There is not really much to explain about the interface itself. It consists of two elements. The first is being used to browse the local computer system to select a file. The second to select an alias for that file that will then be made available in the operating system. One nice effect of this procedure is that the program does not need to be running after the alias has been added. Removing an alias on the other hand is not as straightforward as the program does not keep track of the added aliases. This means the only way to remove one is to pick the file again and select the remove button instead of the add button.

The new alias is immediately active and will from then on launch the selected file in the run dialog window. AddTorun (via Addictive Tips) is a portable software application that is a great help for users who do not like to add shortcuts to a system path. That’s another valid option to add files as a run alias as every shortcut in a system path folder can be executed from the run dialog.

Assigning new aliases or shortcuts can really speed up the workflow on the computer system, especially if specific applications are started regularly in the run dialog box.

Advanced Run takes the default Run dialog to the next level by providing access to several additional functions and features. It does that in the most convenient way by replacing it with its own interface and keeping the shortcuts. The first difference is the “Run as different user” option which makes it possible to run a selected application as a different user.

That’s an interesting way to load applications with a higher or lower user level or simply as a different user. It features three so called security profiles in addition to run an application with specific privileges which can be defined in the program’s option. By default the security profiles anti-spyware, maximum permitted and maximum prohibited are available with the option to create additional ones.

Another advantage are so called command templates which can be defined to launch an application with parameters. These can be stored in the database of known shortcuts which is editable as well. The list contains many of the known shortcuts like cmd to open the command line or services.msc to open Windows Services Management. It is possible to change or add commands for each shortcut to speed up the start.

Shell Verbs are supported and a list of all available shell verbs can be viewed in the main menu. A shell verb is a command like open or print followed by a path to a file.

The last option that is of importance to companies or users with multiple computers is the import and export function. The settings could be exported after configuring Advanced Run on one computer and imported on additional computers.

This is a very useful tool that every windows user should run from time to time to check on his autostarts, I bet there will be more than you think there are. Removing some helps to speed up windows startup as well.

Simply run Autoruns and it shows you the currently configured auto-start applications as well as the full list of Registry and file system locations available for auto-start configuration. Autostart locations displayed by Autoruns include logon entries, Explorer add-ons, Internet Explorer add-ons including Browser Helper Objects (BHOs), Appinit DLLs, image hijacks, boot execute images, Winlogon notification DLLs, Windows Services and Winsock Layered Service Providers. Switch tabs to view autostarts from different categories.

Autoruns for Windows version 11.0

Autoruns for Windows is a fully comprehensive startup monitor that displays all programs that are configured to run at system bootup or login. It will show you specific entries in the exact order that Windows processes them. It will even show all of the executables that launch at startup. Inclusive in this comprehensive display are programs in the startup folder, Run, RunOnce, and other Registry Keys.

Aside from showing you what is going on during startup/ bootup, Autoruns enables you to configure specifically to show additional locations such as Explorer and shell extensions, toolbars, browser helper objects, Winlogon notifications, auto-start services, and just about everything else you could possibly think of. MSConfig is nothing compared to this. Thus, the term “comprehensive” has been used liberally to describe this startup monitor.

Third-party auto-start images which have been added to your system can be a burden to the operating system and drastically slow startup time. Autoruns 11.0 includes a Hide Signed Microsoft Entries option to assist you in isolating these third-party auto-start images and includes support for examining the auto-starting images that have been configured for other accounts on a given system. Included in the Autoruns package is a command-line equivalent which is capable of output in CSV format, Autorunsc.

Just run Autoruns and you will immediately see all of the currently configured auto-start applications and a complete list of Registry and file system locations for auto-start configuration. You will see:

logon entries
Explorer add-ons
IE add-ons
BHOs
Appinit Dlls
Image hijacks
Boot execute images
Winlogon notification DLLs
Windows Services
Winsock Layered Service Providers

When you switch tabs, you will be able to view other categories of autostarts.

Any executable that is configured to run automatically can be viewed by selecting it and then using the Properties menu item or toolbar. Process Explorer may be running at the time and an active process could be executing. The Process Explorer menu item in the Entry menu will open the process properties dialog box.

Use the Jump menu item or the toolbar button to navigate to the Registry or file system location displayed. You can then disable any auto-start entry by unchecking its checkbox. Use the Delete menu item to delete an auto-start configuration.
On-line help is available for further assistance, which may very well be required as this is a complex utility.

The command-line version is Autorunsc. The syntax is as follows:

Usage: autorunsc [-x] [[-a] | [-b] [-c] [-d] [-e] [-g] [-h] [-i] [-k] [-l] [-m] [-o] [-p] [-r] [-s] [-v] [-w] [[-z ] | [user]]]

• -a Show all entries.
• -b Boot execute.
• -c Print output as CSV.
• -d Appinit DLLs.
• -e Explorer addons.
• -g Sidebar gadgets (Vista and higher).
• -h Image hijacks.
• -i Internet Explorer addons.
• -l Logon startups (this is the default).
• -m Hide signed Microsoft entries.
• -n Winsock protocol and network providers.
• -p Printer monitor drivers.
• -r LSA providers.
• -s Autostart services and non-disabled drivers.
• -t Scheduled tasks.
• -v Verify digital signatures.
• -w Winlogon entries.
• -x Print output as XML.
• -z Specifies the offline Windows system to scan.
• user Specifies the name of the user account for which autorun items will be shown.

AutoRuns 11.0 download: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb963902.aspx