Location of the Startup folder in Windows 10

The Startup folder in Windows 10 contains a list of shortcuts of those applications that start when your Windows start. Earlier, you could easily access the Windows 7 startup folder from Start Menu > Startup. But where is the Startup folder in Windows 10/8?

Windows 10 startup folder location

To open the Startup folder in Windows 10, open Run box and:

• Type shell:startup and hit Enter to open the Current Users Startup folder
• Type shell:common startup and hit Enter to open the All Users Startup folder.

The Current Users Startup folder in Windows 10 is located at:

These programs start up for the current logged in user only. To directly access this folder, open Run, type shell:startup and hit Enter.

Or to quickly open the folder, press WinKey, type shell:startup and hit Enter.

Startup folder in Windows 10

The All Users Windows 10 startup folder is located at:

These programs start up for all users. To open this folder, bring up the Run box, type shell:common startup and hit Enter.

Or to open the folder quickly, you can press WinKey, type shell:common startup and hit Enter.

You can add shortcuts of the programs you want to start with your Windows in this folder.

You may use msconfig in Windows 7 or Task Manager in Windows 10 to manage startup programs. You can also delay Startup Programs or control the order in which they load when Windows boots.

This post on Windows Registry Startup Paths may also interest you.

TIP: You might want to check out our TWC Video Hub which offers a lot of interesting videos, including How-Tos and Tutorials.

Windows Startup Settings (including safe mode)

With Windows Startup Settings you can start Windows in different advanced troubleshooting modes to help you find and fix problems on your PC.

Get to Windows Startup Settings in PC settings

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings.
(If you’re using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.)

Under PC settings, tap or click Update and recovery, and then tap or click Recovery.

Under Advanced startup, tap or click Restart now.

Once your PC restarts, on the Choose an option screen, tap or click Troubleshoot. If you don’t see the Startup Settings option, tap or click Advanced options.

Tap or click Startup Settings and then Restart.

On the Startup Settings screen, choose the startup setting you want.

Sign in to your PC with a user account that has administrator rights.

Get to Windows Startup Settings in the Windows Recovery Environment

If you can’t start your PC, follow these instructions to get to the Windows Recovery Environment. You’ll need to connect a keyboard to complete the steps.

Do one of the following, depending on whether you have installation media (such as a DVD or USB flash drive):

If you have installation media for Windows 8.1, start your computer from the installation media. Insert the DVD or USB flash drive and restart your computer. If you see a message asking you to “Press any key to boot from DVD,” do so. If you don’t see the message, you might need to change the boot order in your computer’s BIOS settings so that it first starts from the DVD or USB. When you see the Install Windows page, tap or click Repair your computer to start the Windows Recovery Environment.

If you don’t have installation media, use the power button to restart your computer three times. This will start the Windows Recovery Environment.

In the Windows Recovery Environment, on the Choose an option screen, tap or click Troubleshoot.

Tap or click Startup Settings. If you don’t see Startup Settings, tap or click Advanced options, and then tap or click Startup Settings.

Tap or click Restart, and then wait while your computer restarts.

On the Startup Settings screen, choose an option.

Sign in to your computer with a user account that has administrator rights.

Some options, such as safe mode, start Windows in a limited state where only essential programs are started. Other options start Windows with advanced features (typically used by system admins and IT pros). For more info, go to the Microsoft TechNet website for IT pros.

Note: If you’re using BitLocker, you’ll need to suspend it before you can get to Windows Startup Settings. If you’re using Windows RT 8.1, you may be asked to enter your Device Encryption recovery key to get to the Startup settings.

Starts Windows in an advanced troubleshooting mode intended for IT pros and system admins.

Creates a file, ntbtlog.txt, that lists all the drivers that are installed during startup and that might be useful for advanced troubleshooting.

Starts Windows using your current video driver and using low resolution and refresh rate settings. You can use this mode to reset your display settings.

Safe mode starts Windows with a minimal set of drivers and services to help troubleshoot issues. If a problem doesn’t reappear when you start your PC in safe mode, you can eliminate the default settings and basic device drivers and services as possible causes. There are three different safe mode options:

Enable Safe Mode. Starts Windows with a minimal set of drivers and services.

Enable Safe Mode with Networking. Starts Windows in safe mode and includes the network drivers and services needed to access the Internet or other computers on your network.

Enable Safe Mode with Command Prompt. Starts Windows in safe mode with a Command Prompt window instead of the usual Windows interface. This option is intended for IT pros and system admins.

If the problem doesn’t occur when you restart your PC in safe mode, it’s unlikely that the basic settings, files, and drivers in Windows are the cause of the problem. Try starting all of the apps on your desktop that you commonly use one by one (including the apps in your Startup folder) to see if a specific app might be causing the problem. If one of the apps is causing the problem, uninstall it or contact the software publisher. If the problem appears while in safe mode, or you still can’t find the problem, you can try refreshing or resetting your PC. For more info, see How to refresh, reset, or restore your PC.

How to Access the Windows 10 Startup Folder

Plus how to disable or enable programs

The Windows Startup Folder was an important folder that was easily discoverable via the Start Menu in Windows versions past. It began as far back as Windows 95 and any programs located within the Startup Folder would boot up and run anytime the computer was powered on.

It used to be that whenever you booted up your Windows operated computer, it would seek out and execute a batch script called autoexec.bat. Anyone with knowledge of Power DOS could use a text editor to modify this script in order to add their favorite programs to boot up, along with the Windows operating system. This made it so that everything you wanted to use was already loaded once the computer booted.

The use of autoexec.bat continued all the way through the Windows NT years, but Microsoft was intent on moving users away from a scripted, command-line environment. It instead wanted to encourage the use of the graphical interface model with windows, files, and folders, and, in doing so, made all subsequent versions of their operating systems not require autoexec.bat.

They would eventually do away with it entirely, however, the Windows 10 Startup Folder can still be found today.

How to Access the Windows 10 Startup Folder

Back before Windows 95, batch scripts and command-line interfaces were essential in getting your computer to do anything at all. All of the clickable icons you take for granted today didn’t exist. Instead, to run something like Microsoft Word, it required that you opened a command-line interpreter and typed winword.exe.

Windows 95, though it still allowed for users to perform nearly every important task using a command line, such actions were easier through the graphical user interface. You could click on the Program Files folder and find icons labeled with the program you wanted to run. All that was needed was a quick double-click and the program was launched.

Windows 95 was the first step in changing how we access programs. Today, clicking a program to have it launch is commonplace. It feels as if this is how it has always been. Barely anyone uses commands to open programs anymore. However, interestingly enough with Windows 10, we’ve actually seen a small surge in the revival of command line access via the use of PowerShell.

The Startup Folder In The Start Menu

The Start Menu was first created in Windows 95 and slightly resembles the Start Menu we have today in Windows 10. It’s that little flyout menu that pops out when you click the Start or Windows icon in the lower-left corner of your desktop. In Windows 95, this is where you’d find the Startup Folder.

When Windows 8 was launched, Microsoft decided to eliminate the Start Menu. Even though all of the functionality was still present in the operating system, it was much harder to locate everything. Microsoft wanted users to go a different way with scheduling programs for automatic execution.

Much to Microsoft’s dismay, the pushback from the user community was so great that the Start Menu was quietly brought back in with Windows 10.

The Windows 10 Startup Folder is similar to the one found in Windows 7. However, it’s no longer accessible the same way. The Windows 10 Startup Folder no longer pops up in the Start Menu as it once did. The functions are still there, although some of the operational details have changed. Now, accessing the Windows 10 Startup Folder takes a bit of navigation.

Two Windows 10 Startup Folders

When it comes to the Windows 10 Startup folder, it can be found in two different locations. One Windows 10 Startup folder operates at the system level and is shared among all user accounts (All Users folder), while the other operates at a user level and is unique to that user’s account (Current User folder).

The second one only really matters if you have multiple accounts on your Windows 10 computer. Each account will contain a unique Startup Folder in addition to the universal Startup Folder.

Understanding the distinction between the All Users and Current User Startup Folders is important when it comes to troubleshooting. Attempting to understand why a certain application isn’t opening, or when working with applications that feature user-based licensing or access restrictions will require you know which Startup Folder to configure.

There is one area that enables you to interact with the Startup function, which contains all of the programs found inside of the folder. The only difference is that programs cannot be added or removed. You can only enable or disable those currently inside of the Startup folder. This location is the Windows Task Manager.

Accessing The Windows 10 Startup Folder

There are a few ways in which to access the Windows 10 Startup folder. To access the Windows 10 Startup folder, the first option is through File Explorer.

You’ll need to enable the “Show Hidden Files” option in order to see certain folders in the path. Open the File Explorer and drop one of the following paths into the Quick access bar.

• The All Users Startup Folder is located at the following path:
  • C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\StartUp
• The Current User Startup Folder is located here:
  • C:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

From these locations, you can add or remove programs that you want executed whenever you boot up your Windows 10 computer.

An alternative way to do this is to jump directly to each folder with a Run command.

Open the Run function dialog box by pressing the Windows key + R key simultaneously.

• The All Users Startup Folder requires the following path:
  • Shell:common startup
• The Current User Startup Folder requires:
  • Shell:startup

These will take you directly to the folder containing the startup programs pertaining to the specified folder.

Enabling and Disabling Startup Programs

If all you want to do is enable or disable certain programs within the Windows 10 Startup folder, you can access this functionality through both the Windows Task Manager or Settings window.

To access Startup using the Task Manager:

• Right-click the Taskbar and from the menu that pops up, select Task Manager.

• In the Task Manager window, click over to the Startup tab to see the programs.

• Right-click a program. In the pop-up, select either enable or disable.
  • The program will now adhere to the status set on your next boot up.

To access Startup using via Windows Settings:

• Open the Start Menu by clicking the Windows icon in the lower-left portion of your desktop.
• From the menu, select Settings (Cogwheel icon).

• Choose Apps.
• On the left side menu, select Startup.

• In the main menu, click the toggles of those programs you want to enable or disable, to On or Off.

The Launch Order For The Windows 10 Startup Folder

Any item placed in either of the Startup Folders will not launch immediately upon login as it did back in the days of Windows 95. Instead, Windows 10 launches programs in a very specific order beginning with necessary system processes and any items in the Task Manager’s Startup tab. The programs you’ve added to the Startup Folders will follow after.

This usually doesn’t take long, but if you have lots of first- and third-party applications and services already configured to launch at boot, it could take a few minutes depending on the processing speed of your computer.

Too many programs in the Windows 10 Startup folder may run the risk of extensive downtime, slowing your computer to unworkable speeds while it attempts to launch each program. It’s a good idea to ensure that you only place necessary programs in these folders and keep the overall count to a minimum.

Former US Army IT communications specialist who began his online blogging career in 2016. Joseph has over 10 years experience in the IT industry as both an analyst and communications expert. He’s a night owl and an avid Red Bull consumer who spends most of his downtime enthralled by online gaming and website building. Read Joseph’s Full Bio