I had recently disabled windows defender on windows 10 and when I did I know want to enable it again but when I open action center and press Turn On Now it does nothing. I have pressed it multiple times and with no result. Fix: press Windows Key + R type regedit locate the following path * HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS DEFENDER* Right Click this file and select permissions press Advanced where it says owner press change change the owner to your username Now press apply then ok select Full Control from the permissions menu (click the Widnows Defender folder ) Find the value DisableAntiSpyware and DisableAntiVirus and set these values to 0 (explaination: double click each and where the 1 is put 0 and press ok) Open services.msc find Windows Defender there should be 2 services: Windows Defender Service and Windows Defnder Netwrok right click each and press start after you have started both restart your computer Run Windows Defend er I Hope this Helps! Feel Free to Reply

Fix: press Windows Key + R type regedit locate the following path * HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS DEFENDER* Right Click this file and select permissions press Advanced where it says owner press change change the owner to your username Now press apply then ok select Full Control from the permissions menu (click the Widnows Defender folder ) Find the value DisableAntiSpyware and DisableAntiVirus and set these values to 0 (explaination: double click each and where the 1 is put 0 and press ok) Open services.msc find Windows Defender there should be 2 services: Windows Defender Service and Windows Defnder Netwrok right click each and press start after you have started both restart your computer Run Windows Defend er I Hope this Helps! Feel Free to Reply

That link doesn't tell you how to do a clean boot in Windows 10.

CA: We are all in the same boat. Unable to get Windows Defender turned on. Looks like I must go back to may Mac and wait weeks till Microsoft gets this fixed.

BE, I am in the same boat as you. I was able to click on "change" but didn't know where to go from there. I was also able to change to Full Control but then I could not "apply" it. This Windows 10 is a nightmare and totally screwing my computer up. I am hoping someone helps soon :)

I'm having similar but I didn't disable Defender. It was active while I was running Windows 8.1 but I just did the free upgrade and now it's not active. I tried the steps but when I get to step 6, there is no "Change" beside owner, it's just a empty space and then it says SYSTEM and there is a "Change" there. There are 3 users on this PC, my wife and daughter besides myself. All set to Admin access.

Windows 10: Windows Defender will not turn on SOLVED

Anonymous

I had recently disabled windows defender on windows 10 and when I did I know want to enable it again but when I open action center and press Turn On Now it does nothing. I have pressed it multiple times and with no result.

Fix:

press Windows Key + R
type regedit
locate the following path *HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS DEFENDER*
Right Click this file and select permissions
press Advanced
where it says owner press change
change the owner to your username
Now press applythen ok
select Full Controlfrom the permissions menu

(click the Widnows Defender folder)

Find the value DisableAntiSpyware and DisableAntiVirus and set these values to 0

(explaination: double click each and where the 1 is put 0 and press ok)

Open services.msc
find Windows Defender
there should be 2 services: Windows Defender Serviceand Windows Defnder Netwrok
right click each and press start
after you have started both restart your computer
Run Windows Defend er

I Hope this Helps!

Feel Free to Reply

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Answer accepted by question author