When you restart or shut down your Windows 11 PC, you might notice that applications like Google Chrome, File Explorer, or Microsoft Word automatically relaunch when you sign back in. While Microsoft designed this feature to help you quickly resume your work, it can cause slower boot times and consume valuable system resources, especially on older hardware. Fortunately, this behaviour can be disabled entirely.
Why Does Windows 11 Reopen Apps?
Windows 11 includes a feature called “Restartable Apps.” When you initiate a shutdown or restart, the operating system remembers which compatible applications were left open on your desktop. Upon your next login, Windows automatically launches these specific applications from scratch to simulate a continuous session. This is different from the traditional “Startup Apps” folder, which launches the same set of apps every time regardless of what was open previously.
How to Stop Windows from Reopening Your Apps
You can disable this resume feature through the Windows Settings app.
- Click the Start button and select the Settings gear icon (or press Windows Key + I).
- In the left-hand sidebar, click on Accounts.
- Scroll down and click on Sign-in options.
- Scroll down to the Additional settings section.
- Locate the toggle switch labelled Automatically save my restartable apps and restart them when I sign back in.
- Click the toggle to turn it Off.
How to Check Your Traditional Startup Apps
If you have turned off restartable apps but certain programs (such as Spotify, Teams, or Discord) continue to launch automatically when you boot your PC, they are likely configured as permanent startup applications.
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager.
- In the left-hand sidebar of the Task Manager window, click the Startup apps icon (it looks like a speedometer).
- Review the list of applications. If you see a program you do not want running on boot, right-click it and select Disable.
By combining these two methods, your Windows 11 desktop will boot cleanly and quickly, only launching the programs you manually open.