There are two methods you can use to stop a process manually: using the Windows Task Manager or using Command Line Process Utility through the Command Prompt if you know the name of a process to kill. This step-by-step article describes how to use these two methods to terminate specified process.
Warning: Stopping system processes is difficult and risky. If you delete the wrong file, your computer may crash and important data may be lost. Before you start, always be sure to back up your PC important files and set a System Restore point (click Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore, and follow the on-screen instructions) or run Final Uninstaller, a trusted uninstaller software, to automatically terminate unwanted processes.
The Windows Task Manager can be launched using any of the following four methods:
Right-click an empty area of the taskbar and select Task Manager.
Use the key combination: press
++
Use the key combination: press ++
Click on the button, select the Run... option, type "taskmgr" in the blank field and then click on the button.
Finding and Terminating Processes
In the Windows Task Manager, click the Processes tab to see all active tasks. Find the processes by name. To make it easier, click on the Image Name in the column heading to list tasks by name.
Select the process you want to stop and click on the button to terminate it.
Using Command Line Process Utility through a Command Prompt to Terminate a Process
The Command Line Process Utility will function even when the Windows Task Manager is disabled by your Administrator or a parasite. Use the following commands from a command prompt to kill a process.
Open a Command Prompt
There are two conventional ways to start a Command Prompt:
Click on the button, select the Run... option, type "cmd" in the blank field and then click on the button.
Click Start > All Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt
Kill the Unwanted Process
Once you know the name of the process to kill, you can use the following command-line utilities from a command prompt to end unwanted processes:
Using TaskKill
When the Command Prompt window is opened, type the command "taskkill /IM [PROCESS_NAME]" and press to terminate the unwanted process. For example, if you want to kill notepad.exe, you would type taskkill / IM notepad.exe
Processes can be killed immediately by specifying either the name or the PID (Process Identifier). In cases where are multiple processes running with the same name and your desire is to kill a specific process you will need to use the PID. For example, if the desired process has a PID of 824, use this command to kill it: taskkill / PID 824
Using PsKill
You can also use "pskill" (a third party application by Mark Russionovich) to kill the unwanted processes. When the Command Prompt window is opened, type the command "pskill [PROCESS_NAME]" and press to terminate the unwanted process. For example, if you want to kill notepad.exe, you would type pskill notepad.exe
If you computer does not come with a command-line "PsKill.exe", you can get one here.
If you do not know how to perform the above actions, you are not certain, why you have to do some steps, or the above guide is too difficult for you, please feel free to try our Final Uninstaller to automatically terminate processes and completely uninstall software.
