If you are thinking about enabling task manager, which may have been disabled by a virus, you need to use an appropriate software, or just modify the registry setting of your computer.
There can be times when your computer might get infected with a virus, and fail to function properly. The most common problem faced by a PC, when affected by a virus, is malfunctioning of the task manager.
Functions of this utility and Procedures to Open it
Windows task manager is one of the most important tools, which is loaded by default in the computer. It is a utility that allows the user to open and control all the installed programs on the PC. It also shows how many and which processes are running in the system memory.
If a program is not responding, which in turn, is affecting the speed and performance of other programs, you can simply open this utility and close that particular program entirely.
This utility can be opened in three ways: by right-clicking on the Start button’s bar, located at the very bottom of the screen; pressing Ctrl-Alt-Del or Ctrl-Shift-Esc on the keyboard; or by typing ‘TASKMGR’ in the run column and pressing Enter. It can be disabled manually.
Most of the time, this occurs automatically when a virus infects the PC. Before taking any steps to enable it, you need to scan the system using a good antivirus software.
How to Enable it?
Task Manager Repair Software
If you do not want to take the risk of changing the default settings from the registry of the computer, you can use a software to serve the purpose. There are many such applications available on the Internet for download that can get the task manager enabled. Moreover, the interface of these applications is also easy to operate.
Modifying the Computer’s Registry Settings
Windows XP: In this, you will be required to follow these steps:
- The first step you need to take is to click on the Start button, select run, type ‘REGEDIT’, and press Enter. The registry editor window will be opened.
- In the options on the left side of the window, locate the link ‘HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\system’. In the right section of the window, you would see a file named ‘DisableTaskMgr’, which you will need to delete. Before deleting that file, the system will ask for a confirmation, after which the file will be deleted.
- After this, locate the link ‘HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\system’ in the same manner as before. Also, delete the ‘DisableTaskMgr’ file from this window.
- Now, exit the ‘registry editor’ window. Restart your system, and you will be able to open the utility.
If you choose to delete the ‘DisableTaskMgr’ file from the Windows registry, it will be difficult to enable it again. A good option is to change the number in the Boolean section from one to zero, which can be done by double-clicking on the DisableTaskMgr option. Another way is to select DisableTaskMgr option, and select ‘Disable’ or ‘Not Configured’.
Windows Vista: In Vista Home Basic or Home Premium, you can follow the procedure of changing the Boolean section value from one to zero. However, if you are using other editions of this operating system, you need to follow a slightly different procedure.
Select the Start button, key in ‘gpedit.msc’, and click Enter. The ‘Local Group Policy Editor’ window will open, after which you need to locate the link ‘User Configuration-Administrative Templates-System-Ctrl+Alt+Del Options’. Double-click on the ‘Remove Task Manager’ option, select ‘Disabled’, and finally click ‘OK’. This will get your utility back.
For enabling it in Windows 7, you simply need to change the Boolean section value to zero.
If you think that the process of modifying the registry settings is complicated, it is suggested to get the job done using a repair software.