Start Application Before Windows Shell Starts Up?

Question

I have a C# WPF application that I'd like to startup/display before the Windows explorer shell comes up. I basically want my application to be the first thing to load after login.

Answer 1

Winlogon is the program that shows you the login credential dialog, it is responsible for logging you in, and eventually starts the shell. You can configure many aspect of it from the registry. Specifically, you can tell it to spawn a different program as a shell. You do it at:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\SOFTWARE\\Microsoft\\Windows NT\\CurrentVersion\\Winlogon Shell (REG_SZ)

Just change the value to whatever program you want to start, either a full path or a partial path. You can also change it per user in a equivalent HKCU hive.

[side note: Your tags are misleading. Your question has nothing to do with c# or WPF]