Why is edge running in the background after copilot installation?

Hello, Panlo

Welcome to Microsoft Community.

The Windows Copilot sidebar is actually an Edge interface, which means the Edge web browser needs to be running behind the scenes whenever you open the Windows Copilot. This could be why you’re seeing Edge running in the background even after disabling Copilot from the taskbar.

If you’ve already disabled the “Continue running background extensions and apps when Microsoft Edge is closed” setting and Edge is still running in the background, you might want to check other settings that could affect this. For instance, there are settings like “Start-up boost” and “Continue running background apps when Microsoft Edge is closed” that you could try turning off one by one to see if the behavior persists. Or you can try holding down Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open the Task Manager, On the startup apps tab try disabling the Microsoft Edge startup item, and restart the computer to see if it runs in the background.

If none of these solutions work, This may be a recent update issue, and some users have also encountered this issue.

Although we cannot reproduce this issue,  other community members have been reporting this issue, thus I have submitted this issue for you through internal channels. In addition, you can also submit your problem through the Feedback Hub (if convenient, please provide as much detail as possible, including pictures, repro videos, etc.). 

Hi Chandy and thank you for answering.

And yes, all the other settings are disabled, so I guess all I can do is wait to see if another update fixes the problem even though I'm not using Copilot in this computer.

In any case, thank you for submitting the issue and I'll just hope for the best.

I see the same issue. With Build 22621.2361.

Any update on that? It's very annoying. Edge is running in background using CPU, SSD, network, ruining S0 sleep mode (as if it wasn't broken already...). Latest stable here. Should I look for another browser? And delete Edge by force to be sure? (Yes it's possible). Fix it, please.

The same issue occurs on my end. This must be fixed as soon as possible. I don't use Copilot either in Windows 11 OS or Microsoft Edge. After the MS Edge "Copilot" update, this bug broke the Edge "Continue running background extensions and apps when Microsoft Edge is closed" setting.

Hello everyone,

The problem has been fixed after applying the optional Windows 11 update with KB5031455, which was released on October 26, 2023. I recommend that you all update your Windows 11 to fix this problem.

No. KB5031455 makes no difference. Checked on two laptops. And I don't even have Copilot avail (EU). Edge keeps running in the background and draining the battery.

Hi, I ran Windows Update with even the optional updates, but Edge is still running in the background after it's been closed for a couple of hours.

Either a previous update broke Edge's options to not run in the background, or something is depending on it to run and keeps it open, but so far all I can do is end the task in task manager and hope it won't open itself again sometime later.

Easy way: Create a new shortcut on the desktop, paste taskkill.exe /F /IM msedge.exe /T , name it. That's it. You can pin it to taskbar if you wish. Now simply click on it to kill all Edge processes running in the background. Shame Microsoft is making us finding workarounds for their bugs.

No. KB5031455 makes no difference for me. I don't have Copilot available (EU). MS Edge keeps running in the background.