Last Updated on December 5, 2014
Does your Windows Operating System take FOREVER to load once your PC starts? Has your computer gotten much slower than when you purchased it? Chances are, EVEN if you just bought your computer and took it out of the box, there are programs running in the background that you can’t see – Slowing your PC down!
So what exactly is MsConfig, you ask?? Well, if you have Windows 98, ME, XP, Vista, or 7 then you already have it! MsConfig stands for “MicroSoft System Configuration Utility” and it has been bundled with every Windows Operating System from Windows 98 through Windows 7, excluding Windows 2000 and NT. However, you can still acquire builds of MsConfig.exe that are compatible with Windows 95, 2000, and NT, they just weren’t bundled with the OS by MicroSoft.
What does Msconfig do? MsConfig does a multitude of things, but in this How-To we are just covering the “Startup” capabilities of MsConfig. MsConfig allows you to choose which Programs and Applications load with Windows when your PC starts up.
Easy Steps to Manage Startup Items using MsConfig:
First, Click your “Start” button on your Start Bar, then find the Search box in your Star Menu. Type “MsConfig” (without the quotation marks) and press Enter on your keyboard.
Second, the System Configuration window should open. Navigate to the “Startup” tab.
Third, in the “Startup” tab you will see a list of Programs and Applications that can load with your Windows OS when your PC Starts up. Every item with a Check mark in the box to the left is an app starting in the background when your pc Starts.
Fourth, Disable Any and All Programs/Applications by Un-Checking the item’s box(s) and pressing the “Okay” button. Generally, nothing in Startup is needed for your Windows to Startup.
Remember, it is Highly Recommended that you DO NOT turn off your Anti-Virus in Startup unless your PC is disconnected from the Internet.
You can always go back to MsConfig and enable anything in Startup that you disabled.
Note: After pressing “Okay” in MsConfig you will be asked by Windows if you would like to Restart your PC now or later, the choice is yours, however changes won’t take affect until you restart your PC any way. Also, when your PC restarts for the first time after using MsConfig you will be notified that settings in System Configuration have been changed – this is Normal.
That’s it, you’re Done!! Enjoy your faster-than-ever PC thanks to MsConfig!
John started JSnowCreations as a place to post random tech guides and product reviews. However, while shopping for his daughter’s first “big girl” bed in 2019 he learned about the hidden dangers of fiberglass in mattresses. Since then, John has made it his mission to expose as much hidden fiberglass in mattresses as possible. His ultimate goal is federal regulations that ban fiberglass from being used in mattresses, or at least a law that require it to be listed in the material tags.