Today we will see how you can use a semi-hidden setting of Windows 10 to prevent certain applications from opening in the background, without you knowing. This can potentially make your Windows slightly faster and help you save battery.
This setting only affects modern Windows applications such as Windows calculator, weather application or map application. For the rest of applications, see our article to prevent some applications from opening at the beginning of Windows.
Prevent an app from opening in the background
Windows gives you control over which applications you want to allow to run in the background and which ones do not, although by default they can all. To change this, open the Windows Start menu and click on the Settings icon.
The funny thing about this Windows setting is that it seems to be completely in the wrong place of the settings. Being related to applications, we would expect to find it in the subsection of the same name but no, it is in Privacy.
The Privacy section of the Windows Configuration is full of interesting options that I recommend you review at some time that you have free. Today we focus on applications, so in the left panel, click Applications in the background.
Here you can disable some applications running in the background using the switch next to your name until you leave it off. As a general rule, feel free to disable any application that you do not use and do not expect to receive notifications from (for example, the Twitter or Skype app).
While it is recommended that you keep some applications activated such as Settings, Security Center and Microsoft Store, the rest depends on the use you give. One that we recommend to disable especially is called Tips, which will often suggest downloading applications (basically they are ads).