

- #IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE HOW TO#
- #IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE INSTALL#
- #IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE UPDATE#
- #IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE FULL#
- #IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE SOFTWARE#
Note The MSRT focuses on the detection and removal of malicious software such as viruses, worms, and Trojan horses only.
#IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE HOW TO#
However, an antivirus product can perform this task.įor more information about how to protect your computer, go to the Microsoft Safety & Security Center website. The tool cannot remove malicious software that is not running. Active malicious software is malicious software that is currently running on the computer. The tool focuses on the detection and removal of active malicious software. Specific prevalent malicious software is a small subset of all the malicious software that exists today. The tool removes only specific prevalent malicious software. It is significantly more desirable to block malicious software from running on a computer than to remove it after infection. Antivirus products block malicious software from running on a computer. The tool removes malicious software from an already-infected computer.

The MSRT differs from an antivirus product in three important ways:
#IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE INSTALL#
Therefore, we strongly recommend that you install and use an up-to-date antivirus product. It is strictly a post-infection removal tool. The MSRT does not replace an antivirus product. It also includes information for the administrators and advanced users, including information about supported command-line switches. This article contains information about how the tool differs from an antivirus or antimalware product, how you can download and run the tool, what happens when the tool finds malware, and tool release information. For comprehensive malware detection and removal, consider using Windows Defender Offline or Microsoft Safety Scanner. Use this tool to find and remove specific prevalent threats and reverse the changes they have made (see covered malware families).
#IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE UPDATE#
Microsoft releases the MSRT on a monthly cadence as part of Windows Update or as a standalone tool. This tool helps remove malicious and potentially unwanted software that may have disabled your existing antimalware software or that may prevent you from downloading or installing additional updates or software.įor more information about how to protect your computer from botnets and other forms of malware that can prevent you from downloading or installing updates or other software, see Microsoft Virus Protection and Windows Security Support.The Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT) helps remove malicious software from computers that are running any of the following operating systems: The Microsoft Safety Scanner is a free security tool that provides on-demand scanning. Please inform your Support agent about which version of Windows you are using and reference this Microsoft Knowledge Base article to the agent. To try this method, contact Microsoft Support to get live assisted support. Method 2: Contact Microsoft SupportĪ Microsoft Support agent may be able to download Microsoft Safety Scanner to your computer remotely. To rerun a scan that uses the latest antimalware definitions, download and run the Microsoft Safety Scanner again. Note The Microsoft Safety Scanner expires after 10 days.
#IS MICROSOFT SAFETY SCANNER SAFE TO USE FULL#
Update your existing security software, and then run a full scan. If the tool finds any infections, it will identify the malware that it has found and then remove that malware from your computer.Īfter the tool has finished running, you must restart computer. Select the kind of scan you want to run and the folders that you want to scan, and then click Next. If you agree, select the check box next to Accept all terms of the preceding license agreement, click Next, and then follow the onscreen instructions through the next few steps. If you are prompted to run the file as an administrator, click Yes. To do this, insert the USB flash drive or CD into the infected computer, and then double-click the downloaded file on the removable media. On an uninfected computer, browse to the Microsoft Safety Scanner download page, and then click Download Now.Ĭlick Save as, and then save the file to a USB flash drive or a blank CD.Īfter the file download is finished, run the file on the infected computer. Save the Microsoft Safety Scanner to removable media on an uninfected computer, and then run the tool on the infected computer. Method 1: Run the Microsoft Safety Scanner from removable media

If a malware infection is preventing you from downloading the Microsoft Safety Scanner to your computer, use one of the following methods to download and run the tool. You cannot download the Microsoft Safety Scanner to your computer because your computer is infected by malware.
