Windows allows programs to automatically install themselves in Windows startup configuration settings. For programs that are designed to startup automatically, there’s nothing to do. They will automatically startup every time Windows starts. Programs that are not designed or built to automatically start up or open, you will have to manually configure and set them to start. To get started with starting programs when you log in, follow the steps below:

Find Program Details

Windows has a Startup folder that automatically starts any program that is added to the folder. To start auto start a program, you should know some details of the programs you wish to start. For example, if you wish to always start the Microsoft Edge browser after you log in, you’ll need to find out what commands and switches or options are used to start Edge up. You can find that out easily by looking at the program’s properties page. For Edge, right-click on the Edge icon and select Properties as highlighted below. When the program’s properties page opens, on the Shortcut tab, take notes of the program’s Target path. Or click the button to Open the File Location of the program. The Target path has the program’s executables. Microsoft Edge, it’s located in: Take notes of the program’s target and copy.

Automatically Start Programs in Windows 11

With the program’s details, you discovered above, press the Windows key + R on your keyboard to open the app Run box. Or you can simply click on Start and type Run to search. In the box, type this command in the box and press Enter. When you press Enter, it will open the Windows program startup folder. From there, right-click a blank area and select New item –> Shortcut as highlighted below. Now copy the program’s Target path you copied above and click Next. Type a name for the shortcut and finish. When you’re done, a new shortcut will be created in the Startup folder. That’s it! Now every time you log in to Windows, Edge will automatically start and open up for you. Take a look at Windows Task Manager. You should see Edge as starting up. You can also create startup programs from Task Manager Startup tab. Click File and select Run new task. The task wizard shows up with the same shell: startup command used above. This time, you can startup programs with administrative privileges. That should do it! Conclusion: This post showed you how to create programs in Windows 11 that automatically start up every time you log in. If you find any error above, please use the comment form below to report.