I have been searching high and low for a way to "Hide" a system tray icon using the registry. I don't want to disable the program and I don't want to hide the contents of the system tray. What I'd like to be able to do is the equivalent of right clicking in the system tray to bring up the "Taskbar and Start Menu Properties" >clicking "Customize" on the "Taskbar" tab, and changing the "Behavior" of the selected program icon to "Always Hide" . . . using the registry. I'll be pushing out a defragmenter to a few computers and I'd rather the users don't even know it's there - this way they can't play with it and/or turn it off. Thanks, MJ

Have you looked around at PCTools (formally Windows Guide)? http://www.pctools.com/guides/regis...

What's the program? "So won’t you give this man his wings What a shame To have to beg you to see We’re not all the same What a shame" - Shinedown

There is nothing to hack the program through the Windows registry. It is because some programs have a setting within them to allow showing that icon or not showing it. See if the program you are using has that setting. And - by the way - it is never a good idea to defrag hard drives while the computer is in use. Not only that once a savvy users notice the machine is slowing down he/she would try to fix it on their own thereby producing another unwarranted & unnecessary headache for you. i_Xp/VistaUser

The program is IOBit Smart Defrag. I've been running it about a month on my machine and have been very happy with it. It has an Auto Degrag feature that defrags the computer when it is idle in addition to being able to schedule it. I analyzed my disks using Raxco Perfect Disk after running Smart Defrag and it reported that everything was in good shape. Hell, during the initial defrag (manual) I continued to work and didn't even know it was running. Very nice! So Smart Defrag should do the job until we get the budget for RPD on all of the machines. Perhaps my understanding of the registry is to blame here. I assume that when a user elects to hide a system tray icon all the time (as I described in the initial post) that a switch is flipped in the registry telling Windows to make sure that this icon stays hidden behind the little circle with the arrow in it that slides out to reveal hidden icons down by the clock. I presume that Microsoft added the ability to hide icons in the system tray in the event that a software developer doesn't build the ability to disable the system tray icon into their program. SO . . . unless I totally don't understand the registry . . . my logic is that since Microsoft's control of the system tray icons is what I'm looking to explore, and every setting and adjustment that can be made in Windows has a corresponding key in the registry than I should be able to find the answer in the registry . . . well someone should - I couldn't. That's why I posted here. Anyone know? BTW - I'm not opposed to 3rd party apps, just trying to avoid them. They too would then need to be remotely deployed and configured vs. using a single reg hack in a batch file.

OK I get it. I presume that Microsoft added the ability to hide icons in the system tray in the event that a software developer doesn't build the ability to disable the system tray icon into their program. To my knowledge, MS has not added anything above what we already have - the ability to hide inactive icons. It also make no sense for M$ to have to "apologeticize" for the third-party software developers shortcomings and cover up for them whatever is missing. Incidentally you are not the first one - nor will you be the last one - to ask about how you can "stealthier" active icons in the systray. The truth is you cannot do it through Windows itself. i_Xp/VistaUser