Enable or Disable Task Manager

Ahh yes - the old Ctrl+Alt+Delete keypress equals Task Manager....

If you attempt to open the Task Manager and you either get a notice that the Task Manager has been disabled or the process closes completely — then you can be pretty sure this problem was caused by malware. By disabling the Task Manager malware basically prevents you from easily viewing and disabling the hidden processes of the malware's functionality. However, simply gaining access to the Task Manager doesn't mean that your system is clean. For more information on cleaning malware from your system read Malware Cleaners and Repair.

The following explains how to gain control of the Task Manager...

For Windows 2000 and Windows XP Professional Edition:

Open the Group Policy Editor:

· Press the Start button, click Run..., type gpedit.msc, and click OK

In the Group Policy Editor:

1. Select "User Configuration"
2. Select "Administrative Templates"
3. Select "System"
4. Select "Ctrl+Alt+Del Options"
5. Double-click "Remove Task Manager"
6. Set it to "Not Configured" (this removes any restrictions on the Task Manager)
7. Click OK
8. Exit the Group Policy Editor

For Windows XP Home Edition:
For those people wishing to lock their system down to prevent kids or other users from using the Task Manager the following method also presents a way to disable the Task Manager.

 Before attempting the following make sure you read and understand Registry Editing Warning.

1. Click the Start button
2. Click Run...
3. Type regedit and click OK
4. In the Registry Editor navigate to the following key and open it:
   
   

   If System is not present in the Policies location, create it by clicking Edit, select New > Expandable String Value and name it System (this name is case sensative)



5. When in the System key, find or create (see below) the DWORD value DisableTaskMgr

If not present, create it by clicking Edit, selecting New > DWORD Value and name it DisableTaskMgr (this name is case sensative)

6. Right-click on the value, select Modify, and enter either one of the following hexadecimal values:

1 - (disables the Task Manager)
0 - (enables the Task Manager)

7. Exit the Registry Editor

Side note for those of you who are mousey:
Tip - You can open the Task Manager with a right-click on an empty area of the taskbar, and selecting Task Manager.

OS: 2000 & XP > Security
Date: 01/30/06

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