Yes, it is possible to pause Windows Defender temporarily. Windows Defender is Microsoft’s built-in anti-malware and security program available on Windows 8, 8.1 and 10 operating systems. It runs in the background and silently monitors your computer for malicious activity including viruses, spyware, and other threats.
Windows Defender can be paused in a few simple steps. First, open Windows Defender by clicking the start menu and typing “Windows Defender” in the search box. Then, click on “Open Windows Defender”. This will open up the main user window. Here you will see various settings and options. At the bottom of the window there are three icons labeled “Real-time Protection”, “Scan Options”, and “Settings”.
Click on “Settings”, which will open the Settings window. To pause Windows Defender temporarily, scroll down and select “Turn off real-time protection”. This will turn off the real-time scanning and will only last until you turn it back on again.
If you only want to pause Windows Defender temporarily, you can do so by clicking the “On/Off” button under the “Real-time Protection” heading. When you click this button, you will be presented with two options: Turn Off and Turn On. Select “Turn Off” to pause the real-time protection temporarily and then “Turn On” when you want to turn the protection back on again.
Another way to pause Windows Defender temporarily is through the Task Scheduler. To access the Task Scheduler, right-click on the Windows Defender icon on your taskbar and select “Task Scheduler”. This will open the Task Scheduler window where you can set a schedule for when you want Windows Defender to turn on or off.
For example, if you want Windows Defender to pause every night from 11PM to 7AM, you can create a task and set the start time to 11PM and the end time to 7AM. Under the “Actions” tab, select the “Disable Real-time Protection” option and then click “OK”.
When you are done, the Task Scheduler will pause Windows Defender every night as you have scheduled. You can also use this method to pause Windows Defender during certain times, such as when you are running a game or program that might conflict with the real-time protection.
Finally, you can also pause Windows Defender through the Group Policy Editor. To access the Group Policy Editor, go to “Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Local Security Policy”. In the left pane, navigate to “Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Windows Defender”.
In the right pane, double-click on the “Turn Off Windows Defender” policy and select “Enabled” from the dropdown menu. Then click “OK”. This will temporarily pause Windows Defender until you change the setting back to “Not Configured” or “Disabled”.
Overall, it is possible to pause Windows Defender temporarily. There are three different methods to do this – through the Windows Defender user window, the Task Scheduler, or the Group Policy Editor. Each of these methods can be used to pause Windows Defender at the desired times depending on your preferences.