How to disable startup programs in xp

Background

When a computer is turned on, and Windows starts to load, Windows begins to load other programs as well.

Windows xp startup programs folder

Some of these programs are important to the normal operation of your computer, while others provide conveniences or features, and others still may serve no purpose or may even attempt to harm the computer.

While Windows itself comes with a few of these start up programs built in, the vast majority of them come from programs installed on the computer.

For example, installing iTunes on a computer will cause two additional programs to start when a computer is turned on. Normally, allowing a few of these additional programs to run is not much of a problem, but as a computer get more and more use, the number of programs starting with the computer starts to become unwieldy, and the computer's performance starts to suffer as a result.

It can, therefore, be beneficial to disable some of these additional start up programs.

The disabling of start up programs is done through the System Configuration utility, commonly referred to as 'msco