AutoPlay

AutoPlay will no longer start when I insert media. All settings in Control Panel remain the same as they were: I opt for "Ask me every time" for each media type that I use, but the AutoPlay window will not open.

Hi FlyNavy. See if this helps at all.

Go to the Control panel, set your view (top right corner of toolbar) to Small icons. From resulting list select "Autoplay".
In the window that opens check that the "Use Autoplay for all media and devices" box on the top left is ticked.

Autoruns also relies on the Shell Hardware Detection Service to be running and set to Automatic.
So, while in the Control Panel, open Administrative Tools and then Services and check the settings are as stated.

Open up Regedit.exe and navigate to:-
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\cdrom
and in the right hand window make sure the Autorun REG_DWORD value is set to 0x00000001 (1).

Then navigate to:-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
Check for a NoDriveAutoRun entry. This is not a default registry entry so if you find one it is safe to delete. If there is an entry and it is set to 0x00000001 (1) it will disable the Autoruns.
While still in the Explorer key, check that the NoDriveTypeAutoRun REG_DWORD is set to the default 0x00000091 (145), OR, if you have a floppy drive the REG_DWORD is set to the default 0x00000095 (149).
If the NoDriveTypeAutoRun REG_DWORD is set to 0x000000FF (255) then that is definitely your problem. That setting disables AutoRun.

Nero, PowerISO, MagicISO and some other programs like VMWare add another NoDriveTypeAutoRun entry setting under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer with its REG_DWORD value is set to 0x000000FF (255). Change that setting to 0x00000091 (145). Also check for a NoDriveAutoRun entry, delete if found and all will be back to normal after you've restarted.