# Control files

The startup behavior of Notepad++ can be adjusted with a few (0 sized) control files. Their absence or presence will control how Notepad++ acts:

doLocalConf.xml
  If present, Notepad++ will use the installation directory for all configurations. If absent, %APPDATA% is used instead.
asNotepad.xml
  If present, Notepad++ will act as Windows Notepad, meaning it will launch in multiple instances, hides the tab bar and will not load the previous session.
allowAppDataPlugin.xml
  This empty file is present only if you allow plugins to be installed in %APPDATA%\Notepad++. The Plugin Manager has to do this on Windows Vista and up depending on UAC settings.