Windows Defender Offline definitions out of date

Anonymous
2016-04-24T04:02:30+00:00

Windows 7 64 Bit.  I have been using Windows Defender Offline on a USB thumb drive (4 GB, uses less than 1 GB) for years without problem.  Last week updating Windows Defender Offline definitions to an already working USB thumb drive seemed to install correctly.  When I boot to the USB thumb drive the program boots and runs but I get the message the "definitions out of date", and it will not scan the computer.  I tried formatting USB thumb drive and then installing the whole Windows Defender Offline with definitions instead of just updating the definitions to the already working USB thumb drive.  Everything went correctly, the size of the download appeared to be correct.  I booted to the USB thumb drive and still got the message "definitions out of date".  Since the Windows Defender Offline program started offline, and was installed onto a completely formatted USB thumb drive, it must have downloaded and installed correctly but the definitions are still "out of date".  Are the definitions being updated by Microsoft or has the program been discontinued?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Security and privacy

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Anonymous
2016-06-08T20:47:31+00:00

Not sure that matters at this point, the messages appear to be pointing to 2 unrelated failure points.

I have an update.

We have identified the problem and are working on a new Windows Defender Offline release.

Paul...

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  1. Anonymous
    2016-09-09T10:47:02+00:00

    For a PC running Windows 7, you can download Microsoft Security Essentials for free here:  

    https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/14210/security-essentials-download

    Many thanks but as I said above when I tried to download the security essentials  64bit (including WD) back came the message "already installed".

    It would appear that as I do not have another security permanent monitoring app,I use Malwarebytes when I feel like it,there must be a basic fault why WD does not work.

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  2. Anonymous
    2016-09-09T10:19:47+00:00

    For a PC running Windows 7, you can download Microsoft Security Essentials for free here:  

    https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/14210/security-essentials-download

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  3. Anonymous
    2016-09-09T09:38:43+00:00

    Microsoft's response has been pathetic, and you, Paul, never answered any of our questions.

    Please read this essay on the importance of integrity and why everything falls apart without it: The Four Ways of Being that Create the Foundation for Great Leadership, a Great Organization, and a Great Personal Life

    I agree,  Last week I noticed Windows Defender had disappeared from bottom the tray. Investigating it said OFF out of date. When I tried to re download WD from the MS site I got the message ,already installed.

    I believe this is MS getting at me because I rejected the "Free" Windows 10 upgrade and reverted to a perfect Windows 7.   My photo editing suite & Printmaster  and a couple of other programs failed to function in many subtle ways despite MS stating every installed program on my W7 would be fine.

    Therefore I am convinced ,in the same way as XP , Windows Live mail and probably now Windows 7 will be slowly made to malfunction, to persuade us to adopt their latest but not necessarily better products.

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  4. Anonymous
    2016-07-14T06:16:45+00:00

    Dexter, if you ever come back here, I followed a link from a Windows 10 thread. One of the many.

    I don't remember exactly where I saw BETA. The link took me to the same place you went, but I must have gotten there just after it had been updated.

    I had been examining the Windows 10 threads that involved WDO. And arrived at the conclusion that at about the same time that WDO crapped out on Windows 7, there was a lot of activity trying to make WDO work properly on Windows 10. With that in mind I considered the possibility that Microsoft had probably made WDO incompatible with Windows 7, while trying to get it to be compatible with Windows 10.

    That is the reason that I followed the link that purported to be a Windows 10 link to WDO.

    When I tried the mssstool on my Windows 7 machine, I thought it was for Windows 10.

    Even a blind hog finds an acorn every now and then.         GLEN

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