Understanding bootup

[knowmoor]

For YEARS this has bugged me, so I figure I'll finally pose the question.

In Windows, at least any version after 3.x, why is it there seems to be an
arbitrary order in which background apps are loaded in startup. Both my
machines do this (one XP Home, the other XP Pro), as does my wife's Win2K
laptop. It's not completely random; on this machine, for instance, the
popup stopper software always loads first, while everything else (firewall,
a/v, HP printer controls, sound controls, etc.) that follows IS random.

Why?

Can the bootup procedure be organized so that apps load in the same sequence
every time? I would think that it would be best if ZA Pro finishes loading
first, for example, rather than sometimes being second (the popup app being
always first), then last, then whenever. I really don't know if it matters
(is the machine really capable of accepting info from the internet prior to
completion of the startup--I don't know), but it still seems rather Mickey
(as in the mouse) that Windows can't better organize the bootup order, at
least in its default state.

Any information that help fill this admittedly incomplete brain would be
appreciated.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Execution Order for starting programs

With Windows XP Home, there are 13 places that programs can start from and
they are executed in the following order:

Before Logon
1)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServicesOnce
2) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices

After Logon
3)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce\Setup
4) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
5) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx
6) WIN.INI [Windows] Load
7) WIN.INI [Windows] Run
8) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
9) HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
10) C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Startup
11) C:\Documents and Settings\Your Name Here\Start Menu\Programs\Startup
12) HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
13) As a Scheduled Task set to run at startup.

Startups in groups 6 to 11 all run at the same time (more or less). However,
the groups themselves are triggered in the order shown above. In other
words, the next group can begin launching while the previous group is still
loading its startups. Due to timing issues it is impossible to say what
order these items will finish loading, thus it is impossible to predict the
exact order of execution for individual startups. For instance, you may
notice two or more system tray icons changing position with each boot - even
when no changes have been made to the order.

The order of items within a group is not necessarily the final order, as
some programs take longer than others to load, and synchronous groups can
overlap each other.

Items in 10 and 11 execute alphabetically. You can change the order in 10
and 11 by moving the items from 11 to 10. Also, you can rename the
shortcuts in 10 and/or 11.

For example; dfg.exe, fgh.exe and ghj.exe would start in that order. To
change the order rename to aghj.exe, bdfg.exe and cfgh.exe. They would then
start in that order.