[Fixed] Antimalware Service Executable High Disk, CPU, or Memory Usage

If you noticed that the Antimalware Sevice Executable high disk usage occurs, rest assured, you're not alone. Many Windows 10 users are encountering Antimalware Sevice Executable high memory problems. More importantly, you can fix this problem by yourself with simple solutions here. 

Besides, at the end of this article, we recommend a free partition management tool to help you easily create, resize, clone, move, merge, and format partitions to improve computer performance.

Antimalware Service Executable High CPU/Disk/Memory Usage

Windows 10 comes with a built-in antivirus feature, which is Windows Defender. The Antimalware Service Executable process is Windows Defender's background process. This program is also known as MsMpEng.exe and is part of the Windows operating system. You can find this on the Details tab in your Task Manager.

Antimalware Service Executable is responsible for checking files for malware whenever you access them, performing background system scans to check for dangerous software, installing antivirus definition updates, and doing anything else a security application like Windows Defender needs to do. Its scanning relies heavily on your computer's CPU, that's why you find Antimalware Service Executable high CPU, huge disk, memory, RAM, and even network bandwidth, draining computer resources, especially after getting a Windows 10 update.

How to Fix Antimalware Service Executable High CPU/Disk Usage

If the Antimalware Sevice Executable process takes up high CPU on your Windows 10, don't worry. We have easy solutions for you to deal with it. Now, read this article in-depth and try the easy methods to fix the problem.

Fix 1. Change Windows Defender's Scheduling Options

Change Windows Defender's schedule is an effective way because the error is mainly caused by the real-time protection feature. Follow the details below and fix the Antimalware Service Executable high disk usage issue.

Step 1. Press Windows key + R at the same time to invoke the Run box. Type taskschd.msc and press Enter.

Step 2. Double-click on "Task Scheduler Library" > "Microsoft" > "Windows".

Step 3. Find and expand "Windows Defender". Then double-click "Windows Defender Scheduled Scan".

Step 4. Uncheck "Run with highest privileges" on the property window. 

Step 5. Uncheck all the items in the "Conditions" section. Then click "OK".

With the steps above, your error should be fixed now. If, unfortunately, it doesn't help you, make sure to try the second solution below.

Fix 2. Add Antimalware Service Executable to Windows Defender's Exclusion List

Step 1. Press the Windows logo key + I at the same time to open the Settings window. Click "Update & security".

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Step 2. Click "Windows Defender". Then click "Add an exclusion" in Exclusions.

Step 3. Click "Exclude a .exe, .com or .scr process".

Step 4. Type MsMpEng.exe. Then click "OK".

Fix 3. Disable Windows Defender

When your Windows defender got corrupted by being overworked due to continuous file scanning, Antimalware Service Executable high CPU issue may be settled by disabling Windows defender.

Step 1. Press Windows Key + R to open the Run Dialog Box.

Step 2. In the Run Dialog Box, type regedit and click "OK" to open the Registry Editor.

Step 3. In the navigation pane on the left, double-click the folders to navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender.

Step 4. If you find a registry entry named DisableAntiSpyware, double-click it and set its value data to 1.

Note: If you do not see a registry entry named DisableAntiSpyware, right-click in the main Registry Editor pane and select "New" > "DWORD (32 bit) Value". Name this new registry entry DisableAntiSpyware. Double click it and set its value data to 1.

Fix 4. Update Device Drivers 

Is your Windows 10 still running slow after trying the above? You can also try to update all your available device drivers. The latest drivers can keep your computer running stable and quickly.

You can manually update your device drivers manually by going to the manufacturer's website and searching for the most recent correct driver for the exact device. Make sure to choose drivers that are compatible with your variant of Windows system versions.

Antimalware Service Executable High CUP Conclusions

Did these four solutions help to fix Antimalware Service Executable high disk usage matter in Windows 10? Windows Defender is a free and valuable tool to protect your computer from a virus attack, but it can certainly eat up your CPU. By following the methods in this article, you'll be able to fix the Antimalware Service Executable high CPU, disk, or memory usage issue and keep your computer running at full speed. 

Bonus Tip: How to Partition Hard Drives on Windows 10/8/7 for Free

When we use a computer, we all want it to perform at its best. Disk management is an important way to enhance system performance. EaseUS Partition Master Free makes it effortless to partition hard drives and take full advantage of your disk space. It provides other one-stop partition and disk management solutions for Windows 10/8/7, for instances:

• Resize/move partitions (the Pro version allows to move space from D drive to C drive directly), create, format, delete, and merge partitions
• Copy and clone an entire disk to another even the target partition is smaller than the source
• Convert a logical partition to primary or primary partition to logical, FAT to NTFS partition, MBR disk to GPT, or GPT disk to MBR
• Completely wipe out all the data on the hard disk to prevent information from being leaked or recovered

The following steps show how to resize and move partitions effortlessly and securely with this renowned partition management software.

 

Step 1: Locate the drive/partition

Which drive/partition do you want to adjust its size? Right-click on it and choose "Resize/Move".

Step 2: Resize the partition

You can either shrink the selected partition or extend it.

To shrink the partition, simply use your mouse to drag one of its ends into unallocated space. Expand the "Advanced Settings" list, where you can see the exact disk space for each partition. Once done, click "OK".

Fig. 1 Unallocated space before the drive.

Fig. 2 Unallocated space after the drive.

To extend the partition, make sure that there is unallocated space aside (if there isn't, follow the above steps to create some). In the same way, drag your mouse towards the unallocated space. Click "OK".

Fig. 3 Add unallocated space into the partition

Step 3: Apply changes

At this step, you will see the new disk partition information & diagram.

To save changes, click the "Execute Operation" button and then "Apply".

FAQs About Antimalware Service Executable High Disk or High CPU

Here are the five top frequently asked questions related to the antimalware service executable. If you also have any of these problems, you can find the methods here. 

Why does antimalware service executable use so much disk?

Antimalware service executable high disk CPU is mostly caused by the real-time feature that can constantly scan files, connections, and other related applications in real-time. Whenever you download new files or any software or access any files, the antimalware keeps scanning everything to check whether it is malicious or not. It acts quickly, which leads to the problem of high memory and high CPU usage.

How do I fix antimalware service executable high disk usage?

There are four feasible methods you can use to fix antimalware service executable high disk usage problem:

• Change Windows Defender's Scheduling Options
• Add Antimalware Service Executable to Windows Defender's Exclusion List
• Disable Windows Defender
• Update Device Drivers 

Can I end the antimalware service executable?

If you are suffering from antimalware service executable high CPU usage, disk, memory usages problem on your Windows, you can turn off the real-time protection. You can end antimalware service executable on your PC. If you can't end this task on your PC, you'll have to disable or delete Windows Defender from your PC to solve the problem.

Is Antimalware Service Executable a virus?

Antimalware Service Executable is not a virus. Windows 10 offers Windows Defender, Microsoft’s built-in antivirus. It is actually is a core process of Windows Defender antivirus. As long as you're using Windows and have Windows Defender enabled, it will be running all the time.

Why is my disk usage at 100?

If you see a very high disk usage, that means something else is not quite right. First, you can check your disk usage by opening the Task Manager in Windows 10. On the main process tab, you'll see a quick overview of CPU, memory, disk, and network utilization.

To fix Windows 10 100% disk usage issue, you can:

• Restart your system  
• Check anti-virus software  
• Update windows 10  
• Check disk error  
• Stop the superfetch service
• Clean up junk files and running memory
• Reset virtual memory and increase the ram
• Perform a clean boot on windows 10
• Upgrade the hard drive to a larger one