Computer users have long had a definite opinion and attitude toward Microsoft products, and it is worth noting that this judgment is only is positive.
But despite this ambiguous attitude to the Windows operating system, and to the Office application package, as well as to many other developments of the company, many users continue to use them actively, which cannot be called an erroneous decision.
So, for example, regular anti-virus software of the operating system called “Windows Defender” continues to be in demand. What is the "Defender" for and what functionality does it have? And how to enable and disable it on your computer? On the answers to these and other questions and should stay in more detail.
What functionality does «Defender» Perform?
So, as mentioned above, “Windows Defender” is antivirus software built into all versions of the OS from Microsoft from “XP” to “10” (with beta version and for Windows 2000).
The software in question has quite interesting features that are less straightforward than the vast majority of free antiviruses are more popular on the Internet.
In confirmation of what has been said, the following functionality can be distinguished, which has long been implemented in Defender, namely:
- «Auto Start» - tracking the activity of the software that starts with the operating system;
- «System Configuration» - monitoring of processes related to system security;
- «Services and Drivers» - tracking the activity of drivers and services;
- «Application Registration» - monitoring the work of the tools for registration and autorun programs;
- «Windows Add-ons» - monitoring the activity of the operating system update modules.
This is only a part of the functionality offered to users (for example, Defender is built into Internet Explorer, but this is another story), which is quite enough for a full-fledged but careful work on a computer, including on the Internet. More details about the features of the “Windows Defender” can be found on the official website of the developers - https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security.
How to Disable Windows Defender
For an understandable reason, the Microsoft development company is not interested in neglecting its products, due to the installation and use of third-party anti-viruses.
Using Control Panel
Therefore, there are many options for disabling the "Defender", but with a limited period of validity, and one of them is as follows:
Close the settings window and continue to use the capabilities of the operating system for the intended purpose, but remember that there is no protection against malicious objects.
Using Local Group Policy Editor
As a tip, create a restore point for safety!
- Press the key combination "WIN + R" and execute the command "gpedit.msc";
- Step by step open “Computer Configuration” - “Administrative Templates” - “Windows Components” - “Windows Defender Antivirus”;
- Find and open the line “Turn off Windows Defender Antivirus”;
- In the window that opens, select the “Enabled” option (there is no error here, you need to select exactly this);
- Next, set the “Allow antimalware service to startup with normal priority” and “Disabled” mode to “Allow antimalware service to remain running always”.
- Open the “Real-time Protection” subsection;
- Find “Turn off real-time protection” and set the value to “Enabled”;
- Next, open the “MAPS” folder, which is located just above the selected directory;
- Here you will need to disable all available parameters, with the exception of “Send file sample when further analysis is required”;
Set this parameter to “Enabled” and select “Never send” in the “Parameters” block.
- Click OK and close the local group policy editor.
It is worth noting that this method can be implemented if your version of Windows is Professional or Cooperative, since the “Home version” simply does not have this functionality, but it can be fixed.
Using Third-Party Software
There are many programs to optimize the operating system with varying degrees of utility and security, among which the most popular (for some strange reason) are those products that have a brighter interface and are distributed on a paid basis for quite substantial money.
But it’s not about them. The task set in this article can be implemented absolutely free of charge with the help of the utility “DISM ++”, which has long since proved itself to be a positive in a certain user segment).
After starting the executable file (according to the version of your operating system) from the downloaded archive, you will need to do the following:
- Open the “Control Panel” section - “ System Optimization”;
- Expand the “Security Settings” line and turn the switch to “Enabled” for “Disable Windows Defender”.
After that, you can close the program, but “DISM ++” allows you to carry out many more interesting tasks, which you should also pay close attention to.
Using Registry Editor
This method, in its essence, is analogous to the use of the local group policy editor; in particular, users with “Windows 10 Home” should pay attention to it for the reasons already stated.
For its implementation it is necessary to do the following:
- Press the key combination “WIN + R” and execute “regedit”;
- Open the “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Policies\ Microsoft\ Windows Defender”;
- While in this folder, right-click and select “New” - “DWORD (32-bit) Value”;
- Thus create 3 parameters:
- "DisableAntiSpyware" - with the value "1";
- "AllowFastServiceStartup" - with the value "0";
- "ServiceKeepAlive" - with a value of "0".
- Open the “Real-Time Protection” section (if you don’t have it, create it in the “Windows Defender” folder) and create two parameters:
- "DisableIOAVProtection" - with the value "1";
- "DisableRealtimeMonitoring" - with a value of "1".
- Create a new section: “Spynet” and create three more parameters in it:
- "DisableBlockAtFirstSeen" - with a value of "1";
- "LocalSettingOverrideSpynetReporting" - with a value of "0";
- "SubmitSamplesConsent" - with a value of "2".
Close the registry editor and restart the computer.
How to Turn on Windows Defender
With the inclusion process, not everything is as obvious as it might have seemed to someone, especially if the local group policy editor or the registry editor was used as the disconnection method.
Many, in an attempt to re-activate the regular anti-virus functionality, simply go to the “Parameters” section and try to restore the “Defender” to work, but they encounter a message with the text that “This app is turned off by group policy”. 
To remedy the situation, it is necessary, by analogy with the procedure described above, open the editor by local group policy and return the old configuration using two key parameters:
- “Real-time protection” - “Not set” mode;
- “Turn of Windows Defender Antivirus” - “Not set” mode.
If you used the option using the registry editor, then in the folder«HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Policies\ Microsoft\ Windows Defender»:
- Set the value “0” for the created parameter “DisableAntiSpyware”;
- In the “Real-Time Protection” section, set the value “0” for the “DisableRealtimeMonitoring” parameter.
Close the editor and restart the computer.
With the inclusion of "Defender Windows" using the program "DISM ++" problems will not arise - just switch the mode to the "DISABLED".
Finally
As you can see from the above material, the process of disabling antivirus from Microsoft can be done in various ways, the main thing is to really determine that disabling the additional protection of the operating system is the right decision and does not harm the computer.
And how to use the solutions from these options, of course, you!