How To Disable Sync Center From Running At Startup

In previous articles we’ve shown how to use the Sync Center to synchronize your files with mobile devices or across network locations. When this tool is used, you will see either a Sync Center icon in your taskbar or a mobsync.exe process running at each Windows Vista startup. However, if you stop using it Sync Center will continue to run at each startup. In order to free up memory for other processes, it is best to disable it when no longer used. In this article I will show you how to do this and optimize your Windows Vista startup.

NOTE: this procedure should be followed only if you do not use the Offline Files feature. If you follow it, you will completely disable the capability of synchronizing files with other locations on your network. Also, this solution works on Windows Vista versions which have the Offline Files feature. It won’t work on Windows Vista Home Premium or Basic.

First, go to Control Panel -> Network and Internet -> Offline Files.

Offline Files

In the Offline Files window, click on the ‘Disable Offline Files’ button and then on OK.

Offline Files

You will be asked to restart your PC. Close your open documents and running applications and click on Yes.

Offline Files

Once you log back in, you should no longer see the Sync Center icon in the taskbar, nor mobsync.exe in the list of running processes.

Related articles:
Synchronize Mobile Devices With Your PC Using Sync Center

Offline Files – How To Work With Network Files When Offline
How to configure your startup programs
Streamline your Startup Applications & Improve Windows Performance

12 thoughts on “How To Disable Sync Center From Running At Startup”

  1. Disabling Sync Center
    This procedure ONLY works in Vista Ultimate — “Offline Files” isn’t available in all other versions. Surprising that you did not mention this. Do you have a precedure for all the other versions of Vista (which, BTW, have more users than the Ultimate version).

  2. Does not apply for Vista Home edition
    I confirm what was already mentioned by KenBC. In Vista Home Premium (which I’m running) there are not Offline Files in the Network and Internet group of Control Panel.

  3. My solution
    For me the problem was resolved by setting two services to run Manually, insted of Automatic (Delayed):
    * Windows Mobile-based device connectivity
    * Windows Mobile-2003-based device connectivity
    In the first place, Sync Center started to appear at startup after I installed Windows Mobile Device Center and set it to syncronize with my Windows Mobile phone. I think, Sync Center can appear for different reasons. Mine had nothing to do with Offline files.

  4. My Solution
    In the control panel, is the Windows Mobile Device Center. I ended the partnership between my PC and my mobile device that was in there, and the Sync Center went away. I didn’t even need to end the mobsync.exe in the task manager.

  5. Removing Sync Center
    This works for Vista Home:

    Sync Center is run by a process called mobsync.exe, to get rid of it do th following :

    – Open regedit (the registry editor, by typing regedit in the start menu)
    – Goto HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionSyncMgrHandlers key
    – You’ll find this subkey : {08b0b2d5-3fb3-11d3-a4de-00c04f610189}, delete it.

    No more Sync Center icon 😉

    If you wanna be sure of the removal, chek out windows task manager for the above mentionned process, normally you should not find it as it is shut down.

    • Remove Sync on Vista Home
      Thanks for your post but I was unable to find the entry in my registry. I found everything with the exception of the Handlers Key. I also did a registry search for the key 08b0b2d5-3fb3-11d3-a4de-00c04f61018 and it did not turn up.

      Could I accomplish the same goal by just deleting the SynCenter main entry from the registry. This would delete the entry and all sub entries?

      I hope this helps, any more suggestions?

      Thanks

  6. work in Windows 7 too
    Thanks so much, this worked for me. It’s been bugging me since I started using WMDC in Vista, now that I have Win 7 Pro I was trying to get rid of it. This process works in Win 7 too! Once you’re in the control panel just use the search bar to find “Offline Files” and disable as discribed above. Thanks again

  7. Remove Sync on Vista Home
    It couldn’t be any simpler for those of us on Vista Home Basic. Delete all your partnerships and Sync Center will stop runner at start-up. Don’t worry about losing contacts, note files, favs., etc. as they will remain once you establish a “new partnership” with an old phone…

  8. for any version of windows,
    for any version of windows, to disable unwanted startup apps open msconfig.

    start-run-msconfig (if using vista or windows 7 run will not be in the start menu by default, enable it by right click taskbar – properties – start menu tab – customise. In that list will be a check box to display run)

    goto startup and de-select any you do not require, msconfig is a windows configuration utility so is safe to use, but please use with caution as if you play about with settings you dont know/understand it will leave your OS unbootable.

    Regards,

    JT
    mcp – mcdst

  9. Sync Center Disabling
    The Sync Center process sometimes runs even when startup is disabled, so I found just moving the executable is easier. However, Vista doesn’t let you just move the file, even as an administrator, so you have to use my favorite DOS trick.
    Right click on the command prompt and run as administrator.
    Type “takeown /f C:WindowsSystem32mobsync.exe”, and then “cacls C:WindowsSystem32mobsync.exe /p administrator:f”, and finally “move C:windowssystem32mobsync.exe C:windows”.
    What that does is take ownership of the sync center file, which allows you to give the adminstrator full permissions with the cacls command. Note: if using “administrator” doesn’t work, use the administrator account’s name in place of it. Then you move it to the windows directory. If you want to use sync center again, just move it back.

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