Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

Have you ever heard about the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool? Do you have a Windows device? If you have a Windows device, we are here to tell you a little bit more about the easy way you can make your Windows device safer.

What Is The Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool And How Can It Help You?  

The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool was released to make Windows devices more secure.

The tool checks computers running Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003 for infections by specific, prevalent malicious software and helps remove any infection found.

When the detection and removal process is complete, the tool displays a report describing the outcome and will let you know if malware was removed.

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

Microsoft releases a new version of this tool on the second Tuesday of every month. It appears as just another patch in Windows Update. If you have your computer set to automatically install Windows Updates, it will be installed automatically. 

The first release of Windows XP didn’t have a firewall enabled by default, so the Malicious Software Removal Tool was a necessity. 

Microsoft introduced the tool to purge widespread worms and other popular types of malware from the Windows XP system without antivirus software installed.

Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool detects and eliminates more than 80 kinds of malware.

Who Can Use a Malicious Software Removal Tool?

The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool checks computers for infections by malicious software.

Computers running on the following operating systems can use this tool;

  • Windows 10
  • Windows 8
  • Windows XP
  • Windows 2000
  • Windows Server 2003 

You can also perform an online scan of your computer using the Windows Live OneCare safety scanner.

How To Download And Install The Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool?

To Download the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool, you should visit the Microsoft Downloads Centre. Search for the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool in the search bar.

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

When found, you should download the file and follow the installation instructions.

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

How Does The Malicious Software Removal Tool Work? 

As we mentioned before, the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool removes malware programs, but the thing is, it only removes a few. It does not replace the need for an antivirus program on your computer.

Once a month, the tool will be updated and keep running scans in the background. Previous versions of this tool did not run scans in the background. This meant that some malware could sneak past the tool and infect your device.

You will be notified as soon as the tool picks up that you have malicious files on your device. The malware will be removed immediately. The Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool does make your Windows computer more secure.

Can This Tool Replace Antivirus and Anti-malware Software? 

The Microsoft malware scanner tool does not replace anti-malware software. Microsoft's malware removal tool only exists as an extra protection aid for the lack of antivirus abilities built-in in Windows devices. The tool attacks and removes malware, particularly worms, slowing their spread and preventing them from doing more damage to your device. 

With this said, it is definitely no substitute for an antivirus. An antivirus program will naturally have an anti-malware scanner built-in, with other add-ons, which guards your system against a larger amount of threats, preventing them from taking over.

In this MiniTool post, we will show you some related information about Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool, including what it is and how to download, run, uninstall, and update Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool on Windows 10/11.

On This Page :

You should know Windows Defender Antivirus, but you may not notice this tool: Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool. This tool is also known as MSRT, which is a freely distributed virus removal tool from Microsoft for Windows operating system. It is one of the best free malware removal tools and it has both Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool 32 bits version and Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool 64 bits version. You can select a suitabel version to download according to the Windows version you are using.

This tool can run on the following Windows operating systems:

  • Windows 11
  • Windows 10
  • Windows Server 2019
  • Windows Server 2016
  • Windows 8.1
  • Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Windows Server 2012
  • Windows Server 2008 R2
  • Windows 7
  • Windows Server 2008

In Windows Update of the Settings app, you can see Microsoft is always releasing updates for this tool. Yes, Microsoft distributes the MSRT to every computer via Windows Update. But you can also go to the Microsoft Download Center or Microsoft Update Catalog to download and then run it to scan for malware and remove it.

Download Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

Here are the three available ways to download Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool.

Way 1: Via Windows Update

The easiest and most direct way to download and run the MSRT is to use Windows Update. To always automatically get the latest version of this tool, you’d better turn on Automatic Updates on your device. Microsoft will automatically release the latest version of Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool to your device via Windows Update. In theory, Microsoft releases the MSRT on a monthly cadence as part of Windows Update or as a standalone tool.

You can just go to Start > Settings > Windows Update on Windows 11 or Start > Settings > Update & security > Windows Update on Windows 10 to check for updates and see if Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool has a new version, then download and install it on your device. The following is about a Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool x64 update. If you are running Windows 10 32-bit, this update will be displayed as Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool x86 - v5.92 (KB890830).

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

After you download the tool using this way, the MSRT will begin to scan your computer. If no threat is found, it will run in quiet mode next time. However, if it detects malicious software, the next time when an administrator logs on to your device, a balloon will pop up in the notification area to remind you of the detection.

Way 2: Via Microsoft Download Center

You can also download Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool 64-bit or 32-bit from the Microsoft Download Center. That is, there are files for both 32-bit x86-based systems and 64-bit x64-based systems (>> Check which Windows version you are using).

You can directly go to the Microsoft’s official download page for the MSRT to download it:

If you want to download Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool 32 bit, you can click the following link to continue:

>> Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool 32-bit download

If you want to download Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool 64 bit, you can click the following link to continue:

>> Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool 64-bit download

After entering the download page, you can click the Download button to download this tool.

Tip: From the download page, you can also learn the related information about this tool like the latest version number, the published date, the file name, the file size, and the KB number.

The MSRT does not use an installer. After downloading it, you can directly open the downloaded file to run it to perform a scan. This tool must be run with local administrator privileges.

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

Way 3: Via Microsoft Update Catalog

Microsoft also makes the offline installers for Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool available in Microsoft Update Catalog. If Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool is not installed via Windows Update, you can also search for the KB number of this tool in the Microsoft Update Catalog and select a proper version to download. The KB number of Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool is fixed: it is KB890830. You can also search for Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool in Microsoft Update Catalog.

Step 1: Go to the KB890830 offline installers download page of Microsoft Update Catalog.

Step 2: Find your needed file as per the Windows version you are using and click the Download button.

Step 3: On the pop-up interface, click the download link to download this tool on your device.

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

Likewise, you can directly click the downloaded .exe file to run this tool.

Universal Way to Run Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

You can run Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool anytime using these steps:

Step 1: Press Windows + R to open the Run box.

Step 2: Type MRT into the Run box and press Enter to open the MSRT. If you see the User Account Control interface, click Yes to continue.

Step 3: Click Next to continue.

Step 4: Select a scan type and click Next to start scanning your device.

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

If your Windows Update is enabled, your system will automatically get the latest version of this tool or you can just go to Windows Update to manually check for updates to see if there is an available update.

However, if the Automatic Updates feature is disabled, you will need to download the newest version of this tool from the Microsoft Download Center or Microsoft Update Catalog.

Some users report that the MSRT is using too much CPU and they want to remove this tool from their devices.

Well then, how to uninstall this tool?

Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool doesn’t use an installer. When you run it, it just creates a randomly named temporary directory on the root drive of the computer. Usually, the path is C:\Windows\System32. After this tool stops running or after the next time that you start the computer, the folder will be automatically deleted. If the folder is not automatically deleted, you can go to manually delete it. It will not adverse effect on your PC.

Microsoft windows malicious software removal tool running

The End

Want to what Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool is? How to download Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool and run it to remove malware? How to uninstall this tool if it is using too much CPU? This post just shows you all the answers you want to know.

If your files are lost due to malware or virus attacks, you can try a professional data recovery software like MiniTool Power Data Recovery to get them back.

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Should you have other related issues, you can let us know in the comments.

Does Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool run automatically?

Microsoft releases the updated tool every second Tuesday of every month (commonly called "Patch Tuesday") through Windows Update, at which point it runs once automatically in the background and reports if malicious software is found.

Is Windows malicious software removal tool legit?

It is a legitimate MS tool. You can run the Malicious Software Removal Tool (MRT) by right clicking the Start button >selecting Run > type MRT in box >click OK >accept permission YES > Next >Next >choose 'quick scan'> Next >Finish > 'No malicious software detected'.

How do I stop Microsoft Windows malicious software removal tool running?

To Disable Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool From Installing, do the following..
Open Registry Editor..
Go to the following Registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\MRT. ... .
Then, create a new 32-bit DWORD value named DontOfferThroughWUAU. ... .
Restart Windows 10..

How long does it take to download Windows malicious software removal tool?

It does not take much time to install the Windows malicious software removal tool. It can get installed within 30 minutes after starting the download.