Windows Defender exceptions

Why are Windows Defender exceptions necessary?

The Windows Defender real-time protection service drastically increases the amount of time it takes to scan and process the files during the image capture and boot media creation processes. 


Can I manually disable real-time protection instead of allowing this exception?

Yes. Follow these steps to disable real-time protection:

  1. Go to Start > Settings and enter “Windows Security” to search.

  2. Select Windows Security > Virus & threat protection.

  3. Under Virus & threat protection settings, click the Manage settings link. 

  4. Under Real-time protection, click the button Off to disable real-time protection temporarily. 


How can I remove the exemption if I don’t want it anymore?

Follow these steps to remove the exemption:

  1. Go to Start > Settings and enter “Windows Security” to search.

  2. Select Windows Security > Virus & threat protection.

  3. Under Virus & threat protection settings, click the Manage settings link. 

  4. Under Exclusions, click Add or remove exclusions

  5. Select the CaptureWizard.exe or the MediaWizard.exe file and click Remove


I clicked the No and Don’t ask again checkbox, but I changed my mind. How do I add the exception?

Follow these steps to add the exception:

  1. Close SmartDeploy Console.

  2. Open Notepad as Administrator. 

  3. From Notepad, open C:\Program Files (x86)\SmartDeploy\SmartDeploy Enterprise\Resources\Configuration\SmartDeploy.config

  4. Edit True to False

  5. Save and close the config file. 

  6. Open SmartDeploy and make the selection you prefer. 

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