Question Can I Lock The Task Manager?

accesscpu_

Reputable
May 7, 2019
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I find myself repeatedly having to clear my Task Scheduler from newly added entries every few weeks (not all the time, but most times). Some stray entries will be added to trigger something at boot. I liked to keep everything running as minimal/optimized as possible, and hate any start StartUp apps from bogging down my boot times.

And while I try to keep most apps configured to not behave this way, sometimes they have a mind of their own and do it anyway. So I was wondering if there was a way to lock the Windows 10 Task Scheduler and force a program to either get permission to add a scheduled task first, or be denied if they try. I saw a task option in the Windows 10 settings menu, so not sure if that can be incorporated here somehow either.
 
Last edited:

DSzymborski

Curmudgeon Pursuivant
Moderator
I'm not sure what you're actually asking here. The task manager isn't "in charge" of anything, it's simply listing what's running. Your question here is a little asking how to make your bank statement list fewer transactions so that you make fewer purchases. The arrow of causality is backwards here. Your task manager is listing a lot of things as running because a lot of things are running; it's not causing things to run.

Individual behavior is going to be based on the program and various Windows settings (startup, security, etc).
 

MrLitschel

Commendable
Nov 7, 2021
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As far as I know, there is no way to lock the Task Scheduler. If you continuously find a program that is adding an entry to the Scheduler, "Disable the Task" instead of deleting it.
 

accesscpu_

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May 7, 2019
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First off, thanks Colif! I hvae been looking for that info for years! And now that I have it...I ain't doin' it lol! Reading that, it's fairly complex to accomplish (but do-able), but probably not worth all the trouble. I can probably manage this just as easily on a per-program basis, or just disable the task like MrLitschel mentioned (I used to always just delete them). Plus, if I did want to add a task every once in a while, I'd have to undo all this work. But I do appreciate the help. VERY helpful as always!