Windows Experience Index Tool - WinSAT.exe

This is a pretty simple issue but I've not been able to find a way to fix it. I am looking for a setting or a method to disable the Experience/Assessment Index tool from running. Windows 7 is as bad as Vista in that it will arbitrarily run programs in the background "at will" without any means to disable them regardless of what the system is presently doing.

Doesn't matter if the CPU is at 100% load performing work, or I am in the middle of an FPS game, but Windows 7 keeps trying to run automatically run WinSAT.exe which promtply wreaks havoc with whatever I am doing. I'm getting past fed up with this, anyone know of a method to disable this permanently?

There's a group policy that'll block any application of your choosing from running. Alternatively you could remove RWX permissions from the file after taking total ownership.

I couldn't find it under the Group Policy, there is apparently no search option. Also the permissions on the file prevent you from doing almost anything, even after you do take ownership of the file and give yourself full permissions. Really odd.

I did discover that I could use the Task Scheduler to disable it permanently, that seems to have also fixed the random display driver crashes I've been trying to fix too. This WinSAT issue is also a known bug with the program, I've been told it isn't supposed to even attempt to run except when the system is idle.

1. Go to Task Scheduler.
2. Browse to Microsoft\Windows\Maintenance.
3. Disable the task named "WinSAT".

EDIT: Sorry Kougar for not noticing that you've already mentioned this.

hey, this thing worked for me too.
thanks a lot guys...

I've tried following these steps, I do not have a Maintenance folder, is there any other way to locate and disable this file?

Cheers. Please email me at

http://www.troublefixers.com/stop-di...windows-vista/

just checked the settings of the WinSAT task definition. Interestingly the settings state things like "start on idle", "wait 1h for idle", "stop if computer ceases to idle" etc. Imho the task scheduler obviously has a pb respecting these settings.