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How to disable AutoPlay/AutoRun in Windows XP/Vista

Following up on the previous post, I am going to give some ways to disable the automatic running of portable media. Note that infected thumb drives have been the source of many recent malware outbreaks.

First, I will try to clear up some confusing Microsoft usage and explain some terms. Back when portable media meant CDs, Windows 95 and later came with a feature called AutoRun. This feature meant that any CD (or later, any DVD) that contained a special little file called autorun.inf would automatically start running when it was inserted in the CD drive. This was convenient for some purposes but it also meant that malware-containing CDs could be used to infect unwitting users. With Windows XP, another feature called AutoPlay was added. This feature pops up a dialog box when removable media such as a USB thumb drive is plugged in. The window asks what action you wish to take and allows for various settings. Many people choose to allow automatic actions. The safest procedure is to never automatically run anything and below are procedures to disable automatic actions. Note that the AutoRun feature still exists for CD/DVD drives but that can also be disabled. (Unfortunately, Microsoft also uses the term “autorun” to refer to certain automatic opening of already installed software from entries in the Registry. Further adding to the confusion is the name of the very useful utility called Autoruns.)

In Windows XP, the easiest way to manage the settings for AutoPlay is to use the free utility TweakUI. I have discussed using this tool in a previous post. To repeat what I said then:

If you want to permanently disable AutoPlay, the accessory TweakUI can be used. Open TweakUI, expand the entries under “My Computer”, click “AutoPlay”, and then select “Drives”. Uncheck each drive letter for which you want AutoPlay disabled.

If you like to tweak the Registry you can edit the AutoRun entry that applies to CD/DVD drives. As I wrote before:

If you are an experienced PC user, AutoRun can be permanently disabled by a Registry edit. Open Regedit and navigate to the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\CDRom. Find the value “AutoRun” and set it to 0. Back up the Registry first before trying any editing. One side effect of this Registry edit is that you may have to refresh the view in My Computer when you insert a new optical disk before Windows recognizes it.

Yet another method that is available in Windows XP Professional (but not the Home version) is to use the Group Policy Editor (GPE). The basics of the GPE are discussed at my Computer Education site. Briefly, the specific details for configuring AutoPlay with the GPE are:

1. Open the Group Policy Editor by entering “gpedit.msc” (without quotes) in the Start-Run line.
2. In the left pane, click “Administrative Templates”. You have a choice of changing the setting for the Local Computer (everybody) or just the current user.
3. Select the sub-heading “System”.
4. In the right pane, double-click the entry “Turn off AutoPlay”.
5. In the dialog box that opens, click the radio button “Enable”.
6. In the drop-down menu labeled “Turn off AutoPlay on:”, choose “All drives”.

You can also use the GPE in editions of Vista that have it but a better method can be reached through the Vista Control Panel:

1. Open Control Panel from the Start Menu.
2. Select the category, “Hardware and Sound”.
3. Select “AutoPlay”.
4. Remove the check next to the entry “Use AutoPlay for all media and devices”.

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