Disable Windows services

You can safely disable some Windows services if you don't need them at all. You can find out how to do this in this short guide.

How to find Windows services

1. Call the "Run" window by pressing the Windows key and "R" together.
2. Enter "services.msc" here and confirm with the Enter key. The "Services" window opens.
3. Here you can see an overview of all Windows services. Select one, you will see a description of the service on the left (see screenshot).
4. Under "Start type" it is noted whether the Windows service is started automatically, is deactivated or is only called "manually" - whenever it is needed.

Disable certain Windows services

• Double-click the desired Windows service.
• A new window will open. Here you select the desired setting under "Start type" (see screenshot).
• If you want to switch off the Windows service completely, select "Deactivated".
• Then confirm the setting by clicking on "Apply" (bottom right). Then close the settings window with "OK".
• The changes made become active after the next restart.

This practical tip refers to a system with Windows 7. If you want to deactivate Windows services under Windows XP, you should take a look at the Windows XP tuning tips. Here you can find out which Windows services you can safely switch off. If you are using Windows Vista, you will find the corresponding instructions here.