Antimalware Service Executable has Stopped Working

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You have started your Windows XP, and strangely a window has come up with a nice bold title “Antimalware service executable“. You have clicked not send and everything has stopped. Now only the arrow moves and you cannot click anything.

This error is given by the Microsoft Security Essentials service which stopped working due to the end of Windows XP support dated 8 April 2014. If you don’t know what it means I invite you to read THIS article.

Microsoft Security Essentials is an antivirus made available by Microsoft free of charge for PCs equipped with Windows. After April 8 the support for the Windows XP operating system has expired. Therefore the company Bill Gates has made this software. That is available only for Windows owners 7 or newer versions.

What is Antimalware Service Executable?

Before you dive into the message it is important to know the nature of Antimalware Service Executable. It’s a background application that runs in Windows Defender, which is Microsoft’s antimalware and antivirus built-in solution. Antimalware Service Executable commonly called MsMpEng.exe will run continuously to guard your system against spyware, malware, and other threats in real time.

In this guide I have written especially for you, you will find out how to solve this error. That prevents you from working or having fun in your spare time.

Understanding the “Antimalware Service Executable has Stopped Working” Error

If you get an error notice “Antimalware Service Executable has Stopped Working,” it typically signifies that the background service of Windows Defender is experiencing issues and isn’t functioning exactly as it is supposed to. It can be a frustrating experience particularly if it affects the overall performance of your PC and exposes it against security-related threats.

Potential Causes of the Error

Many factors could cause several factors that contribute to the “Antimalware Service Executable has Stopped Working” error. Knowing the causes is crucial to be able to address the problem. Common causes include:

Resource-Intensive Scanning Windows Defender’s real-time scanning may be resource-intensive, especially on systems with low processors or RAM. This can lead to the service becoming unresponsive or non-responsive.
A conflicting program In certain instances the third-party antivirus or antimalware software may be in conflict with Windows Defender, resulting in the error.
Invalid Software When you’re Windows Defender software is not up-to-date it may be unstable and cause the error.
Malware or viruses Sometimes the very things Windows Defender is meant to be able to defend against can cause problems for the security of the program, resulting in this error.
corrupted files Corrupted Windows Defender files or the operating system itself may cause the error.

With an understanding of what is causing the issue, let’s dive into ways to repair it.

Antimalware Service Executable has Stopped Working

To solve this puzzle, you need to perform a few simple steps:

First of all, you have to start the computer in safe mode. With the normal mode, you can’t combine anything because it freezes.
You are now in safe mode, click on start and chase on run.
Type the services.msc command
A window will open, beware those are the services that Windows runs. You will have to look for a service called Microsoft Antimalware Service. (they are in alphabetical order).
Right-click on the service, and select Properties
From the General tab, there will be a Startup type item. Open the dropdown and select Disabled, press Apply and OK.
Reboot your computer normally
You will probably be presented with the error once again, but after clicking doesn’t send. Your computer won’t freeze allowing you to work in peace.

Antimalware service executable – Important notice

Now your Microsoft Security Essentials will no longer work. So you will have to uninstall it and install a valid one. We at Geeksscan recommend that you install AVG. That is best among the free antivirus programs after Microsoft Security Essentials is the most suitable.

Conclusions

In this guide, you learned how to fix the Windows XP error “Antimalware service executable”
You learned to open the Windows services window

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