Windows Defender Offline Scan Not Working: How to Fix It?

Is Windows Defender Offline Scan Not Working on your system? If so, we are here to help you.

Windows Defender Offline Scan is a great feature that allows you to scan your computer for malware even if Windows is not able to start. However, sometimes this feature can stop working for unknown reasons.

In this article, we will show you how to fix the problem when Windows Defender Offline Scan is not working on your system.

What is Windows Defender Offline Scan?

The Microsoft Defender Offline software is an antimalware scanning tool that allows you to scan a computer from a secure location. Because the scan runs outside of the standard Windows kernel, it may detect malware that tries to go around the Windows shell, such as viruses and rootkits that infect or overwrite the master boot record (MBR).

The tool’s advanced deep scanning capabilities include the ability to detect anything that may be lurking in your system, including Trojan viruses, ransomware horses, and other types of malware that standard antivirus software might miss.

Why is Windows Defender Offline Scan not working?

There can be several reasons why the Windows Defender Offline Scan feature is not working on your system.

• Corrupted Windows Defender files: This is one of the most common reasons why the Windows Defender Offline Scan feature stops working. If the files that are responsible for running this feature are corrupted, then it will not work properly.
• User account Permission Issue: If you are not logged into your account with administrator privileges, then you will not be able to run Windows Defender Offline Scan. This is because the scan needs admin privileges to run properly.
• Incompatible Antivirus Software: If you have another antivirus software installed on your system, then it can conflict with Windows Defender and cause the offline scan feature to stop working.

How to fix Windows Defender Offline Scan not working issue?

There are several methods that you can use to fix the problem when Windows Defender Offline Scan is not working on your system.

Sign in With your Administrator Account

If you don’t have administrator privileges, you won’t be able to run Windows Defender. In order to fix this, you will need to contact your system administrator and ask for permission to run Windows Defender. Or if you have administrator credentials, just use them and sign in with the Administrator account.

Disable/Uninstall Third-party Security Program

If you have a third-party security program installed, it could be interfering with Windows Defender. To fix this, you will need to disable or uninstall the program.

Here is how to uninstall a third-party security program:

1. Open the Control Panel.
2. Click on “Uninstall a program” or “Add/Remove Programs“.
3. Find the security program in the list and click “Uninstall“.
4. Follow the prompts to uninstall the program.
5. Restart your computer.

Fix corrupted files with the DISM tool

The first method you can try is to use the Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM) tool to repair the corrupted files that are responsible for running the Windows Defender Offline Scan feature.

To do this, you need to open the Command Prompt with admin privileges and run the following command:

1. Open Command Prompt with admin rights.
2. Type the following command and press the enter key: DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
3. The scan would take some time to finish.
4. After the scan is completed, restart the device.

Use SFC Command

SFC scan is a command-line tool that scans your system for any errors and glitches and automatically repairs them. If you are still struggling with Windows Defender Offline Scan not working issue, you can try the SFC scan. 

Here are the steps for that.

1. From the Windows search bar, search and launch the Command Prompt with administrator rights.
2. Type this command and hit the Enter key: sfc/scannow.
3. The scanning would start, and it would take some time to complete depending on your system configuration.
4. After the scan, if it found any problem, the solution would be automatically applied.
5. Close the Command Prompt window and restart your system.

Restart Windows Defender Service

If the Windows Defender Service is stopped or disabled, Windows Defender will not be able to run. To fix this, you will need to open the services console and start the Windows Defender Service.

Here is how to start the Windows Defender Service:

1. Open the Start menu and type “services.msc” into the search bar and click on its icon to launch.
2. Find the “Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection Service” in the list and double-click on it to open its properties.
3. In the “Startup type” dropdown menu, select “Automatic“.
4. Click on the “Start” button to start the service.
5. Click on “OK” to save the changes.
6. Restart your computer.

Reset Windows System

If the problem is still not fixed, then the final option is to reset your Windows system. This will restore your system to its default state and should fix any corrupted files that are causing the problem.

Here are the steps for that:

1. Open Windows 11 Settings.
2. Under the System tab, click on the Recovery setting.
3. To start the reset process, click on the Reset PC button under the Recovery options.
4. Select one of the Keep my files or Remove everything.
   • Choosing the Keep my files option will erase all your installed apps and games but let you keep your personal files.
   • Selecting the Remove everything option will erase everything from your computer, including your personal files, apps, and everything. This option comes in handy when you want to transfer or sell your computer.
5. Follow the on-screen instructions to reset the system

Summing Up

If Windows Defender Offline Scan is not working on your system, there are several methods that you can use to fix the problem as listed in this post.

We hope that this article was helpful and you were able to fix the problem when Windows Defender Offline Scan is not working on your system.

Peter Brown

Peter is an Electrical Engineer whose primary interest is tinkering with his computer. He is passionate about Windows 10 Platform and enjoys writing tips and tutorials about it.