How to Automate Tasks in Windows 10 to Save Time 1

How to Automate Tasks in Windows 10 to Save Time

In the world of smart technology, we miss out on a lot if we don’t do automation right. Android has the Tasker app for automation, which now gets a new Rules feature; iOS already has a powerful Shortcuts app to automate lots of tasks and more. But these are smartphones, what about PCs? Windows 10 has a similar tool called Task Scheduler which allows you to perform a number of tasks based on time, events and various other conditions. In this article, we provide a detailed guide on how to automate tasks in Windows 10. However, we also shared a basic tutorial on PowerShell in the next section. Now having said that, let’s get started with the article without further delay.

Automation in Windows 10

Before continuing, let me summarize some of the broader points of this article. To automate tasks in Windows 10, There are basically two methods. The first is a native tool called Task Scheduler, which is pretty easy and straightforward. And the next method is automation through PowerShell, which is somewhat complex but also feature-rich. Now, after reviewing the outline of the article, let’s get straight to the point.

1. Automate Tasks in Windows 10 Using Task Scheduler

The best way to learn something is to solve problems. So, here we will to fulfill a fundamental task. For example, let’s say every time we turn on our computer, it opens a browser and then goes to some great website. So all we have to do is automate this routine task so we can save time and lots of clicks. Let’s start.

1. Press the Windows key once and Type “Task Scheduler”. Open the first result and pin it to your taskbar because you will always need it.

2. The UI may seem a little daunting at first, but follow my instructions and you’ll be in the races. Now, Click “Create Task” in the right panel.

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3. After that, give your task a name and Check the “Run with highest privileges” box. It will not ask for UAC or any admin permissions before running the task.

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4. Now Switch to the “Triggers” tab Click above and click the “New” button.

Automate tasks in Windows 10

5. Here, Select “On sign-in” Click the “OK” button from the drop-down menu. You can also delay the task for a few seconds, but let’s leave it for now. As a side note, I always delay my internet related tasks for 30 seconds so that the computer can connect to the WiFi and be ready in time.

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  • Define Action

6. Now switch to the “Actions” tab and click on the “New” button. Here, Select “Start a program” From the drop-down menu, as we will open Google Chrome.

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7. Next, click the “Browse” button and choose Chrome from desktop or any location.

Automate tasks in Windows 10

8. After that, URL of the website in the “Add Arguments” box. For example, you can write beebom.com and click the “OK” button. If you wish, open multiple websites right after, put a space between them and enter another website.

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 beebom.com theverge.com

Automate tasks in Windows 10

  • You can also add your Spotify playlist or anything you want. Just be sure to leave space between websites. Chrome will automatically open these websites as soon as you log in to your computer. Note this, You can write only the domain name or provide the whole. https connection. Everything works!
 beebom.com theverge.com https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX2Ja6eBQeGaS

9. After doing this, switch to the “Conditions” tab and Uncheck both options under the “Power” section. It allows the PC to run the task regardless of battery or charging status.

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10. Finally, go to the “Settings” tab. We don’t need to touch anything here but Make sure “Allow task to run on demand” is checked. Also, review other options to understand the extent of what you can do with Task Scheduler. Now, click the “OK” button.

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11. After turning on your computer, you have successfully created a task to open your favorite websites. You can do find your task in the “Task Scheduler Library” in the left paneI. If the task is not visible, press the “Refresh” button on the action panel on the right.

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12. Additionally, you can: Manually test if the task is working properly by pressing the “Run” button in the right panel. If it’s working fine, restart your computer and you’ll soon have a series of automated tasks. Enjoy!

Automate tasks in Windows 10

So this post was for opening websites in Chrome, but depending on your daily routine there could be several use cases. For example, you can choose to automatically connect to a certain WiFi point, create a task to empty the recycle bin after a certain time, launch Office apps or pretty much anything else you want. Of course there is a lot to learn but for most of the tasks you will follow similar steps mentioned above. The only change has to be made in the “Action” and “Triggers” tab, but other than that, everything else remains similar. I would also recommend messing around with the different settings to properly understand the Task Scheduling.

2. Automate Tasks in Windows 10 Using PowerShell

In the section above, we learned how to automate tasks using Task Scheduler. But there are local Script tool called PowerShell in Windows 10 which is quite advanced and versatile. You can continue to do everything with a few commands. I know many users are afraid of seeing the PowerShell blue screen, but believe me, it’s pretty easy once you get the smell. Let me just say this, this isn’t hardcore programming, so don’t worry.

Other than that, there are some key differences between PowerShell and Task Scheduler. PowerShell is a scripting tool, not an automation tool. still Requires Task Scheduler to automate script. Whereas, Task Scheduler is a complete tool with which you can create scripts and also automate these tasks.

Apart from that, in terms of performance; Task Scheduler is pretty fast because it executes everything in the app. However, its scope is relatively limited as you can’t go deep into other programs and features. Therefore, the Task Scheduler is great if you have a small task at hand. Again, PowerShell is very dynamic and can interact with many programs however it is relatively slow at executing these commands. Basically, on the one hand, you get faster execution, but your scope is limited, and on the other hand, you get all-round support, but slower execution. However, here we will go through the same example as above to check how they both stack up against each other.

  • Get Started with PowerShell Syntax

Let me start with an example. What you see below is a PowerShell command to open multiple websites in Chrome. Here, Start-Process is a command to start a program and chrome.exe is the executable name of the program. After that, websites are given a space under double quotes. Very similar to Task Scheduler, right? Simple.

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Start-Process "chrome.exe" "beebom.com theverge.com"

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Moreover Add your Spotify playlist, favorite subreddits or anything you want.

Start-Process "chrome.exe" "beebom.com theverge.com https://www.reddit.com/r/Android 
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX2Ja6eBQeGaS"

Now that you understand the syntax and what the different arguments of the PowerShell command mean, let’s get started with the steps.

  • PowerShell Scripting Steps

one. Open a Notepad file and paste the following command.

Start-Process "chrome.exe" "beebom.com theverge.com https://www.reddit.com/r/Android 
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX2Ja6eBQeGaS"

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2. You can change the website according to your preference. And if you want to provide a different browser, right-click on the browser icon and open “Properties”. In the destination box, copy the final XXXX.exe shred it and paste it into the Notepad file. This way you can find executable names for other programs as well.

Note: In case it doesn’t work, you can paste the entire address from the target box. Here is an example of the Microsoft Edge browser. You can do this for any program.

Start-Process "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge Beta\Application\msedge.exe" 
"beebom.com theverge.com"

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3. Now go to “File” in Notepad and click “Save As”. Here give your script a name and then Add .ps1 extension at the end. PS1 is the extension of PowerShell scripts. Also, be sure to keep the filename as one word.

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  • Define Action

4. After doing that, open Task Scheduler and Create a new task by following steps 1-5 mentioned in the section above. Once in the “Action” tab, select “Start a program” from the drop-down menu and type powershell.exe In the Program/Script box.

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5. Now, Right click on the PS1 file and open “Properties”. Here you will find the file path in the location section. copy and add \filename.ps1 finally. Here’s how it should look. We will need this address in the next step.

C:\Users\Beebom\Desktop\browser.ps1

Automate tasks in Windows 10

6. Change the address below Paste it in the “Argument” box with your address from the step above. After that, click the “OK” button.

-windowstyle Hidden -file C:\Users\Beebom\Desktop\browser.ps1

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7. Finally, you have finished defining the Action section using the PowerShell script. Now, Follow the same steps from 9 to 12 From the Task Scheduler section. You can go ahead and test the script using the “Run” button. As I explained above, the PowerShell window may prompt a small popup as it is a bit slow at executing the script.

So you can create a simple script in PowerShell and automate it using Task Scheduler. What I’ve shown above is just the tip of the iceberg. You can do so much more and the possibilities are endless. For example, you can add commands to run a separate program, delete old files from specific foldersDisable Windows 10 update and other OS level services, enable maintenance services and more using the same PS1 file. You no longer need to go back to the Task Scheduler to change anything, just make changes to the PS1 file using Notepad and it will run all the changes. Great, isn’t it? In the coming days, we’ll be sharing some great PowerShell scripts to automate tasks in Windows 10, so stay tuned.

Ace PowerShell Scripting and Automating Routine Tasks in Windows 10

This was our detailed guide on how to get started with automation in Windows 10. There are many hidden tools that we can take advantage of and Task Scheduler is one of them. And if you know a few PowerShell tricks, you can create multi-program scripts that will save you valuable time. Anyway, that’s it for us. If you enjoyed this guide and might learn something new, let us know in the comment section below.