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Whenever I start up my PC (running Windows 8.1) I am able to see three windows of running reg.exe program for a flash of a second. Some times they are visible for a longer duration and that was when I was able to get the below screenshot.

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From this link I gather that reg.exe is a command-line utility with same features as regedit.exe.

In my Task Manager's Startup tab I can see Registry Console Tool enabled with three entries.

enter image description here

How can I check why reg.exe starts up at boot time? Will disabling these processes will have adverse effects on my PC?

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3 Answers 3

Reset to default
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The manual way

To find out what they do, I recommend you take a look at the Run-location in the registry, located at:

  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

    or...

  • HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

    or...

  • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

It's a bit strange that you have three startup items for reg.exe, so I'd check out the registry keys and see what parameters the instances for reg.exe have.

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  • In both cases I could not find the entry for reg.exe in my registry.
    – Naveen
    Commented Jan 28, 2014 at 17:56
  • @Naveen Sorry, I forgot another location! I updated my answer.
    – Thor
    Commented Jan 28, 2014 at 18:59
  • Searched your new location, but still could not find any mention.
    – Naveen
    Commented Jan 29, 2014 at 2:38
  • @Naveen In that case, you should use AutoRuns per magicandre1981's comment, downloadable from here: technet.microsoft.com/en-US/sysinternals/bb963902.aspx
    – Thor
    Commented Jan 29, 2014 at 9:20
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It is possible to have that if you have some IBM software installed. IBM Notes for example put on startup 3 registry key who looks like that:

HKLM:Run !IBM Notes Browser Plugin IE Registration REG ADD "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\ZoneMap\ProtocolDefaults" /v notes /t REG_DWORD /d 2 /f

HKLM:Run IBM NBP Disable IE Popup Blocker REG ADD "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\Zones\2" /v 1809 /t REG_DWORD /d 3 /f

HKLM:Run IBM NBP Disable IE Protected Mode REG ADD "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\Zones\2" /v 2500 /t REG_DWORD /d 3 /f

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You can check what applications are launched at system startup/login with Sysinternals Autoruns.

If you find out these reg.exe processes are not related to a software you specifically installed you should disable it with Sysinternals Autoruns.

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