I don’t see where the Windows 10 app starts with Windows (I don’t even see an option for this). So do I need to start the app manually inorder to get notified that someone is at my door or is it somehow running in the background?
Hello @steve19 ,
Yes . . . and No, is the answer to your question, “So do I need to start the app manually in order to get notified that someone is at my door or is it somehow running in the background?”
Yes, with the Ring App installed “as is” normally, then you do currently need to manually start the Windows 10 Ring App (scroll through your Menu of App programs and click/select it), then log in the initial time, and then it will run and remain in the background. This app will not run in the background until the Ring App is opened. Subsequent “logging in” should not be needed again as long as you do not “Sign Out” from this App for at least about 30 days. Once opened, it will provide Notifications & Alert Tone sounds. But if you reboot your PC, then you will have to manually open the Windows 10 RIng App again.
The Windows 10 Ring App is designed for your Ring camera devices and Ring Chimes (not for Ring Alarm systems or other Ring devices). Once the App is opened and you receive a Notification/Alert a camera is triggered, if you are quick enough, you will briefly see the Windows 10 text Notification also on the lower-right-corner of your PC screen for about 5 seconds, and if you click on this text box, it will immediately launch the display of the Live Video too. If you don’t click the box before the Window text disappears, then all you have to do is click the “bell-shaped” Ring Icon and open the camera view.
You are correct, you do not see an option to include the Ring Windows 10 App in the “Start-up.” With Windows 10 there are certain app & programs that can be launched automatically when the system starts up (the initial boot-up). These are called “Start-Up” or “Desktop” Apps to be added to the Windows 10 start up sequence folder, and have the available option so they can be included in the boot start up. Some App Programs cannot be added to the start up in the normal way, as you discovered with the WIndows PC Ring App.
But there is a way around this if you DO want the Ring PC App to Start-up automatically when you turn on your computer! I have my Windows 10 laptop configured this way. 
- Step One: Create a Windows 10 Short-cut to the Ring App. Windows 10 always allows a “Shortcut” link to be added to the Start-Up. You already have the Windows Ring App installed. There are several ways to create a short-cut, but the easiest is:
- Select (Left-click) the “Start” Icon (lower-left-corner “Window” Icon) on your screen.
- Scroll to the Ring App on the Menu.
- Press & Hold Left-click while your cursor in on Ring App, and continue holding as you drag your cursor to an open blank area on your Desktop.
- Drop (release the Left-click) this Ring Icon Shortcut onto your Desktop. You may notice the word “link” as you drag (create) this shortcut. Now you should have a “Ring Shortcut” link there on your desktop.
**- Step Two: ** Open your File Explorer to put your Shortcut in the Start-up folder.
- Left-click on the File Explorer icon located in the taskbar. Alternatively, you can open File Explorer by clicking on the Start button and then clicking on File Explorer. Another way is to press Win + E (Win is the Window Pane Icon key on your keyboard + the key E).
- Type _ shell:startup _in the File Explorer address bar. Then it should change automatically to: _ C:\Users\Your User name\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup _
- From your Desktop, now grab (left-click & hold) the Ring Shortcut (that you created in Step One), and drag it to the right pane area of the File Explorer and drop it (release the left-click). Now the Ring Shortcut should have moved off your desktop and be listed in this pane area.
- Close File Explorer.
Now when you turn the computer on and let it boot up, WIndows 10 will activate the Ring Shortcut, which will then start the Ring App program automatically! So this solves your issue if you want the Windows 10 Ring App to start during boot-up, even though the RIng App is not a “Start-Up” App that can be added to the Windows 10 start up sequence folder in the normal manner.
Now your PC Ring App will be running in the background every time you boot-up. And you will get Notifications & Alert-Tone Sounds on your PC (according to the settings you selected in this Windows 10 Ring App). If your Ring App is already on the Dashboard page of the App, I recommend you click on your displayed camera to get to your camera’s Device page and stay on this Device page instead of the Dashboard page. This will eliminate an extra mouse-click later when you get a Ring Notification/Sound, if you miss the brief Windows 10 text Notification in the lower-right-corner.
If you desire to talk/interact with the person at your door, you can select the Green “Pickup-Telephone” Icon (lower-left-corner) to talk & listen. Notice now the extra button “Mic-Mute” icon appears next to the “Listen-Mute” Icon (lower-right-corner). Then ‘hang-up’ with the Red “Hangup Telephone” Icon when finished.
I hope you find this information useful and a bit helpful. If it is helpful, I always appreciate when people click to give me a Kudo “Thumbs Up”.
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Is there a way to minimize the app to the system tray in bottom right instead of taskbar? Also a way to make the app start minimized?