Microsoft KB Archive/258578

= How to Prevent Programs from Starting Automatically from the StartUp Folder =

Article ID: 258578

Article Last Modified on 1/27/2007

-

APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Windows 98 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition
 * Microsoft Windows 95
 * Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition

-



This article was previously published under Q258578



SUMMARY
Many Windows-based programs are designed to start automatically from the StartUp folder (the Windows\Start Menu\Programs\StartUp folder) when you start your computer. Under some conditions, it may be useful to prevent programs from starting automatically. For example you may want to prevent programs from starting automatically for troubleshooting purposes. This article describes how to prevent programs from starting automatically from the StartUp folder.

NOTE: This procedure may not prevent all programs from starting automatically when you start your computer. Only the programs that are designed to start automatically from the StartUp folder are prevented from starting. For example, many antivirus programs do not start from the StartUp folder. These programs may be started from a registry entry or a system file such as the Autoexec.bat file. If you are unable to stop a program from starting automatically from the StartUp folder, view the documentation included with your program to determine how to prevent it from starting automatically.



MORE INFORMATION
To prevent programs from starting automatically from the StartUp folder, move the contents of the StartUp folder to another folder temporarily:  Click Start, point to Programs, and then click MS-DOS Prompt. At the command prompt, type the following commands, pressing ENTER after each command:

cd \

md startupfolderbackup

cd windows

cd "start menu"

cd programs

cd startup

dir /w

 Note the names of the files in the StartUp folder for later reference. At the command prompt, type the following commands, pressing ENTER after each command:

copy *.* c:\startupfolderbackup

cd c:\startupfolderbackup

dir/w

 Verify that the Startupfolderbackup folder now contains the files you noted in step 3. If the files were successfully copied from the StartUp folder to the Startupfolderbackup folder, continue to the next step. If not, repeat the previous steps until the files are successfully copied, and then continue to the next step. WARNING: This step deletes the contents of the StartUp folder. Do not perform this step unless you followed the previous steps to create copies of the items from the StartUp folder in the Startupfolderbackup folder.

At the command prompt, type the following commands, pressing ENTER after each command:

cd \

cd windows

cd "start menu"

cd programs

cd startup

del *.*

After you follow these steps, no programs are started from the StartUp folder automatically when you restart your computer.</ol>

NOTE: If you later want to restore the original contents of the StartUp folder, you can copy the files from the Startupfolderbackup folder to the StartUp folder.

Keywords: kbenv kbhowto KB258578

-

[mailto:TECHNET@MICROSOFT.COM Send feedback to Microsoft]

© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.