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What is an "autorun.inf" file?

"Autorun" is a feature of the Windows operating system(s) which allows automatically launching an application or displaying a document when a removable media such a CD-ROM, a DVD or an USB flash drive is inserted or mounted. Mostly this feature is used to display a start menu or something similar. The autorun.inf file is special file on the removable media that contains the relevant information for the operating system what file or application to start, which icon to display in the Windows Explorer for the removable media and which title to display for the drive.

This is an example how an autorun.inf can look like:

[autorun]
open=autostart.exe
action=Opens autostart.exe
icon=Icon.ico 
label=Removable Media with Autorun

open

defines the file or application that is executed when the media is mounted, in this case "autostart.exe".

action

describes the action the is performed when the media is mounted. This description appears in the autostart options dialog of Windows.

icon

defines the icon file that is shown for the drive in the Windows Explorer.

label

describes the drive name. In this example: "Removable Media with Autorun".