Avast is one of the most popular Anti-Virus software’s out there. This Czech-based company offers you protection from internal and external threats, both as a free and a paid membership package. And though this software has compatibility with all the major platforms out there such as Windows, MAC, Android, etc, It still does run into some problems where your Avast software just Won’t Open.
This problem is mostly found in Windows-based Operating Systems. But that does not mean the problem lies with the Operating System itself. There can be a number of reasons as to why this software is not opening.
Some are due to Windows, while some might be because of the program or its installation process.
In this article, we will cover how to Fix: Avast Won’t Open on Windows 10 in 2022.
Before we start, if you do not have the time to go through the entire list, here is a quick fix for your problem.
If Avast Won’t Open, this might be because a previous session might still be running in the background. In order to close that, you can Restart your PC or Laptop. Or you can open the Task Manager using “Control Alt Delete”, and then ending the task from there. If the Anti Virus is not opening, you would then need to Disable the Avast Anti-Virus and then Re-enable it again.
Table of Contents
Avast won’t Open – Possible Fixes
| 1. Windows 10 Action Center Does not Recognize Avast |
| 2. Repair Avast |
| 3. Restart Avast Anti-Virus |
| 4. Set Date & Time to Automatic |
| 5. Make Sure Avast is Updated |
| 6. Repairing Corrupted Files |
| 7. Using PC Repair Tools |
| 8. Installing and Uninstalling |
Fixes for Avast Won’t Open
1. Windows 10 Action Center Does not Recognize Avast
This is a pretty common problem to happen. Where you might get a notification that says something like “Windows did not find an Anti-Virus Program“. This is because Windows comes with its own software called “Windows Defender“. It does the same job as Avast.
If this is the problem, there are two very easy fixes for this.
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a) Disable and Re-Enable Avast
To do this, you don’t even need to open Avast.
i) Just go to your taskbar > Find Avast
ii) Right Click on the app
iii) Go to the option of “Avast Shield Control”
iv) And then Click on the option of “Disable for 10 minutes”
v) On the Pop Window that appears > Click on “Okay Stop”
vi) Once you have done this, you can just follow the same options again and in the end, Click on the option of “Enable all shields”
This is going to help Windows recognize Avast as the Anti-Virus Program. But if still are having this problem, you can go for the other option of
b) Verifying WMI Repository
To do this,
i) Go to your Search Bar > Type “Command Prompt”
ii) Right Click on it > Click on “Run as Administrator” OR you could Press “Windows + R” > Type “cmd”
iii) In the window that appears, Type “winmgmt /verifyrepositor” and then Press “Enter”
iv) If then it says WMI is consistent, Type the following “winmgmt /resetrepository”
v) But if it says WMI is inconsistent, then Type “winmgmt /salvagerepository”
vi) Press “Enter”
vii) If the following message appears for you “WMI Repository has been Reset/Salvaged or Rebuilt“, then Restart your PC or Laptop and Windows will start to recognize this software.
2. Repair Avast
You might need to Repair the program if in the process of installation something went wrong. Thankfully, Avast offers an option of Repair within the app.
All you need to do is,
i) Go to the your Search Bar > Type “Add or Remove Programs”
ii) Find Avast in the list > Click on it Or you could also Click on the “Settings” option after you Click on the Windows option on the Bottom of your taskbar > Choose the option that says “Apps”
iii) Once you have the list opened, Find the software in the list
iv) And then Click on Uninstall
v) That would open up a Window for you which will give you 3 different options.
vi) Out of the 3, Choose the Option that says “Repair”
vii) Confirm the Process when Avast Asks you for it. And then
viii) Reboot your PC/Laptop
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3. Restart Avast Anti-Virus
There are a few ways to Restart the Anti-Virus Program. This will make sure that if there are any previously running sessions, they get closed. As sometimes those sessions are what keep programs from running properly.
a) Re-Starting Avast through Properties
To do this, you can use one of two methods, the quicker is to Press “Windows + R” and then Typing “Services.msc”
OR you could Open “Control Panel” through your Search Bar or Settings. Once opened, you would then need to change “View by” from Categories to Large icons and then clicking on “Administrative Tools”. You will then need to further Find “Services” and then Click on it too.
i) Once services are opened, Find “Avast Anti-Virus”
ii) Right Click on the app
iii) Click on Properties
iv) After that, first Click on the option of “Stop” and then,
v) Click on the option of “Start”. This should restart your Anti-Virus software.
Before Leaving,
vii) Choose the option of “Automatic” for Startup Type. This will ensure that this Anti-Virus starts automatically every time you open your PC or Laptop.
b) Using Task Manager to Restart Avast
i) In order to do this, you simply either need to Press “Control Alt Delete” or Write “Task Manager” in the Search bar.
ii) Once this has been done, you will then need to Find “Avast Anti-Virus” in the list.
iii) Once found, Right Click on the app
iv) And then Click on “End Task”
This will ensure that if you have any previous running sessions for the software, they get closed. When this is done, you simply need to Open the app again.
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c) Restarting Your PC
Another way to make sure that you do not have any sessions running in the background is to Restart your PC. This will shut down all the processes that are running.
Simply just Click on the Windows option, then on the Power Option and then either Restart or Shut Down.
The speed for this option mainly depends on what type of Hard Drive you have. If you have a Solid State Drive, this option will prove to be more efficient and quick for you.
4. Set Date & Time to Automatic
Sometimes when software’s need to interact with the internet, not having the correct Date and Time can stop the app form opening or working. And as Avast is one of those apps, this might be the reason for why this Anti-Virus App is not working.
For this,
i) Go to “Search Bar“, and then Type “Date and Time”
ii) Then Click on “Change the Date and Time”
iv) Finally, Turn On the option of “Set Time Automatically”
This can also be done by Pressing “Windows and I” together OR
Right clicking on Time & Date, on the Bottom Right side of the Taskbar.
There is a slim chance that this might be the reason for why Avast Premier Won’t Open as the Date and Time only get messed up when and if you either get a new Windows installed or there is a virus that is messing it up.
5. Make Sure Avast is Updated
If this is the problem then you do not need to worry as it is pretty straight forward.
First,
i) Go to the Search bar
ii) Type “Add or Remove Programs” and then Click on “Add or Remove Programs”
iii) Find the App in the list
iv) Click on the App
v) Press “Uninstall”
Once done, just choose the option of Modify rather than Uninstall and the software will update itself for you.
6. Repairing Corrupted Files
As Avast is an internet-based application that you have to download and then install, corrupted files could be behind the reason as to why it might not open. Though thankfully, Windows offers a built-in tool that you can use to scan your PC for any corrupted or missing files.
This ends up becoming a major reason as if the files are not complete, the program won’t be able to work or open properly. Though, once you have found the missing or corrupted file, all that is left for you is to go and download this file from the internet. Once done, you will be able to run the program on your PC or Laptop.
To use the System File Checker Tool in windows,
i) In the Search Bar Type “Windows Command Prompt” OR Press “Windows and R”
ii) After that, Type “cmd”
iii) You can either then Type “sfc /scannow” OR “sfc /verifyonly”
Just Press Enter and the tool will start its work.
7. Using PC Repair Tools
If you have tried all the above-mentioned methods when Avast won’t Open and none seem to have worked, then the problem might be with your Hardware components rather than the app itself. But even for your hardware, if some files are missing or something is corrupted, the fix is not hard at all.
This is a common problem that people run into. Especially because of how we are always connected to the internet. And so some virus might have come through to your PC or Laptop too.
Though Windows does not offer a specific tool that you use for this problem, there are numerous tools present on the market today. But out of all of these, we would recommend for you to use the FixWin Tool for Windows.
FixWin is a free to use tool that can be downloaded easily without any hassle. And with its reliability and effectiveness, this tool will help you out even in the future if you are to run into this sort of problem.
8. Uninstall & Install
At last, the only resort that you have left is to Uninstall and then Reinstall the software again. That is if nothing else that we have mentioned in this list has worked for you. This is a solid option to go for as this will make sure that all the right files are downloaded and installed again.
First, we will Uninstall and then move on to Reinstalling.
Uninstall
To Uninstall Avast Anti-Virus,
i) First Go to the Search bar
ii) Type “Add or Remove Programs” and then Click on “Add or Remove Programs”
iii) Find the App in the list
iv) Click on the App
v) Press “Uninstall” and then wait for a few minutes
Once done, you can Install the Avast Anti-Virus again.
Install
i) Go to the Website, http://avast.com
ii) you will then need to just Click on the Button that says “Download”
The website also offers their own instructions on what to do next too. They are as follows:
iii) Once you do, the software will start downloading
iv) Then you need to Click on the pop-up of Avast on the bottom of your screen or you could go to your “Downloads” and Click on the Icon there.
v) When you have done this and given permission, you will see this pop up on your screen.
vi) Give it a few minutes. Once it is done loading up, you just need to Click on “Install”
The rest of the Installation will finish in the background and you won’t need to worry about that.
Once it finishes, you will see this Pop up window, and you will get an option to get it scanned too.
FAQs
There are a few reasons as to why Avast won’t Open on your PC. These reasons could either be that it is not being recognized by the Windows, or some files are missing for either the app or your hardware. in the above article, we have mentioned all the causes and their fixes too.
Avast is one of the most popular Anti Viruses out there right now. They are widely compatible with all the different Operating Systems out there too. Meaning that this program is a reliable Anti-Virus App that you can download for your hardware if you do not have any other Anti-Virus in place. It will help keep you safe from internal and external threats all together.