What is the Run Command History?
Many items in Windows use a MRU (Most Recently Used) List to keep lists of filenames, commands, etc. The Run command in the Start Menu keeps a list of the last several commands you entered. If you are like me, you use the run command quite frequently to open the Windows Registry, run a particular program like Notepad, or open a utility like the calculator. However, there are many times that I would like to delete one entry in this list but leave the others. Utilties such as Window Washer or CCleaner have options to clear this Run MRU list each time they are activated, however I want to selectively delete items in the list and keep my most used items handy for later.
Where is the Run MRU (Most Recently Used) List?
The RUNMRU list is stored in the Windows Registry in the following location:HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ RunMRU\It includes each command that you most recently used along with a key called MRUList that keeps the order the commands should appear in the list. See the screenshot below:
By opening the Registry Editor you can go to the registry key and right-click on the command you wish to remove and delete it. Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer and the list will be changed.
By opening the Registry Editor you can go to the registry key and right-click on the command you wish to remove and delete it. Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer and the list will be changed.
Is There a Program to Delete Individual Entries from the RUNMRU List?
Many of my customers would rather not edit the Windows registry to remove these individual entries, so I setup a VBScript that you can download and run to delete individual commands from this list. Follow these instructions to download and use this program to clear unwanted entries from the Run Command history.
1) Click on the following link and download the EditRunMRUList.vbs script to your desktopDownload EditRunMRUList.vbs
2) Double-click on the editrunmrulist.vbs file
3) The program will open and tell you how many entries are cur
rently in the RUNMRU list, then it will ask you if you want to edit the list now, click Yes to continue.
rently in the RUNMRU list, then it will ask you if you want to edit the list now, click Yes to continue.4) The next screen will show you the first command in the list and ask you if you want to delete it. Click on Yes to Delete or No to Keep it.The program will proceed through each command in the list allowing you to keep or delete the command.
5) After cycling through each command, the program will remind you to Restart Your Computer before the change will take effect.
