Newbie question: How to get rid of antivirus in Win10

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I should repeat this more often. From AB: Dear Woody:     When purchasing a Windows 10 laptop, I noticed that some manufacturers have installed their
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For those out there that are technically naive, they can always install PC Decrapifier.

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IMHO you really need to run the special complete uninstaller programs you get from the company’s web site, particularly if it is Norton, McAffee, or Kaspersky. All these leave crap if you just do a Windows Uninstall.

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I got Norton Anti-Virus with my Windows 8 computer, and I had a devil of a time getting rid of it. The constant popups for payment annoyed me. I thought that it was over-priced.

I tried the “Programs and Features” method and that didn’t work. Then I tried 2 different uninstallers, repeating with one, and they didn’t work completely. Finally, in desperation, I scoured the web for clues. I found that one had to go to the Symantec website to completely remove it.

I did that, and that worked, but I had to jump through hoops on the website. I don’t know how many times it asked me “Do you really want to delete Norton Anti-Virus?”. I also had to fill in a survey, and give a reason for deleting the application.

I now use Windows Defender.

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It’s always recommended to also use the specific removal tool for the AV. After a reboot WD should be automatically enabled.
See this lists:
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/protect/wiki/mse-protect_start/list-of-anti-malware-product-removal-tools/2bcb53f7-7ab4-4ef9-ab3a-6aebfa322f75
http://support.eset.com/kb146/?locale=en_US&viewlocale=en_US

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That’s very true of older versions of AV software. If you have a newer version (which is to say, one that’s only been on a new machine for a few months), the uninstallers have become much better.

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Bleeping Computer, another great site like Woody’s, has downloads available to remove some of the most persistent anti-virus programs. They are in the Windows Utilities Uninstallers section at: http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/download/windows/uninstallers/

Those currently available are:

ESET Uninstaller
PC Decrapifier
Kaspersky Lab Products Remover
Norman Uninstall Tool
ZoneAlarm Uninstall Tool
ThreatFire Removal Tool
Panda Antivirus Uninstaller
Microsoft OneCare Removal Tool
Microsoft Security Essentials Removal Tool
McAfee Consumer Products Removal tool
Norton Removal Tool
Revo Uninstaller
AVCleaner 2012
F-Secure Uninstallation Tool
eScan Removal Tool
Dr. Web Anti-Virus Remover
Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Cleanup Tool
BullGuard Uninstall
BitDefender Uninstall Tool
AVG Remover 2012
Avast Software Uninstall Utility

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I always use the specific uninstallers for programs like these and then follow up with Ccleaner to get any stray bits that may be left. Simple removal via the Programs and Features panel often leaves a lot of crap behind.

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So is defender good enough or should I continue to use avast free?

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I’d still run the removal tool after rebooting from the regular uninstall of the AV (always try to normal uninstall first if possible).

AVG had quite the rough go of making their removal tool work right. Ever since they messed up the user interface (2013 version) to make it look more like windows 8 they’ve had trouble with the install getting corrupted over time. I remember a few uninstall tool versions that crashed when it found an unexpected entry from the AVG junkware toolbar (hijacks homepage and search) they introduced. Now they’ve also added snakeoil cleanup tool ads, and 1-click no-confirmation upgrades to the 30-trial of the paid version (after 30 days you have no protection unless you downgrade via the uninstaller). Now their removal tool works correctly (rather than needing to run it 6 times and do part of its job manually). Except now the tool is not accessible to visually impaired users (all the clickable parts are pictures labeled with alt-text “button”). — so AVG is keeping up with these depressing times.

Avast removal tool has always worked poorly, an you need to select the name of the product you want to remove (even if you don’t know, or the name has changed and there is no obvious match). It also sets your compute to boot into safemode via BCD entry and unsets it later (unless your safemode is broken, then it just makes your computer unbootable).

Norton removal tool works pretty good, if it tells you to reboot, run it again. If you had to reboot three times, you need to figure out what it is failing to delete and take care of it yourself. I’ve rarely had a critical issue.

Mcafee removal tool works ok. Then it tells you need to reboot. Then it warns you that if you reboot you will loose data. (it should be saying save your work before rebooting) Poor choice of wording. Sometimes the removal tool leaves it self set to load at start up from the temp directory, you may need to clean that up yourself.

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I never had that problem, I just went here and used the removal tool:
https://support.norton.com/sp/en/us/home/current/solutions/kb20080710133834EN_EndUserProfile_en_us

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I’ve tested GIANT AntiSpyware / Microsoft Antispware / Windows Defender / Microsoft Security Essentials / Windows Defender (AV).

I can’t say I’ve been impressed by any version of it. The first few betas went so long and fixed so little. “Its been 6 months since the last beta, 80% of the complaints have been about problems A, B, and C. The new beta fixes problem Q and 12 other (minor) problems you’ve never heard of. Next beta in 6 months. Keep up the bug reports.” 6 months pass. “We’ve fixed problem C, and 3 other minor things you’ve never heard of, this now a Release Candidate”

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IMHO defender is superior.

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I thnk the discussion here is about Defender in Windows 10, which is the new MSE built-in the product. i.e it include the old Defender for Windows 7 (anti-spyware) and the antivirus component from MSE.
It is reliable, but if it catches anything even remotely dangerous, I really don’t know.

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Technically naïve users probably wouldn’t have an idea on how to find that. 🙂

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Avast turned to the dark side – preceding Microsoft to act more like malware itself – a few years ago.

-Noel

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They didn’t have that in 2013.

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Try this registry key to disable it. This is what I do when I build a deployment image.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftWindows Defender]
“DisableAntiSpyware”=dword:00000001
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftWindows DefenderReal-Time Protection]
“DisableBehaviorMonitoring”=dword:00000001
“DisableOnAccessProtection”=dword:00000001
“DisableScanOnRealtimeEnable”=dword:00000001

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They’ve had that tool since well before 2006. The website has changed over the years, but the tool did exist.

I found one just now on an old drive, digital signature date:
‎Wednesday, ‎September ‎12, ‎2012 5:17:23 PM

Check this website:
https://www.virustotal.com/en/file/7ea4b253f7359c977b404ccfb4e4d764cefd82fd63dcc2b234e1cbb707185010/analysis/#item-detail
First submission: 2012-09-14 06:07:17 UTC (3 years, 8 months ago)

File detail tab:
Product: Norton Removal Tool
File version: 20.0.0.21
Description: Norton Removal Tool
Signature verification Signed file, verified signature

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Windows 10 has built-in Group Policies which can disable Defender. I think what JD197 proposed has the equivalent effect.

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Windows Defender in Win10 is a serious CPU and RAM hog for those using systems with 2Gb or less (and a dual-core CPU & slower). That’s why I completely disable WD in Win10 using some 3rd party tools. I use Malwarebytes Antimalware Pro/Premium instead as it doesn’t drag down Win10 that much unlike MS Defender in Windows 10.

On the other hand, Win10’s Windows Defender is okay to use on at least a quad-core CPU with 4GB of RAM (or better).

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Better use Win10 Spy Disabler to not only disable Windows Defender, but also to disable Windows Update and more (even remove/uninstall OneDrive in Win10 which is the very first thing I do after installing Win10)

The registry hack to disable Windows Defender in Win10 is not enough. There are also some scheduled Tasks in Task Scheduler referencing Defender that also have to be disabled, which the Spy Disabler tool does well.

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But Group Policies is for Windows 10 Professional & Enterprise editions only and not available for Home/Core editions.

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Correct. For those editions, the registry keys set by those policies can be applied directly as in JD197 reply.
My post mentioned policies because it is preferable to use gpedit.msc (or AD Group Policies if available) where available due to the visibility of the settings and less likelihood to do errors when configuring.

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“Then it warns you that if you reboot you will loose data.”

The word is lose, not loose.

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What I like to do is just clean-install. Then I don’t have to worry about any kind of crapware whatsoever.

While unfortunately this results in a call to Microsoft to ‘reactivate’ my operating system, usually they do it without much fuss. And even when they do give me fuss, I know how to respond to them in an amiable way to get what I need done.

It is worth it to have Win7 x64 w/slipstreamed SP1 from the official direct ISO downloaded from Microsoft servers. Well worth it.

The OEM license doesn’t prohibit an end-user from doing a reinstall of the operating system on the same computer/hardware. It only prohibits transferring it to another computer with different hardware. Previous Windows versions were a bit lax so you saw OEM software sold with a hard drive or a mouse or something.

Now they specified that it is tied to the combo of CPU & Motherboard so if you ever update your CPU you may need to bug Microsoft for a new license depending on the OS and terms.

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That’s correct, as best I know, right down the line. I’ve never had trouble with phone authorization – but I know many people who complain about it.

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