn't really fix the problem. Yes, in most, if not all cases, it will disable the offending program, but there's a bigger issue. It disables it. It does NOT delete it. It's supposed to be used as a temporary task management tool for testing/debugging. Once you figure out for sure what task you want disabled, don't just disable it with MSConfig. UNINSTALL or DELETE IT! If it's malware, use a proper tool to remove it. If it's a windows component, reconfigure windows properly so that it isn't used or installed in the first place. If it's a program component, uninstall that particular program. Using MSConfig is like putting air in a tire with a slow leak. Just get a new tire!
Start up Problems
by dgm2002 - 9/19/08 11:57 PM In reply to: Incorrect by feskridgeI followed the information from "Generalcaw" and un-ticked several items using MSCONFIG.
Now I find that these items have re-appeared with a new box ticked even though there is an up-ticked box for that item down at the bottom, just like Bobhist says.
Now Feskridge says it does disable permently when you untick the box.
So for a beginner I and totally confused as I have tried to stop Windows messenger from loading at "Start up" disabeling it in both 'Msconfig' and "Services.MSC' all to no avail.
msconfig
by bobhist - 9/20/08 9:56 AM In reply to: Incorrect by feskridgeI'm not sure, of course, what OS you're using, but before you announce that my suggestion is incorrect I would advise you to experiment for yourself. There ARE many programs that will self-start again after you untick them in msconfig. That is even mentioned in the advice post above, paragraph four, "Killing Programs That Start Automatically to Increase Speed," by Watzman. He parrots what I stated, and I quote his words verbatim:
"Microsoft supplies a utility called MSCONFIG that will let you see all of the programs that run at startup and also prevent them from running. You have to use the RUN command to run this (Start / Run / MSCONFIG). After you run it, click on the "Startup" tab, and you will see the programs that run at startup. By unchecking the check box for a given program, you can typically prevent it from running, but some programs are "persistent" and will manage to either re-check the check box or create a new, 2nd (3rd, 4th, 5th .....) copy of themselves with the check box re-checked."
Bobhist
Time is a factor
by jacklwagner - 9/19/08 8:25 PM In reply to: Pulling it all together. by MarkFlax
Mark's suggestions are all good and accurate, but one element is glossed over--time is money. All this searching and using many different Windows programs takes a lot of time, and generates a lot of conflicting and perhaps inaccurate information on some of the obscure commands.
I find that The Ultimate Troubleshooter pretty much does it all in one step: gives you the answer and allows you to stay in control. For every service, task and start up (running pr not) it automatically gives the same description found on the Answers That Work websit, advice on whether you need it (but give you the choice) and often will stop or disable it with one click, or tells exactly how to find it and stop it. If the item is not in the data base (continually updated) you can submit it for analysis and they will add it.
The other programs mentioned by others may do the same thing. For a few bucks (maybe $30 or less) why would you not want to save a few hundred hours searching for and reading thousands of descriptions on multiple web sites. I already spend way too much time staring at computers as it is.
Try the quick route and still learn.
Good luck.
Jack
I agree
by lakephillip - 9/19/08 10:30 PM In reply to: Time is a factor by jacklwagnerI use TUT too, and it easy, detailed and totally reversable.
Good points.
by MarkFlax - 9/20/08 3:50 AM
In reply to: Time is a factor by jacklwagner
I agree that, where time is a factor, searching out the answers yourself and doing your own investigation work is time consuming, and, perhaps, daunting.
Also, having used the AnswersThatWork web site often, (http://www.answersthatwork.com), I would have no hesitation in suggesting their The Ultimate Troubleshooter to help users in configuring their systems.
But I am just not sure it is the best way to learn about the inner workings of an Operating System. My own meager knowledge has been gained from investigating my computer myself. I've made many mistakes doing it this way, and have spent time, (sometimes hours/days), trying to work out problems I have caused myself, and putting the system back into working order. Many times I learned, "I won't do that again!".
Someone once said to me, shortly after I got my first Windows system, (Windows 95), "Right click everything. Right click the Desktop, Taskbar, Start Menu, shortcuts, System Tray, files, menus, anything. See what you get. In particular, examine Properties."
I did, and I discovered so much. With utilities that 'do things for you', users tend not to delve deeper into their systems themselves, and that is a great shame.
But of course, I understand that going that route isn't for everyone.
The other reason I didn't offer TUT is that it is not freeware. Admittedly it doesn't cost much, but when most of what it does you can do yourself, I really don't see the point of spending money on things like that.
Having said all that, I do agree with what you say.
Mark
Good Points "Good points"
by ranman54 - 9/20/08 11:22 AM In reply to: Good points. by MarkFlax
Having read most of this Forum, I have to say your reply is the most insightful to me. To truly find answers from easy to complex issues the PC user or Tech should know the basics of how an OS works. "Good Points" states how using "Right click everything" and examine properties will show how to fix problems or at least give you an understanding of what might.
Installing many different utilities may take care of the issues or just mask over the true problem temporarily. Getting back to basics of the right click and using the utilities that come with the OS should be a good habit to get into before new programs are added.
To those who state time is money, remember trouble shooting the monitor problem for a few hours just to find a loose cable? Don't get me wrong, I have a few "Free" utilities I use after the basics.
Randy
Mark
by Randy Walter - 9/28/08 3:07 AM In reply to: Good points. by MarkFlax
Mark, I know what you mean. Some people just want to do their work and go home. Others, most likely geeky people such as the ones that frequent CNET forums get their kicks by stabbing around to see what kind of programmer backdoors they can find. Sometime I will type in a command and misspell it and up pops something new, hmmmm! If nothing else this forum provides a positive social interaction. It beats staring at a computer screen all day.
Thanks, CNET, Randy.
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