[Android] Make your device boot faster by disabling startup items with BootManager

Like Windows, or any other OS Android launches apps and services during boot. A lot of them are necessary for system tasks, but others belong to third party offerings. If you have a lot of apps on your device this can even slow down boot times. BootManager is an Android application that allows you to manage startup items and services on your device to improve the overall boot time of the OS.

What is it and what does it do

Main Functionality

BootManager is an Android application that allows you to manage various startup items on your device. It is an Xposed Framework module, which means you need to install the former tool in order to use it. The Xposed Framework requires a rooted device, so BootManager does by proxy. Aside from the additional complex steps required to install the framework, BootManager is suitable for casual use.

Pros

Disable various startup items/app to improve boot times
Also improves performance of the device immediately after startup
Extremely easy to use, and disabling items is quick and painless

Cons

Has a lot of requirements that need to be met
- Android 4.0.3 or higher
- Must have Xposed Framework installed, and must enable BootManager in the modules menu (reboot after)
- Must have a rooted device (for the framework)

Discussion

In order to use this application on your Android device you first need to install the Xposed Framework, as BootManager is only a module. You must also activate the related module in the Xposed Framework main menu and reboot the device before you can use it. If you do not have the framework installed you can visit this XDA Developers thread for more information. It’s also worth noting that you need a rooted device with Superuser access to properly install the framework.

Once everything is all installed and setup, the rest is pretty cut and dry. You load the BootManager module as you would any other app, by clicking on the icon in the launcher tray.

As soon as it opens it will populate a list with all the active startup items. To be perfectly honest, I was surprised with how many apps are set to launch during boot. That being said, most of them require a background service in order to work properly and deliver notifications. If you’re new to this kind of thing, just keep in mind that disabling startup items may have a negative effect on how some apps work. Most of the time though starting the app manually will take care of any issues.

To disable an item, all you have to do is tap on it in the list. It will be completely highlighted in red, indicating that it’s been disabled. The settings are automatically saved and applied, but obviously the changes won’t go into effect until the device is rebooted.

Quite frankly, that’s it- that’s all it takes. You just load the app, disable the items you don’t want and then you’re on your way. It’s simple, remarkably easy to use and most definitely efficient.

Through testing, I did not notice any kind of a difference in startup and boot times. However, I did certainly notice that my device was much more responsive. To provide specifics, generally when I start my device and unlock the screen I encounter a bit of lag, sometimes there’s even a moment or two where the device is completely unresponsive. With unnecessary items disabled I no longer experienced the lag. Now, I’m not saying the lag issue is severe because it’s most certainly not. I’m merely pointing out that I did notice a bit of a difference.

Some apps even while disabled will still run on their own. For the most part, BootManager works flawlessly when it comes to disabling items.

Conclusion and download link

BootManager is a useful Android application that allows you to disable various startup items and apps to help increase performance and decrease boot time. You will need to have a rooted device with the Xposed Framework installed in order to use it, because it’s just a module for the framework. However, once everything is all installed and setup it’s very easy to use. Just load the manager, disable any items you don’t want running and off you go. Check it out.