- Windows Defender often quarantines files and executables that were developed and distributed independently, which can impact game mods or even entire applications.
- Windows Defender requires an account with administrator permissions to access it.
- While you can turn off Windows Defender and prevent it from quarantining files, this is not recommended as a long-term solution.
- If you decide to restore Windows Defender quarantined items that include executables, create a Windows Restore point beforehand (since Windows Restore is no longer automatically enabled).
Windows Defender (technically named “Windows Security” in Windows 11) remains one of the most reliable built-in antivirus tools and should be sufficient for most users. However, it does get things wrong sometimes and can quarantine seemingly random files (quarantine here is a fancy term for putting the file in a special folder where it can’t be accessed by the rest of the system). If you know the origin and the developer of the file involved, you can easily restore quarantined items from Windows Defender.
Option 1: Restore Quarantined Items From Windows Defender Directly
Since Windows Defender is directly in your Settings, you should be able to access it in just a few clicks.
Step 1. Open Settings with “Win + I,” then select the “Privacy & security” tab on the left. Choose “Windows Security,” which should be the first option. You might also be able to find Windows Security as an icon on the toolbar (use the “Show hidden icons” arrow to reveal it).
Step 2. Typically, Windows Defender quarantines items in the “Virus & threat protection,” so choose that option (but you might need to go to “Firewall” or “App control” in some scenarios).
Step 3. Click on “Protection history” under the “Current threats” section.
Step 4. In the filter, select the option “Quarantined items.”
Step 5. Select the item, then click on “Restore.” This will put the file back in the original destination file (typically the folder where your browser saves downloaded files).
Alternative: Add an Exclusion to the Item for the Future
If you need to periodically download the same or similar file and Windows Defender has quarantined it before, it usually will do so again every time it runs in the background. You can add an exception that checks the file name and source to bypass the security check entirely.
Step 1. Go to “Virus & threat protection” in Windows Security.
Step 2. Select “Manage settings” in the “Virus & threat detection settings” category.
Step 3. Scroll down and click on “Add or remove exclusions,” then confirm the User Account Control.
Step 4. Click on “Add exclusion,” select the type of file you need to exclude, then find it on your drive or enter the extension code.
Option 2: Use the Windows Downloader to Zip up Quarantined Files
If you’re not sure about running the file once de-quarantined, you can restore Windows Defender quarantine items directly into a ZIP file, where they can be locked under a password and moved to a different PC. This is an option available for Defender Endpoint users, which is typically an enterprise solution built into Microsoft 365.
Step 1. Locate Windows Defender (similarly to Option 1).
Step 2. Check your quarantine for locked items (under “Protection history”).
Step 3. Choose the “Download” option from the response choices. You’ll get a small popup that can prompt you to enter a password for the new ZIP and list a reason for file being restored from quarantine.
The ZIP will be deposited in place of the original item in its previous location.
