

However, an antivirus product can perform this task.įor more information about how to protect your computer, go to the Microsoft Safety & Security Center website. The tool cannot remove malicious software that is not running. Active malicious software is malicious software that is currently running on the computer.

The tool focuses on the detection and removal of active malicious software. Specific prevalent malicious software is a small subset of all the malicious software that exists today. The tool removes only specific prevalent malicious software. It is significantly more desirable to block malicious software from running on a computer than to remove it after infection. Antivirus products block malicious software from running on a computer. The tool removes malicious software from an already-infected computer. The Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool differs from an antivirus product in three key ways Therefore, we strongly recommend that you install and use an up-to-date antivirus product.

It is strictly a post-infection removal tool. The Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool does not replace an antivirus product. How the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool differs from an antivirus product For more information about the Support Lifecycle policy, go to the Microsoft Support Lifecycle website. This date coincides with the end of the Extended Support phase for Windows 2000. Note In compliance with the Microsoft Support Lifecycle policy, the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT) will no longer be offered to or supported on Windows 2000-based systems after July 13, 2010. The advanced user section includes information for the IT administrator and additional information about how to manage and run the Malicious Software Removal Tool. This article contains information about how the tool differs from an antivirus product, how you can download and run the tool, and what happens when the tool finds malicious software on your computer. After you download the tool, the tool runs one time to check your computer for infection by specific prevalent malicious software (including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom) and helps remove any infection it finds. Microsoft releases a new version of the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool every month. The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool helps remove malicious software from your computers that are running Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows 8, Windows Server 2012, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008.
