Windows defender-not updating-Engine unavailable

Ghot said:

You can play around with defender for a few days or weeks, or you could do an In-Place upgrade and be done in about 40 minutes.

@Ghot, you made me a Guru and now you have to make me a Super Guru ( just kidding) . Just a few hours ago I solved it and believe it or not, I believe no one else on this earth had done it before and it took me only five days that too in brief bursts now and then since I have many other things to do to keep my heart beating - but in the end I am happy that I could do it.

Try3 said:

He has not been doing a Repair install ever since post #2 so he is unlikely to bother now.
#2
#5
#7
#15
#26
#33
and now #36


All the best,
Denis

jumanji is a very obstinate person. And I told you that it is going to be the last option. And not to incur your curse , whole morning I just downloaded the ISO for a rainy day. But today it was not. Exactly @1805 Indian Standard Time - now it is 2203) I had this screen telling me all is well now. No engine missing. And I didn't run a repair install.



This is only a preview. Full view in my next post. Now I just want to make my Bialetti Moka Pot coffee, listen to some music, blare out in "What are you listening", and go to sleep.

zbook said:

Please run and post results using share links: one drive, drop box, or google drive


Tuneup_plus_log.bat ─ Click here to go to the BSOD batch repository to download and run this batch file.




Administrative Powershell:

Get-computerrestorepoint


Malwarebytes 14d trial version can turn off Microsoft Defender.
The free version does not turn off Microsoft Defender.

You can temporarily uninstall Malwarebytes and then reinstall to see if it makes any difference.
https://support.malwarebytes.com/hc/...s-Support-Tool

Once you've got a running Microsoft defender please run the offline scan.

@zbook, you seem to have some charm with you! You just entered and it got resolved . (touchwood)

jumanji said:

And not to incur your curse

The only Windows curse I know of is S0 Modern standby and that depends on your computer maker not me.

jumanji said:

I had this screen telling me all is well now.

Did you note the actions you had just been taking or screenshot the screen?

Glad it's fixed,
All the best,
Denis

hdmi said:

Did the dice read five? Or eight?

Can't read. Lost my spectacles.


@Try3,

C:ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Defender

-RemoveDefinitions -All --- No engine/signature is currently loaded. Engine version:0.0.0.0



-Remove Definitions -Engine --- No engine/signature is currently loaded. Engine version:0.0.0.0



Copied the folders "Definition Updates" and "Platform" (C:ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Defender) on my Dell Desktop to a pendrive

Backed up the two folders on the HP laptop as backup to the same pen drive - just incase I need to restore those (after deleteing the files in it ).

Tried to delete the files in the 'Definition" updates and "Platform" folders in the HP laptop.

Windows yelled at me "You idiot, don't you know you require permission from SYSTEM to make changes to this folder?" I said "OK chum, I will put you to sleep and gag your mouth"

Plugged in the Macrium Reflect WinPE pendrive and the pendrive where I had saved the the two folders from my Dell laptop, booted into MR WinPE, navigated to the "Definition Updates" and "Platform' folders and deleted all the files in it. Copied the files from my Dell laptop to the respective folders on the C: drive, closed Macrium Reflect and Voila! all done when the HP laptop booted.



Success. All is well now. No more engine unavailable message





Proof of the pudding is in eating.( Oops its lunch time and I am already hungry)
Luckily the latest Security intelligence was available and Windows update downloaded and installed it


Updating:


Update finished





The end.

A thanksgiving post after lunch.

@zbook,

I have been using Techsmith's Snagit Snagit = The Best Screen Capture Software (Free Trial) | TechSmith since 2010 and updating it regularly. It doesn't offer a free version. Only a free trial version with full features for 15 days.

My wife's HP laptop does not have Snagit. The screenshots were taken with the Windows Snippig Tool , and later edited and annotated with Snagit on my Dell desktop.

@Try3 , thank you for your untiring help. With your interaction, I learnt quite a few things that helped me to further unravel this problem.

@hdmi , thank you for the humour that kept me in humour throuhgout.

@Callender , Thank you for your suggestion to reset WU Engine. I had once reset the softwaredistribution folder when Windows update failed on my Desktop. I will keep the script in mind, when it happens again. In this case however I was pretty sure it is not a problem with Windows Update. The culprit was the Defender update engine.

@Fabler2 , Thank you for introducing 'Everything' search (Voidtools) . I shall run it on the Desktop and laptop when time permits. I have put it into my Todo list. I have a long list .

@Ghot , thank for your pop-up toast - drink to health-. You were obstinate to do a repair install, till you did it. I may also follow your footsteps .

Even before you goaded me into it , I had read our esteemed member EdTittel saying "Whether you’re trying to fix a BSOD such as a IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL or a CRITICAL_PROCESS_DIED error, serious Windows 10 troubleshooting is like plunging down the rabbit hole in Alice in Wonderland. At some point you may feel like you’ve taken on more than you can handle, you’re in a strange place, and the ultimate outcome is far from certain. That’s why I always keep track of the time I spend on troubleshooting, with a definite exit strategy in mind. Should the weeds get too thick to hack through, or the circumstances become too vexing or dire, that exit strategy will work to solve most problems that require troubleshooting in the first place."
His exit policy - Repair install

How to Fix Windows 10 with a 30-Minute Repair Install | Tom's Hardware by @EdTittel

He is a very busy person always exploring many things Windows.. I am only a busybody and can afford to troubleshoot for weeks on a single problem . My wife rarely uses that HP laptop. She has an old Windows 7 laptop in her room.

I researched opening all folders in Windows Defender in both the machines, had seen "eng" appear in two folders and got a handle. Rest is history now as documented here.

@zbook, Thank you. I told you that you have a charm.

The list ends there.

AdvancedSetup said:

Well, I see I'm late to the game but perhaps next time.

The Farbar Service Scanner would have probably been the best tool to originally run so that you could ensure what services were running or not that are related to it as well as MD5 hashes of the files.

Then go on from there to either fix registry or file or permission issues as needed.

In the end, though it looks like you got it working and that's what really counts.

After the repair operations I did, everything is fixed and is alright. Windows Update and Security Intelligence updates through Windows Update (the problem) are working perfectly now.. So I would think there is no need for any further troubleshooting like checking the Services etcetera. Thanks for chipping in.