From Leo's mailbag:
> From: A Computer User
> Sent: May 12, 2006
> To: Ask Leo!
> Subject: How do I get a program to run at startup?
>
> Leo,
> --------------
> Hey, Leo... I hope you can help me, I have a program that I
> want to start everytime when windows starts, how can I do
> that ? I know that i can do it when i put it in start folder
> in "programs". But I do not want to do it at that way, are
> there any other methods ? Is it possible to create a batch
> file or something and write what the program is named and
> just click on the batch file one time, and the program will
> start every time when the windows starts, or do you have
> other ideas ?
Well, there are other ways, but I will say this: unless you
know what you're doing, the Programs->Startup menu is the
easiest, quickest and safest way to do it. It's what I
honestly recommend - even if you need to set up an auto-login
to make it happen on boot.
Now, if you're still set on finding other ways, my recommendation
would be to grab the tool "autoruns" from SysInternals.com. It will
list everything that auto-starts on your machine, and from where.
You'll see several entries that are in the registry, for
one example:
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
has many programs listed there on my machine. You can easily
look at the examples of what's already there on your own.
The several different registry keys have different purposes.
They run as different users, and auto-run at different
times (Boot versus user login, for example). They may not
have access to everything you need, though, based on permissions
and the state of the machine as it's booting up.
That's why I say you probably want to know what you're doing
before going down that path.
But the start menu, and the registry, are pretty much your
only options.
Good luck!
Thanks for asking,
Leo
Article 1265
| Category:
Windows
