XP-7 had this right with a folder in the start menu for startup items, just drag a file or shortcut there and it runs on startup.
It’s the same in 10. This is actually one thing I find obnoxious in Linux, even as a user for 25+ years… menu “shortcuts” aka .desktop files are harder to make and poorly documented.
It’s hidden by default but it should be there in
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\StartUp
for “all users” and%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup
separately for each user.