Why It’s Important to Scan Files For Viruses
If you are concerned that your computer may have viruses, it is important to scan files for them regularly. A virus scan can help you troubleshoot problems, such as a Blue Screen of Death, crashes or DLL file issues, and even prevents malware from spreading.
If your virus scanner finds threats, it can automatically clean them up for you or notify you that they need to be addressed. Many virus scanners also include additional tools to protect your system and keep it running smoothly.
A file virus scanner is not guaranteed to detect every infected file that may be on your device. Some of these files can be hidden inside archives or compression algorithms, and others can only be detected once they are decompressed or extracted.
Top File Virus Scanners to Keep Your Data Safe
Viruses are malicious software that can corrupt or destroy your data, cause performance issues on your devices, and spread to other computers via networking. Some viruses can also be used to steal information, disrupt network traffic, and perform other tasks.
To run a virus scan on a specific file or folder, right-click (or ctrl+click) the file and select More Options or Scan with Microsoft Defender. Then choose the type of scan you want. If you have Windows Security enabled, you should be able to turn real-time protection on or off with the toggle button, but that will affect your scheduled and custom scanning.
A full system scan can take minutes or hours depending on your computer and the number of files and directories to be scanned. It is a good idea to back up any files you want to save before doing a full system scan.