- Windows Defender is always running and scanning your system when it’s idle.
- On average, the antivirus scans your system twice a week to make sure there is nothing malicious on it.
- Windows Defender flags files that it deems unsafe and should not be allowed to run on your system.
- If you download an executable file that Windows Defender thinks is malicious, it will delete it before you can even open File Explorer to see where the file was downloaded.
- Download and install the software.
- It will scan your computer to find problems.
- The tool will then correct the issues that were discovered.
By scanning and removing viruses and malware on your computer, Windows Defender protects your system against viruses and malware. This program is included with the Windows 10 operating system.
Windows Defender is always running and scanning your system when it’s idle. On average, the antivirus scans your system twice a week to make sure there is nothing malicious on it. This does not mean that it is “off” or “disabled” outside of these scanning periods. Not only does it scan your system for new files, but it proactively removes any files it deems malicious. This means that if you download an executable file that Windows Defender thinks is malicious, it will delete it before you can even open File Explorer to see where the file was downloaded. Here’s how to prevent Windows Defender from deleting an executable file.
Viruses, malware, and other threats will not affect the system if users use Windows Defender, which is a built-in virus protection feature in Windows 10. The Windows Defender application has been reported to have deleted certain files despite the fact that they aren’t even threats. You may wonder why the program would delete a file that’s not even a threat?
In order to avoid compromising the security of your computer even if you disable Windows Defender, it is recommended that you install another powerful antivirus program before trying to find a solution to this problem.
What makes Windows Defender delete program files on Windows 10
You should not let Windows Defender run unsafe files on your system because it flags them as unsafe. False positives happen sometimes, but it is extremely rare. It’s important to keep in mind that if you run a dangerous app, you’re taking a lot of risk.
The best way to avoid launching a malicious application is to carefully check it before launching. There is no guarantee that the application won’t have hijacked something, so by the time you realize it, you’ll have no way of getting rid of it.
In extreme cases, Windows Defender may delete programs or files that it views as threats without your consent. That’s not very common but occasionally happens.
Where Does Windows Defender Quarantine Files
This virus storage is located under the following path: C:/ProgramData/Microsoft/Windows Defender/Quarantine. Although it is much more reliable to interact with these files through antivirus software, we recommend that you do so only through your antivirus software.
How can I prevent Windows Defender from deleting files in Windows 10
Updated: April 2024
We highly recommend that you use this tool for your error. Furthermore, this tool detects and removes common computer errors, protects you from loss of files, malware, and hardware failures, and optimizes your device for maximum performance. This software will help you fix your PC problems and prevent others from happening again:
- Step 1 : Install PC Repair & Optimizer Tool (Windows 10, 8, 7, XP, Vista).
- Step 2 : Click Start Scan to find out what issues are causing PC problems.
- Step 3 : Click on Repair All to correct all issues.
Unquarantine
It is not possible to read or write to quarantined files.
Recover deleted files from Windows 10
Don’t worry if you can’t recover your important files that were deleted or wiped out by Windows 10. There are several ways to easily recover lost files in three steps with one of the best file recovery programs. In addition to recycling garbage cans and hard drives, you can use it to recover deleted files from USB flash drives, external hard drives, digital cameras, and more.
- Then begin scanning by selecting a location, putting your mouse cursor on the location where the data was lost (hard drive partitions, external hard drives, device cards), and clicking “Scan” to begin the process.
- Once the scan is finished, preview your files and select the files you want to recover. If necessary, double-click an item to preview it.
- The data can be recovered by clicking “Recover”, selecting the recovery location, and clicking “OK”. You should choose a different location than where you saved the original data.
Fixed “Automatic file deletion” bug in Windows 10
In order to fix the Windows 10 file deletion issue, you will need to delete all the lost files from your Windows system first.
How To Delete File Windows 10
Windows has two ways of deleting files. You can use the delete option to delete files, or you can delete files permanently. By selecting a file or folder and pressing Shift + Delete on the keyboard, you can delete undeletable files in Windows 10 when you cannot delete it normally.
Disable Windows Defender’s automatic file deletion
- Then click on “Virus and Threat Protection” on the left side of the screen.
- “Virus and threat protection settings” can be accessed by scrolling down.
- You can add or remove exceptions by scrolling down to “Exceptions”.
- Windows Defender won’t remove, delete, or modify files, folders, or even file types you specify when you click the plus icon to add an exception.
- You can also exclude .dll files by clicking File Types and adding the file extensions .dll and .exe to the list, and then clicking Add. Doing this will prevent Windows Defender from deleting the specified files.
If you want Windows 10 to stop automatically deleting files, you must disable Storage Sense
As soon as Windows 10 runs out of storage space, Storage Sense automatically deletes unused files. It can, for example, automatically delete files older than 30 or 60 days from the Recycle Bin, or temporarily delete files so that disk space can be freed up. The Downloads folder can also be deleted with this feature.
Quarantined Files
A file can be quarantined for later inspection in Trend Micro products. Quarantined files are encrypted and moved to a protected folder, preventing further execution and potential system harm. In each product, users have the option of permanently deleting or restoring quarantined files. A whitelist option (exception list) is provided upon inspection of the stored files to prevent false positives.
Windows 10 can automatically delete items you want to keep if you disable Storage Sense, but if you do not, you can change the default settings.
- In the Settings app, navigate to System – Storage. Make sure the “Storage Sense” toggle is turned off.
- Click on “Change how storage is automatically shared” to change the Storage Sense configuration if you do not want to disable this feature completely.
- Remove files from the Recycle Bin when they have been there a long time by clicking the “Never” box on the right, and remove files from the Downloads folder when they have been there a long time by clicking the “Never” box on the left.
Remove erroneous updates that delete files in Windows 10
There are times when a newly installed Windows 10 update will delete or erase files on your computer without your permission. It seems that these files are being deleted or erased due to an incompatible or incorrect update.
Here is the detailed guide on how to delete erroneous updates from your Windows 10 PC:
- “Control Panel” can be accessed by pressing Windows + X.
- To view installed updates, click in “Programs and Features.”
- The date of updates can be sorted by clicking the column header “Installed”.
- Choose “Uninstall” from the context menu when you find the updates you recently downloaded.
- Restart your computer once the uninstall has been completed.
Note: If you want to install the latest Windows 10 update, you can go to the official Microsoft Windows 10 update site to download Windows 10 ISO and then install it on your PC.
RECOMMENATION: Click here for help with Windows errors.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I stop Windows 10 Defender from deleting files?
- Go to Windows Settings -> Updates and Security -> Windows Security -> Virus and Threat Protection.
- In the Antivirus and Threat Protection section, click Manage Settings.
- In the Exceptions section, click Add or remove exceptions.
- Click Add Exception, and then select File or Folder.
Does Windows Defender automatically delete files?
The Windows operating system has built-in virus protection called Windows Defender. When the security program is configured to detect and remove threats on your device, Windows Defender Antivirus quarantines suspicious files. However, sometimes Windows Defender deletes files that are not necessarily a threat.
Why does Windows 10 keep deleting files?
Some users report that their desktop files are "deleted" after installing an update. Their taskbars and start menus are also reset to their default settings. The files appear to be deleted because Windows 10 writes some people to a different user profile after installing the update.
How do I prevent Windows downloads from being deleted?
- Open Settings.
- Click on System.
- Click on Storage.
- Click on the option to Change how the memory is automatically freed.
- Under Temporary Files, use the Delete files from the Downloads drop-down menu and select the Never option.
Mark Ginter is a tech blogger with a passion for all things gadgets and gizmos. A self-proclaimed "geek", Mark has been blogging about technology for over 15 years. His blog, techquack.com, covers a wide range of topics including new product releases, industry news, and tips and tricks for getting the most out of your devices. If you're looking for someone who can keep you up-to-date with all the latest tech news and developments, then be sure to follow him over at Microsoft.
