Problem: Task Manager is not displaying the startup items; instead, it shows the “there are no startup items to display” message.
Cause: There is no startup folder in the Start Menu, so Task Manager cannot display your startup items. This was likely caused by deleting empty folders in your start menu.
Solution: Make sure that there is a folder named Startup on the following two locations:
C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\
If there is no Startup folder on these paths, create a new folder and name it Startup.
When applying this fix, make sure you can view hidden folders on Windows, or else you won’t be able to find some of the folders in these paths.
If the fix above didn’t work:
- Try to go back to a system restore point previous to this issue.
- Use AutoRuns to manage your Startup items. AutoRuns is a complete version of Task Manager.
Go Back to a System Restore Point to Fix the Startup Tab Missing
This method logically assumes that you have a previous restore point created. If you are not sure, follow the steps, and you will come to know.
The process of going back to a system restore point is the same on Windows 11 and 10. Follow the steps below:
- Type Recovery on Windows Search or Start Menu, and click on the result:
- On Recovery, click on Open System Restore:
- Select a system restore point previous to the issue.
Keep in mind that going back to a previous system restore point might also revert other system changes.
If no system restore point is available, you can use a third-party program from Microsoft called Autoruns to visualize and manage your startup items.
How to Use Autoruns to Display and Manage Your Startup Items
Autoruns is the complete application to let you visualize programs, drivers, DLL files, and more launching on Windows startup.
Thus, it is more comprehensive than Windows task manager and is a perfect choice to manage your startup items.
- Download Autoruns on the Microsoft Official Website and extract it to a folder.
- Run Autoruns to visualize all of your startup items:
Here are some essential points to keep in mind when running Autoruns:
- Do not turn off any processes if you aren’t sure what they do. If you have any doubts, do a search online to understand what a certain entry does.
- Deleting or turning off the wrong entry, like a system process, can make your computer unbootable. So, use it with care.
To understand Autoruns better, you can watch this comprehensive tutorial:
Conclusion
If there are startup items to display in the startup tab in Task Manager, you need to make sure there is a startup folder on the following paths: C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\ and C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\. Create a startup folder if there is not.
If this doesn’t work, go back to a previous system restore point or install Autoruns to manage and view your startup folders.
To understand more about the Task Manager, read this article on what the number in brackets means in task manager.
If you have issues with high memory usage, check our article on how to fix Desktop Window Manager’s high memory usage.
