Disabling Windows Autorun
Since Windows 95 , Autorun allows an inserted CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or Flash Drive to launch automatically, for example, installing a program when the disc is inserted. This isn’t always a good thing. It’s how some malware and rootkits can be installed without your knowledge.
Bypass:
If you hold down the Shift key while inserting a CD-ROM/DVD-ROM, you can bypass Autorun most of the time. It works in Windows 95 to XP, but not Windows Vista . Even in older versions of Windows it’s not necessarily fail proof.
How to Disable:
To disable Autorun for good in XP/Vista, you need to edit the Registry. The registry can be considered the heart of your computer’s configurations. You should be scared when tinkering around with this if you haven’t backed it up. Use File > Export inside the Registry Editor to save your Registry before you start making changes.
XP: Click the Start button, then go to the Run command.
Vista: Click Start, go to All Programs, and choose Accessories and run Command Prompt
Type regedit and hit Return to open the Registry Editor. (In Vista, you’ll probably have to click OK in the User Account Control warning dialog box.)
Go to the following Registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Cdrom
Double-click on Autorun, and you’ll see a default value of 1. Change it to 0 (zero). Then close the registry editor and restart the computer.
After you go to all this trouble, don’t double-click that autorun.inf file on the disk—it can still run if you do.
AutoPlay:
Autorun should not be confused with AutoPlay, which debuted in Windows XP. The latter features a dialog box that pops up when you insert a CD or DVD filled with electronic media—pictures, music, or video. It will ask you what to do with the data, whether to rip music to iTunes, for example. If the disc is empty, it may ask if you want to write any data to it. You can usually tell XP/Vista not to bother you again when one of these dialogs pops up. If that doesn’t work . . .
In XP, right-click on a drive icon and select Properties. Each removable drive has an AutoPlay tab where you can preset what you want to happen. In Vista, an entirely new control panel exists just for setting global AutoPlay settings. If you turn off AutoPlay everywhere, you can still bring it up when you insert a CD–by holding down the Shift key.
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