powershell keeps popping up

Common causes are a startup item, a scheduled task, or another background process launching powershell.exe.

Try these checks in order:

1. Check Startup apps
   • Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and go to Startup.
   • Disable anything related to Windows PowerShell or other unknown startup entries.
   • Also press Win + R, type shell:startup, and remove shortcuts that launch PowerShell.
2. Check Task Scheduler
   • Open Task Scheduler and review tasks that run at sign-in or startup.
   • Disable tasks that launch powershell.exe.
   • If the issue started after installing software from an untrusted source, pay close attention to tasks that repeatedly start PowerShell.
3. Check for software conflicts
   • Perform a clean boot:
     • Press Win + R, type msconfig, and press Enter.
     • On the Services tab, select Hide all Microsoft services.
     • Click Disable all.
     • Open Startup in Task Manager and disable unnecessary startup items.
     • Restart and test.
   • This helps identify whether a background app is causing the pop-up.
4. If the popup is only the PowerShell update banner
   • Windows PowerShell 5.1 can show an update message at startup.
   • That message cannot be removed.
   • It can be avoided only by starting PowerShell with:

          powershell.exe -nologo
     

5. If PowerShell is crashing or reopening because of startup problems
   • Clear the PowerShell cache folders, then start PowerShell again.
   • Delete contents from the user cache first:
     • $env:LOCALAPPDATA\Microsoft\Windows\Caches
   • If the issue continues, delete contents from the system cache:
     • $env:windir\System32\Config\SystemProfile\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Caches
   • PowerShell analysis cache files that can also be removed:
     • Windows PowerShell: $env:windir\System32\Config\SystemProfile\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\PowerShell
     • Delete only files matching:
       • ModuleAnalysisCache-*
       • StartupProfileData-*
   • Risk: delete only the listed cache contents and file patterns. The cache is recreated automatically, but deleting other files can affect the system.

If the pop-up started after installing unknown software and keeps returning every few minutes, focus first on Startup apps, Task Scheduler, and a clean boot, because those are the most directly supported causes in the available guidance.

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