What is igfxtray.exe and why does it runs on start up?

igfxTray.exe is a software component developed by Intel Corporation for the module Intel Common User Interface. This process is present on your computer as part of Graphics Media Accelerator Driver which is shipped along with NVIDIA graphics cards and Windows drivers for Intel. It displays an icon in your taskbar notification tray through which any user can access Intel Graphics configuration.

igfxTray stands for Intel Graphics System Tray Helper Icon

There are many users who reported that a dialogue box of igfxTray always spawned when starting the system while also prompts a security warning. It doesn’t matter whether you select Run or Cancel; the warning spawns again when you start your computer next time. Although this application is a legitimate process of Intel® Common User Interface, it conflicts with your system and can prove to be a real nuisance.

How to check if igfxTray is authentic?

There are several malware and virus applications who disguise themselves under the name and poke around your computer causing harm. You can easily check whether the process is legit using two checks; it should be in the correct system directory and it should have a verified digital signature.

1. Right-click on the application in the task manager and select “Properties”.
2. Under the “General” tab, check if the location of the executable is “C:\Windows\System32”. The location is one of the main things which give away a fake program.

3. After verifying the location select the tab “Digital Signatures”. Here all the signatures will be present against whom your application is signed. You can see the details of the signature by clicking “Details” after select one.

If the application passed both checks, it means it is a legitimate process and is causing no harm to your computer.

Method 1: Excluding the Process using Windows Defender

If you are getting a warning prompt whenever you start your computer, you can exclude igfxTray.exe using the Exclusion window present in Windows Defender. This will automatically put the process on the safe list and disregard it whenever it scans your computer.

Note: You should only perform this operating if you are 100% sure that the process is legit and doesn’t contain any type of malware or antivirus. If you exclude a harmful process, you are indirectly giving it full access to your computer.

1. Press Windows + S, type “Windows Defender Settings” in the dialogue box and open the application which returns on the result.
2. Click on “Open Windows Defender Security Center” present underneath the heading.

3. Click on the “gears” icon present at the bottom-left side of the screen and then press “Virus and threat protection settings”.
4. Under the heading of “Exclusions”, click Add or remove exclusions.

5. Before adding the exclusion, make sure that the process is indeed present in “C:\Windows\System32\igfxTray.exe”.

6. Click on “Add an exclusion” and select “Process”.

7. There are several ways through which you can exclude a process. You can use the full path name, just the name of the process or put a star in the extension space of the program. After adding the extension, restart your computer and check if the problem at hand got solved.

Method 2: Using System Configuration

If the problem doesn’t solve using the first method, you should check if you can disable the service using system configuration. System configuration contains a tab “Startup” which contains all the processes which run at the startup.

1. Press Windows + R, type “msconfig” in the dialogue box and press Enter.
2. Select the startup tab and uncheck “IgfxTray” present underneath IntelCorp or Intel. There are a lot of entries under Intel but if you hold your mouse over each one, you will find the process easily. You can also check the command to find the keyword of the process.

Method 3: Using Registry Editor

If all the above methods fail and the dialogue box still appears every now and then, you can try deleting the registry entry. We will delete the entry from Run which will delete the entry from running; hence forcing it not to pop anymore.

Note: Do note that register editor is a very powerful tool. Deleting incorrect keys may render your computer unusable and induce further problems in your computer.

1. Press Windows + R, type “regedit” in the dialogue box and press Enter. Once in the registry editor, navigate to the following file path:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

2. Now delete the entry “C:\WINDOWS\system32\igfxpers.exe”. By deleting by Run you will ensure that process doesn’t start by itself when your computer is starting.

3. Restart your computer and check if the problem at hand got solved. You may need administrator privileges to perform this solution.

Note: If both the solutions don’t solve the problem, you should consider reinstalling the correct drivers. Search for your Intel HD/UHD graphic drivers and see which driver is suitable for your computer. After determining the driver, head over to device manager and update accordingly. You can also install the default drivers by uninstalling the driver and restarting the computer. The stock drivers get reinstalling automatically.