How To Add or Remove Exclusions For Microsoft Defender In Windows 11
419How To Add or Remove Exclusions For Microsoft Defender In Windows 11
Windows Defender, integrated into Windows 11, runs in the background and scans your files for malware. To improve performance for tasks like compiling code or running virtual machines, you can add an exclusion and Windows Defender will never scan those files.
Exclusions can also help if you’re running into false positives where Windows Defender marks legitimate files as malware.
Warning: Be careful about what you exclude. Windows Defender won’t scan your excluded files and directories for malware. You wouldn’t want to exclude everything in your Downloads folder, for example!
Issues addressed in this tutorial:
exclusions windows defender windows 11
windows defender exclusions not working
windows security exclusions
Microsoft Defender helps protect your PC against malware (malicious software) like viruses, spyware, and other potentially unwanted software. Malware can infect your PC without your knowledge: it might install itself from an email message, when you connect to the Internet, or when you install certain apps using a USB flash drive, CD, DVD, or other removable media. Some malware can also be programmed to run at unexpected times, not only when it's installed.
This tutorial will apply for computers, laptops, desktops, and tablets running the Windows 11 operating system (Home, Professional, Enterprise, Education) from all supported hardware manufactures, like Dell, HP, Acer, Asus, Toshiba, Lenovo, Huawei and Samsung.