Glasswire gui/tray icon failing to start on bootup

GlassWire Help
1

Hi,

I’ve performed a fresh install of Windows 10, along with v3.3.664 of Glasswire onto an existing machine.

The firewall is configured in “Ask To Connect” mode.

Whenever I restart the computer, the glasswire icon does not appear in the task tray, and the “click to connect” notifications do not appear.
If I manually run the glasswire exe file, the task tray icon appears and the GUI works fine.
I have “Run on startup” enabled in the general settings and I can see GlassWire listed in the windows Task Manager “Startup” tab as “enabled”.

Any ideas why this might be happening? I don’t get the “Ask To Connect” popus whilst the GUI isn’t running, they appear to default to blocked (which is fine) but it’s non-obvious and causes confusion until I manually start the GUI.

In summary:

  • The service itself seems to be running fine from startup
  • The GUI / task tray require manual execution after startup

Cheers,
Rob

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2

It sounds like GlassWire isn’t starting correctly with Windows. Here’s how you can troubleshoot and fix this issue:

  1. Check GlassWire Startup Settings:
    First, ensure that GlassWire is set to run on startup correctly:

    • Open GlassWire.
    • Go to “Settings” (gear icon) in the top-right corner.
    • Select the “General” tab.
    • Make sure that the “Run on startup” option is enabled.

  2. Verify Windows Startup Settings:
    Confirm that GlassWire is set to run on startup in Windows:

    • Right-click on the Windows Start button and select “Task Manager”.
    • Go to the “Startup” tab.
    • Look for GlassWire in the list. It should be enabled.
    • If it’s not listed, it might not be set to run on startup correctly. In that case, you can manually add it:
      • Press the “Startup” tab in Task Manager.
      • Click on “More details” if you don’t see the Startup tab.
      • Click on “Open Task Manager” at the bottom.
      • In Task Manager, right-click anywhere and choose “Run new task”.
      • Type shell:startup and press Enter. This opens the Startup folder.
      • Copy the GlassWire shortcut from the installation directory (C:\Program Files (x86)\GlassWire) and paste it into the Startup folder.

  3. Check for Windows Updates:
    Ensure Windows is up-to-date. Sometimes, issues with startup programs are resolved with system updates.

  4. Reinstall GlassWire:
    If the issue persists, try reinstalling GlassWire:

    • Uninstall GlassWire from the Control Panel.
    • Restart your computer.
    • Download the latest version of GlassWire from their official website.
    • Install GlassWire again and make sure to enable “Run on startup” during installation.

  5. Run GlassWire Service as Administrator:
    Sometimes, permissions issues can prevent GlassWire from starting correctly. You can try running GlassWire Service as an administrator:

    • Close GlassWire if it’s running.
    • Right-click on the GlassWire shortcut or executable and select “Run as administrator”.
    • Confirm any UAC (User Account Control) prompts.

  6. Check for Conflicting Software:
    It’s possible that other software on your system is conflicting with GlassWire’s startup. Antivirus programs, in particular, can sometimes interfere. Try temporarily disabling any third-party antivirus or firewall software and see if GlassWire starts correctly on boot.

Following these steps should help resolve the issue with GlassWire not starting automatically on bootup. Let me know if you need further assistance!

3

None of those.

However, for future reference if anyone has the same problem: ensure “Normal startup” is selected in the “General” tab of “System Configuration” (msconfig.exe) - for some reason mine has “Selective startup” and “Use original boot configuration” was unchecked.

4

Adding a correction for anyone who gets here from a search-engine:

If you’ve disabled any applications from starting at boot time in Task Manager (on the Startup tab), then “Selective startup” gets chosen in msconfig - that’s just how it works. Switching back just results in it reverting again on next boot.

Ultimately the problem above looks to be more of a Windows startup issue than a glasswire one (I think), other programs sporadically fail to start too.

1 Like