Meet the Microsoft Safety Scanner (MSERT.exe) That said, the download page is always there, updated monthly, ready for access. MSRT can be run on its own, but is not used in that way very often.

This means that many, if not most, Windows desktops get an obligatory malware check-and-repair run at least once a month.

MSRT is generally released monthly as part of Windows Update or as a standalone tool available here for download.įigure 2 features a screencap from Windows 10 showing a fairly recent MSRT release: IDGįigure 2: Notice that the WU download uses the same KB and version numbers as the File Explorer item in Figure 1.Īs part of the normal update drill for most Windows users - except those who get their updates through their organization’s own update servers, on their own calendars - the MSRT gets run every Tuesday as a matter of routine. MSRT finds and removes threats and reverses the changes made by these threats. Here’s how Microsoft describes MSRT on its Download Center page: Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool (MSRT) helps keep Windows computers free from prevalent malware. Invariably, each Patch Tuesday includes an item named Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool, a.k.a.

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