How to Exclude Files and Folders from Windows Defender in Windows 11

We’ll show you how to exclude files, folders, file types (extensions), and processes from Windows Defender in Windows 11.

*⏰Timestamps⏰*

00:00 Intro
00:30 Why Exclude Files
01:07 How to Exclude Files or Folders
03:00 Download an Infected File from EICAR
05:17 How to Exclude a File Type
06:03 How to Exclude a Process

---

Why Exclude Files?

Before we jump into the how, let's quickly talk about the why.

Windows Defender is a fantastic antivirus tool built right into Windows 11.

It automatically scans your files and folders to keep your PC safe from viruses, malware, and other threats.

But there are times when you might need to exclude certain files or folders from being scanned.

This could be because they're large files that you trust or programs that Windows Defender mistakenly identifies as threats, also known as false positives.

---

How to Exclude Files or Folders

Alright, let's get to the main event—how to exclude files or folders from Windows Defender.

It's pretty simple, so just follow along with me.

First, you'll want to open the Windows Security app.

You can do this by clicking on the Start menu, typing 'Windows Security,' and selecting it from the search results.

You can also click the icon on the taskbar for quick access to Windows Security.

Once you're in the Windows Security app, navigate to 'Virus & Threat Protection' using either the left-hand menu or the options on the right.

Scroll down a bit until you find the 'Virus & Threat Protection settings' section.

Here, you'll see an option that says 'Manage settings.

Go ahead and click on that.

Now, scroll down to the 'Exclusions' section.

This is where you can add or remove exclusions, meaning files or folders you don't want Windows Defender to scan.

Click on the 'Add or remove exclusions' link.

If prompted, click "Yes" to allow it to make changes to your device.

On the next screen, you'll see an option to 'Add an exclusion.'

When you click on that, you'll get a dropdown menu where you can choose what type of exclusion you want to add—whether it’s a file, folder, file type, or process.

For this example, let’s exclude a specific folder.

Select 'Folder' from the dropdown menu, navigate to the folder you want to exclude, select it, and click 'Select Folder.'

We’ve created a folder named 'My Exclusions' in the Downloads folder.

Now, we’ll add it to the list of exclusions in Windows Defender.

Windows Defender will now ignore this folder during its scans.

Next, we’ll download an infected file from the Internet using the EICAR test file.

The EICAR test file is a harmless file created by the European Institute for Computer Antivirus Research (EICAR) and the Computer Antivirus Research Organization (CARO) to test the effectiveness of antivirus programs like Windows Defender.

It is widely recognized by antivirus software as a test virus.

So, it’s a great tool to demonstrate how exclusions work.

In the browser settings, under the Downloads section, we enable the 'Ask where to save each file before downloading' option.

This allows us to save the infected file in the excluded folder.

Now, we search for the EICAR site and visit it. Next, we navigate to the test file download section and download the test file with a ZIP extension.

First, we save the file in the Downloads folder.

As you can see, Windows Defender immediately deletes the infected file.

Next, we'll download the file again, but this time we’ll save it in the 'My Exclusions' folder, which we have already added to the list of exclusions.

As you can see, the file was saved successfully, and Windows Defender ignored it.

Now, in the Windows Defender settings, we add the downloaded file to the list of exclusions.

Then, we remove the 'My Exclusions' folder from the exclusions list.

Now, we download another test file.

As you can see, this file was deleted by Windows Defender, while only the previously excluded file remains.

Finally, remember that the EICAR test file is safe, but you should be cautious when excluding real files, as doing so could leave your system vulnerable if those files are malicious.

---

#howto #windows11 #windowdefender #windowssecurity #antivirus #antimalware

[nidraque]

very detailed explanation. TNANK YOU!!!

[ssai]

I don’t have any of these options for managing security.. I’m not sure what’s going on