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Startup apps are apps Windows is configured to launch when you sign in. The restartable-app setting is a separate sign-in option; Microsoft documents it as a way to stop Microsoft Edge from starting automatically. They are different controls, so check the one that matches the app’s behavior.
How the two settings differ
| What to compare | Startup apps | Restartable-app option |
|---|---|---|
| What it controls | Registered apps configured to start automatically when you sign in. | A sign-in option named “Automatically save my restartable apps and restart them when I sign in.” Microsoft’s cited instructions use it for Edge. |
| Where to find it | Settings > Apps > Startup, Task Manager > Startup apps, or a Startup folder shortcut for some apps. | Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options. |
| What Microsoft’s guidance establishes | The registered-app list, Startup folder locations, and Task Manager impact labels. | The option’s label and its use as an Edge remedy. The guidance does not define which apps qualify or exactly what app state Windows restores. |
| Best use | Review or disable an app’s explicit automatic launch at sign-in. | Use Microsoft’s Edge-specific guidance if Edge starts at sign-in and you want to turn off that option. |
Microsoft documents the two controls separately. Its cited guidance does not provide a complete technical explanation of how they interact for every app, so do not treat the restartable-app option as a universal switch for all startup behavior.
Turn off an app’s automatic sign-in launch
Use Settings
- Open Start > Settings > Apps > Startup.
- Find the app and switch it off to prevent its registered startup launch. Switch it on to start it automatically when you sign in.
Use Task Manager
- Open Task Manager and select Startup apps.
- Review the registered apps and disable an entry you do not want to launch automatically.
Microsoft describes the Settings and Task Manager views as ways to configure registered startup apps. Task Manager also shows startup-impact categories, which can help you decide what to investigate first.
If Microsoft Edge opens after sign-in
- Open Start > Settings > Accounts > Sign-in options.
- Turn off Automatically save my restartable apps and restart them when I sign in.
Microsoft gives these steps in its Edge-specific guidance. The setting’s name alone does not establish which other apps are eligible or precisely what Windows restores, so avoid assuming this changes every app’s startup registration.
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If an app is missing from the Startup apps list
Some apps can be launched through a shortcut in a Startup folder. Microsoft documents these folder shortcuts:
- Current user: enter
shell:startupin File Explorer’s address bar. The path is%userprofile%AppDataRoamingMicrosoftWindowsStart MenuProgramsStartup. - All users: enter
shell:common startup. The path is%ProgramData%MicrosoftWindowsStart MenuProgramsStartup.
If you find the unwanted app’s shortcut there, Microsoft’s guidance is to remove the shortcut from the folder.
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How to use Task Manager’s impact labels
Microsoft’s published category thresholds describe measured startup impact. They are not a benchmark for your PC or a promise that disabling an entry will produce a particular improvement.
- Low impact: total CPU use is under 300 milliseconds and total disk use is under 292 kilobytes.
- Medium impact: total CPU use is under 1 second but over 300 milliseconds, or total disk use is under 3 megabytes but over 292 kilobytes.
- High impact: total CPU use is over 1 second or total disk use is over 3 megabytes.
- None: the startup app is disabled.
- Not measured: the app is enabled, but there is no data available to measure it.
Use the labels to prioritize entries for review, rather than assuming that every high-impact entry should be disabled or that changing one entry guarantees a faster startup.
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When the problem is background activity, not launch behavior
An app that keeps working while you are not using it raises a different question from whether it launches at sign-in. Microsoft discusses background-app permissions separately from startup-app controls. If the app is already open or continues activity after sign-in, investigate its background permission as a separate setting rather than treating the Startup apps list as the only control.
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