Microsoft Defender Antivirus is a powerful tool that finds and removes malware from your PC. Here's how to use it in Windows 10 or 11 to scan your PC. Important: Before you use Microsoft Defender Offline, make sure to save any open files and close apps and programs. Open your Windows Security settings.

Windows 10. There are different ways to remove apps and programs, so if you can't find the one you're looking for, you can try another location. Note that some apps and programs are built into Windows and can't be uninstalled. You can try to repair a program first, if it's just not running correctly. Windows 11 Windows 10.

Each release of the tool helps detect and remove current, prevalent malicious software. This malicious software includes viruses, worms, and Trojan horses. Microsoft uses several metrics to determine the prevalence of a malicious software family and the damage that can be associated with it.

If some Windows functions aren't working or Windows crashes, use the System File Checker to scan Windows and restore your files. Though the steps below might look complicated at first glance, just follow them in order, step-by-step, and we’ll try to get you back on track.

OneDrive. Troubleshoot. Other issues. Turn off, disable, or uninstall OneDrive. If you just don't want to use OneDrive, the easiest solution is to unlink it - see the steps below. Tips: If you want to stop OneDrive for a while, or not use all of it, here are some other solutions:

In the search box on the taskbar, type disk cleanup, and select Disk Cleanup from the list of results. Select the drive you want to clean up, and then select OK. Under Files to delete, select the file types to get rid of. To get a description of the file type, select it. Select OK.

From the Overview page, select Office apps and on that page, find the Microsoft 365 product you want to install and select Install. To install Microsoft 365 in a different language, or to install the 64-bit version, use the dropdown to find more options. Choose the language and bit version you want, and then select Install.

Windows 11 Windows 10. If your system is asking you for your BitLocker recovery key, the following information may help you locate your recovery key and understand why you're being asked to provide it. Important: Microsoft support is unable to provide, or recreate, a lost BitLocker recovery key. Where can I find my BitLocker recovery key?

How to open PC Health Check. In Windows, use Search on the taskbar to search for “PC Health Check,” then select it from the list of results. If a PC Health Check update is available, you can quickly install it for the latest version.

Select Device details. Select Manage in Windows Security. Select Quick scan. Tips: If you want a deeper scan, instead of selecting Quick scan in step 3, select Scan options and choose the type of scan you want. For the most complete scan, run Microsoft Defender Offline. For more about that see Help protect my PC with Microsoft Defender Offline.