https://community.brave.com/u/Chocoholic You’re correct: under Windows, many programs are ‘pre-fetched’ when Windows starts. One aspect of a program being ‘pre-fetched’ may be that program auto-updating itself. A downside of auto-updating for some users with limited internet access: ‘limited’ may include caps on speed, data, or both. That’s a situation I occasionally find myself in, hence, wanting to control how my computer uses available internet service.
Adding: while many programs auto-update, some well-regarded programs give users control over updating. Two examples: Firefox is one, and Vivaldi is another. Vivaldi — it should be noted — is (like Brave) built on Chromium. Auto-updating isn’t baked into Chromium.
You’re also correct: under Windows, editing / disabling Autoruns is — emphatically and perilously — do-it-yourself.
Microsoft offers a utility to inspect and — potentially — edit Autoruns:
Specific to Brave, with the relevant Autoruns disabled, I’ve found Brave continues to operate properly. When I want to update Brave, with Brave closed, I toggle the appropriate Services (using another Microsoft / Windows utility) from ‘Disabled’ to ‘Manual’. I then start Brave, go to the hamburger menu, and select ‘About Brave’. Following a successful update, I edit the relevant Autoruns … and re-boot. Re-booting is imperative: the status of Autoruns is established when Windows starts.
Users are on their own. Editing Autoruns is a very helpful and powerful tool, but used improperly — guaranteed — you’ll brick your computer.