7 Essential Windows 10 and 11 Run Commands for Troubleshooting, Cleanup and Startup

This guide checks each command against Microsoft's own support documentation. It covers what each one does on Windows 10 and Windows 11, and where the risks or limits are that a quick list tends to skip.

Before you start: how to open Run​

• Press Windows key + R. You can also right-click Start and choose Run, which Microsoft's startup-apps guide uses. Right-click on Start and select Run.
• Type the command and press Enter.
• Most of these entries also work if you type them into Start search.
• Some tasks need an administrator account, especially clean-boot troubleshooting and full System Information output. On managed work PCs, IT policy may block some changes.

These commands are shortcuts to existing tools, not features of their own. The window that opens is the same one you would reach through menus.

Section summary: Windows key + R, type the command, press Enter. Admin rights matter for some tasks.

appwiz.cpl: Programs and Features​

Typing appwiz.cpl opens the classic Programs and Features window in Control Panel. It lists installed desktop programs and lets you uninstall them or, for some, change or repair them. Shah prefers it to Windows 11's Settings > Apps > Installed apps page because it is compact and opens quickly.

Microsoft's uninstall guide for Windows 10 and 11 gives a practical reason to keep it handy beyond speed. The page says some apps currently can't be uninstalled from Settings, and it points you to Control Panel for those.

How to use it:

1. Press Windows key + R, type appwiz.cpl and press Enter.
2. Right-click (or press and hold) the program you want to remove.
3. Choose Uninstall or Uninstall/Change, depending on which one appears.
4. Follow the program's own uninstaller.

If it goes wrong: Not every program offers Repair or Change. What you see depends on how the developer packaged the installer. Microsoft says some built-in Windows apps can't be uninstalled at all. If an uninstall fails with an error, Microsoft suggests its Program Install and Uninstall Troubleshooter. Shah says the list shows publisher, install date, size and version. Expect some entries to leave those columns blank.

mmsys.cpl: the classic Sound panel​

mmsys.cpl opens the legacy Sound control panel, with its Playback, Recording and Sounds tabs. Shah uses it to change default input and output devices, disable headphones or speakers, and switch off system sounds such as the ones for startup, low battery and errors.

Microsoft still sends users to this panel in its own audio troubleshooting guide. For Windows 10, that guide goes through Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Sound for three things:

• Right-clicking a device on the Playback tab and choosing Set as Default Device
• Turning off enhancements on a device's Enhancements tab
• Changing the Default Format on the Advanced tab to test different audio formats

The Windows 11 version of the same guide reaches the Playback and Recording tabs through More sound settings in Settings. Both routes lead to the same window, and mmsys.cpl takes you there directly.

Tip: If you only want sound schemes and event sounds, Microsoft documents a variant, control mmsys.cpl sounds, that opens the Sounds tool directly.

Caveat: This panel doesn't replace everything in Settings. Some newer per-device options, such as the Audio enhancements dropdown in Windows 11, live in the Settings app.

msconfig: System Configuration, used carefully​

msconfig opens System Configuration. Shah calls it his troubleshooting command center. It has General, Boot, Services, Startup and Tools tabs, and he highlights the Boot tab for starting Safe Mode and choosing a default OS on dual-boot machines.

Microsoft is more cautious. Its clean-boot guide warns that on networked computers, policy settings might block these changes. It also says you should change advanced boot options in this tool only with guidance from a Microsoft support engineer, because the utility might make the computer unusable. Take that seriously. Boot-tab settings you forget about can make a working PC look broken.

The job Microsoft does document step by step is a clean boot. This starts Windows with only essential drivers and startup programs, so you can tell whether background software is causing a problem.

Clean boot, Microsoft's method (Windows 10 and 11):

1. Sign in as an administrator.
2. Open msconfig.
3. On the Services tab, select Hide all Microsoft services, then Disable all, then Apply.
4. On the Startup tab, select Open Task Manager.
5. In Task Manager, disable each enabled startup item. Write down or screenshot what you disabled.
6. Close Task Manager, select OK in System Configuration and restart.

What success looks like: If the problem goes away in the clean boot, a disabled service or startup app is probably the cause. Microsoft suggests re-enabling items in halves and restarting after each round. Each round rules out half of what's left, so you narrow it down faster than testing one item at a time.

Common failure point: If an installer reports that the Windows Installer service could not be accessed, start that service manually from Computer Management > Services.

Don't forget to undo it: On the General tab, choose Normal Startup. Then re-enable all services and turn your startup apps back on in Task Manager.

cleanmgr: Disk Cleanup​

cleanmgr launches Disk Cleanup. Shah uses it every few weeks to clear temporary files, old Windows Update data, thumbnails and the Recycle Bin. He also uses its Clean up system files button for larger items such as old restore points and leftover installation files after an upgrade.

How to use it:

1. Run cleanmgr and choose a drive.
2. Look through the categories and tick only what you understand.
3. For more categories, select Clean up system files. Windows asks for the drive again and recalculates.
4. Confirm the deletion.

The trap: According to Microsoft's drive-space guidance, deleting a previous Windows installation removes the Windows.old folder. After that you can no longer roll back to your earlier Windows version. Microsoft says the rollback option applies when the upgrade happened fewer than 10 days ago. If you upgraded recently and aren't sure the new build is stable, leave that box unticked.

Disk Cleanup vs. Storage Sense: Shah says Storage Sense does pretty much the same thing. That's broadly true, but they aren't identical. Microsoft describes Storage Sense as automatic cleanup of things like temporary files and Recycle Bin contents, based on rules you set. It works on the system drive, usually C:, and doesn't touch Downloads or cloud content unless you configure it to. Storage Sense runs on a schedule you set, while Disk Cleanup does one manual pass when you ask.

%temp%: your personal temp folder​

Typing %temp% into Run expands the environment variable and opens the current user's temporary-files folder. Shah points out that Disk Cleanup doesn't catch everything. He suggests selecting everything in this folder and deleting it, and skipping any files Windows won't release.

That skip-it rule matters. Files in use by Windows or an open app will refuse to delete, which is normal. Choose Skip rather than trying to force them out. Closing your apps first reduces how many get locked.

Be realistic about what this does. Microsoft's official cleanup advice focuses on the temporary-file categories in Settings and Disk Cleanup, not on manually emptying this folder. It won't reliably fix a misbehaving PC, and how much space you get back varies a lot. Treat it as housekeeping, not a repair.

msinfo32: System Information​

msinfo32 opens System Information, which lays out your hardware, system components and software environment. Shah uses it to check OS version, BIOS details, processor, installed memory, drivers and running processes. He says the most useful feature is Export, which saves everything as a text file you can send to whoever is helping you.

Microsoft's documentation adds command-line options that help-desk staff will appreciate:

• msinfo32 /nfo C:\Temp\Test.nfo saves a full report in System Information's own format.
• msinfo32 /report C:\Temp\Test.txt saves a plain-text report.
• /computer ComputerName queries a remote machine, if you have the right WMI permissions.

Failure points worth knowing:

• The destination folder must already exist, or the export won't work.
• Without admin rights, some drivers may show as stopped because the tool can't refresh its cache. That can look like a problem when there isn't one.
• In Safe Mode, hardware information isn't available, although some system and software details still appear.

shell:startup: the per-user Startup folder​

Shah's last pick lets you launch things at sign-in that the startup lists in Settings and Task Manager don't manage. It's also useful for tracking down an app that keeps launching after you think you disabled it.

Microsoft's own startup-apps guide supports this method. It says to type either shell:startup or shell:common startupand select Enter, which opens a folder of applications that start when a user signs in. The same guide explains why there's more than one route. Any applications that are registered in Windows with a startup task can be configured from Settings or from Task Manager. Other applications can be configured using File Explorer.

Which folder does what:

A Microsoft Q&A answer gives the per-user path above and confirms that anything (shortcuts) placed here starts automatically when that user signs in.

Adding and removing items:

1. Open shell:startup.
2. Right-click inside the folder and choose New > Shortcut, or drag a shortcut in.
3. To stop an item, delete its shortcut. Microsoft says if you want to remove applications from the startup folder, delete the links.

Two corrections to Shah's wording. First, these items start when you sign in, not at an earlier point in boot. Second, this isn't the only way to launch websites or scripts automatically. Windows Central notes that the Startup folder also handles files, folders, and websites, and How-To Geek points to Task Scheduler as a more powerful option that can run processes at system startup, when you log on, during idle times, or even when you lock or unlock your screen. The folder is simply the easiest option.

If a startup entry is broken: Microsoft says a "We couldn't find this app" entry in Settings can mean the app sits on a removable or network drive, or its path no longer exists. This could also happen if an app was uninstalled.

Should you still bother with these?​

For most people, Settings is fine. These commands earn their place for three reasons:

• Speed. A few keystrokes beat several menu levels when you already know where you're going.
• Coverage. Control Panel still reaches places Settings doesn't, such as apps Settings can't uninstall and per-device audio tabs.
• Diagnostics. Clean boot and System Information exports are standard first steps in real troubleshooting.

There is a fair counterpoint. Microsoft keeps moving features into Settings, and legacy panels can change or go away. Several of these tools, msconfig and cleanup in particular, can cause real harm if you click without reading.

Quick reference​

Knowing these seven entries covers much of basic Windows maintenance: removing software, fixing audio, clearing disk space, finding a conflicting startup app and collecting system details for support. Keep in mind which ones can change or delete things, and undo any clean-boot changes once you're done testing.