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Process Explorer Display Options
Learn how to configure Process Explorer display and behavior settings, including visibility, fonts, process scope, monitoring, and Task Manager integration.
Process Explorer is a Windows process-inspection and system-monitoring utility. Its display options control how the application behaves and how its process list is presented. The relevant commands are primarily found in the Options and View menus.
Where Process Explorer display options are configured
The Options menu contains application behavior settings. These settings affect how the Process Explorer window starts, minimizes, exits, or allows additional instances.
The View menu contains presentation and viewing settings. These settings affect the process list, scrolling, visibility scope, fonts, and related monitoring views.
| Menu area | Typical purpose | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Options | Application behavior and integration | Always On Top, Hide When Minimized, Allow Only One Instance, Task Manager replacement |
| View | Process-list presentation and monitoring | Font, Scroll to New Processes, Show Processes From All Users, System Information |
Menu names and command placement can vary slightly between releases, so use the command label as the guide. These settings affect the Process Explorer interface and process-list presentation; they do not change the processes themselves.
Process Explorer display options and effects
| Option | Menu location | What changes | Best use case | Important side effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Always On Top | Options | Keeps the Process Explorer window above other desktop windows | Monitoring a process while working in another application | The window can obstruct other work until the setting is disabled |
| Hide When Minimized | Options | Moves the minimized application to the notification area and shows a compact CPU activity graph | Keeping a lightweight monitor available without using taskbar space | The standard Close button minimizes instead of exiting |
| Allow Only One Instance | Options | Prevents multiple Process Explorer instances or windows | Maintaining one authoritative process view | A later launch uses the existing instance rather than opening another one |
| Font | Available font setting, commonly under the viewing commands | Changes the text appearance and readability of the interface or process list | Improving readability on high-resolution displays or for accessibility | Larger text shows fewer process rows at once |
| Scroll to New Processes | View | Automatically moves the process list to reveal newly started processes | Watching for unexpected or short-lived program launches | The list may jump away from the area being inspected manually |
| Show Processes From All Users | View | Expands the list beyond processes owned by the current account | Investigating services, system processes, remote sessions, or another user's workload | Some processes still require suitable access rights or elevation |
Always On Top
Always On Top is a window state that keeps Process Explorer above other desktop windows. Enable it from the Options menu when you need to watch CPU use, process creation, or a changing process property while operating another application.
For example, you can keep Process Explorer visible while reproducing a problem in a browser or business application. The process list remains available without repeatedly switching windows.
If Process Explorer covers buttons, dialogs, or documents unexpectedly, check the Options menu for a check mark beside Always On Top and turn it off. The setting is easy to overlook because the window itself may look otherwise normal.
Hide When Minimized
Hide When Minimized removes Process Explorer from the taskbar when you minimize it and places its indicator in the Windows notification area, also called the system tray. The notification-area indicator can include a compact CPU usage graph, which is a visual summary of current processor activity.
This is useful when you want Process Explorer available as a lightweight monitor without reserving taskbar space. The graph can provide a quick indication that CPU activity is increasing even while the main window is hidden.
Minimize, restore, and exit behavior
| Action | Hide When Minimized disabled | Hide When Minimized enabled |
|---|---|---|
| Minimize | The window is minimized normally and remains represented on the taskbar | The window is hidden from the taskbar and appears in the notification area |
| Click the standard Close button | Process Explorer exits normally | Process Explorer minimizes to the notification area rather than exiting |
| Restore the application | Select the Process Explorer taskbar button | Select or double-click its notification-area indicator |
| Exit the application | Use the normal close or exit command | Restore it if necessary, then use the Process Explorer exit command from its window or notification-area menu |
If clicking the Close button appears to do nothing, look in the notification area. Hide When Minimized is likely enabled. Restore the application and use its exit command for a complete shutdown, or disable the option if you prefer normal close behavior.
Allow Only One Instance
Allow Only One Instance prevents simultaneous Process Explorer windows or program instances. This is useful when a support technician or administrator wants one authoritative monitoring view instead of several windows showing different refresh positions or settings.
When the option is enabled and you launch Process Explorer again, another independent window is not created. The existing instance is used instead. If multiple independent views are required, disable the option from the Options menu.
Choosing a font
The font setting changes how interface text and process-list entries are rendered. A readable font can make process names, user names, paths, and numeric columns easier to distinguish, especially on a high-resolution display.
- Choose a larger or clearer font when accessibility or visual comfort is the priority.
- Choose a compact font when you need to fit many process rows on screen.
- Check column alignment after changing the font, because wider characters can make horizontal scrolling more likely.
- Balance text size against the amount of process information visible at one time.
Changing the font improves presentation; it does not change process names, ownership, permissions, or process behavior.
Scroll to New Processes
Scroll to New Processes automatically moves the process list to reveal processes as they start. It is valuable during live monitoring, such as watching for an unexpected launcher, helper process, or short-lived child process.
The tradeoff is that automatic movement can interrupt an investigation. If you have selected a process tree branch or are comparing rows in a particular area, a newly created process may cause the view to jump elsewhere.
Enable it while watching for launches. Disable it when you need a stable manual position in the process tree.
Show Processes From All Users
A user account is the Windows identity under which a process runs. With the normal current-user view, Process Explorer primarily shows processes owned by the account running the utility. Show Processes From All Users expands the process list to include processes belonging to other accounts on the computer.
This setting is important when investigating Windows services, system processes, remote sessions, or another signed-in user's applications. For example, a service causing high CPU use may not be owned by your interactive account and can be missed in a restricted view.
| Configuration | Processes typically shown | Permission considerations | Typical investigation use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current-user processes only | Processes owned by the current Windows account | Usually sufficient for that user's applications; other processes may be absent | Checking a user's own programs and session |
| Processes from all users | Processes owned by the current account, services, system accounts, and other signed-in users where visible | Some entries or details may still require additional access | Investigating services, shared computers, remote sessions, and other users' workloads |
| System and protected processes with elevated access | Additional system or protected processes and details, subject to Windows protections | Elevation, meaning administrative permissions, may be required; elevation does not bypass every protection | Diagnosing system-wide problems and advanced process issues |
Viewing another user's processes can expose application names, command-line details, paths, and activity clues. Use the setting only when authorized, especially on shared or managed computers. Access rights and elevation can affect both whether a process appears and which details can be inspected.
System Information window
The System Information window is a related Process Explorer monitoring view. Instead of focusing on one row or process tree branch, it provides system-level performance information that complements the per-process list.
Open the System Information command from the appropriate Process Explorer viewing or monitoring menu when you need to answer a system-wide question: whether total CPU activity is high, whether memory pressure is present, or whether activity changes across the whole computer.
- Use the process list to identify which process is responsible for an observed resource change.
- Use System Information to determine whether the change affects the computer as a whole.
- Use both views together when correlating a system-wide performance spike with individual processes.
Replace Task Manager with Process Explorer
The Task Manager replacement option configures Process Explorer to handle requests that would normally launch Windows Task Manager. After it is enabled, a Task Manager shortcut or launch request opens Process Explorer instead.
This can be appropriate for users and organizations that prefer Process Explorer's richer process tree, detailed inspection, and monitoring views as their standard diagnostic interface. It is especially useful when support procedures consistently rely on Process Explorer.
Replacement changes the user's launch experience; it does not remove Windows Task Manager. To restore normal Task Manager behavior, open Process Explorer's built-in configuration option and disable the Task Manager replacement setting. After it is disabled, Task Manager launch requests return to Windows Task Manager.
Practical configurations
Monitor an application during daily work
- Enable Always On Top from the Options menu.
- Optionally open the System Information window for system-wide performance context.
- Operate the application while watching the relevant process or performance indicators.
- Disable Always On Top when the monitoring session ends if the window obstructs other work.
Keep a lightweight CPU monitor available
- Enable Hide When Minimized.
- Minimize Process Explorer.
- Use the notification-area CPU usage graph for a quick activity check.
- Restore the main window from the notification area when detailed inspection is needed.
Watch for unexpected program launches
- Enable Scroll to New Processes.
- Enable Show Processes From All Users when you are authorized and need broader visibility.
- Watch for newly created processes and inspect their parent-child relationship in the process tree.
- Turn off automatic scrolling after the live-monitoring phase so the list remains stable.
Investigate a service or another user's workload
- Enable Show Processes From All Users.
- Run Process Explorer with suitable permissions when additional access is required.
- Look for the service, system account, or other user's process in the expanded list.
- Respect organizational authorization and the privacy of other users.
Use Process Explorer as the default diagnostic tool
- Enable the built-in option to replace Windows Task Manager.
- Confirm that a normal Task Manager launch request opens Process Explorer.
- Disable the same option later if Task Manager must be restored.
Troubleshooting display and behavior settings
| Symptom | Likely cause | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| Clicking the Close button does not exit Process Explorer | Hide When Minimized is enabled | Restore Process Explorer from the notification area and use its exit command, or disable the minimize-to-notification-area behavior |
| An expected process is absent | The view is limited to the current user, or permissions are insufficient | Enable Show Processes From All Users and, when appropriate, run with the permissions needed to inspect additional processes |
| The process list keeps jumping while a process is being examined | Scroll to New Processes is enabled | Disable automatic scrolling when a stable manual position is needed |
| Process Explorer covers other applications | Always On Top is enabled | Turn off Always On Top from the Options menu |
| Launching Process Explorer does not create another window | Allow Only One Instance is enabled | Use the existing instance or disable the single-instance restriction |
| A Task Manager shortcut opens Process Explorer | Process Explorer is configured as the Task Manager replacement | Disable the replacement setting to restore normal Task Manager launch behavior |
Summary
Use the Options menu to control Process Explorer's window behavior, instance policy, and Task Manager integration. Use the View menu to control process-list presentation, automatic scrolling, process visibility, fonts, and system monitoring views. For reliable diagnosis, match the setting to the task: use All Users and suitable elevation for system-wide investigations, automatic scrolling for launch monitoring, and a stable manual view for detailed process-tree inspection.
For related study, see Process Explorer display options.