Simple Python Scripting: Background Task (Adobe) Killer
- dashamakarishcheva
- Nov 30, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 7, 2025
AdobeKiller.exe Download:
Disabling it at startup doesn't exactly disable Adobe from starting up in the background. Even if it's disabled or not activated with the opening of the software Adobe tasks pop up in the Task Manager. Issues with lag, load, or crashing are usually resolved with killing Adobe background tasks - issues that shouldn't exist.
To my classmates I proposed a tool/script that the user can just run from my desktop that would kill Adobe from running in the background automatically without having to dive into the control panel. (Of course, on a personal level, I'll be able to adjust this tool to automatically kill other processes that cause similar or delinquent issues.)
Adobe Killer: Research and Implementation
I easily found the code that I needed to kill a task using the command prompt. It would work on removing simple running software such as Notepad, but when I tried running it on Adobe I would get the notice: Access is denied.
After experimenting, troubleshooting, and Googling why nothing was working, I found my answer on Smart Tech Ways. I had to open the command prompt (or Powershell) as an administrator!
New Issue: If I want to kill processes, I need to do it as an administrator. I want to make killing the process as easy and simple for the user as possible, but opening an administrator window is a task that required manual user behavior.
After researching and looking for answers, I found a lead in how to run as administrator in a more automatic method on Digital Citizen.
The code required me to switch into an administrator account. As this is my computer I switched into my account and signed in in the Command Prompt and Powershell windows, and yet I still could not shut down tasks without manually opening an administrator window. After playing around and trying to open some file I came across a new line of feedback: “The requested operation requires elevation.”
My question became whether I needed for this to be run in the Administrator Command Prompt or if my personal account required some extra elevation. This made me worried about making this easy to run for the user.
And once again I return to Google. One miraculous search and to my rescue comes the king of code:
Stack Overflow
Plugging in the code that I created into what was provided was a SUCCESS! The .bat file containing the code in this discussion asks for permission from the PC to run the commands as an administrator. The user grants permission and the .bat file runs and closes itself out. It’s perfect.
This was a perfect starter project because it taught me some of the nuances of running scripts and gave me a base template for future launch-and-go tools.
Post-note: The Adobe Killer is a tool designed for my peers, but for personal use I wanted to add lines that kill Autodesk as well. Autodesk programmer(s) seem to have the maliciously brilliant vision to have put up an auto-revive defense that goes beyond getting forcibly killed by the command prompt. My personal goal is to defeat Autodesk next.
This is war.
Adobe Killer: Packaging the Product
So I created the .bat script that executes the task that I want from it. The next step is to be able to deploy this code in a easy-to-run manner for the user.
I got a .bat to .exe converter. Executable files are more familiar to the average user than the average .bat script. My main goal was, also, for whatever file the user ran to have the AdobeKiller.exe icon. This way they could easily identify the purpose of the code and find it more trustworthy than having a cold and empty suspicious icon. This was a strangely difficult task to accomplish.
When researching I identified that the most convenient method to run a .exe of .bat file with a custom icon was to create a shortcut with the set icon.
I wanted for when the user to unzip the file for the icon to be visible immediately. However, I learned that relative paths in Windows for shortcut icons are essentially impossible to input into the Properties editor. It is possible to make the shortcut run the file relatively, though.
