What Does a Boot Scan Do?
When a cyber-attack makes its way into your computer, it can hide in a variety of ways. Many antivirus programs can detect malware through regular scans or real-time protection. However, a boot time scan is more thorough and can detect threats that are hidden.
A boot scan analyzes the computer system at a very early stage, before it starts the Windows operating system. This allows the software detect malware that is hidden and not disrupt normal operation. Avast’s boot scanner feature offers several options for dealing with threats identified in the scan, including making the files repairable immediately and moving them to the Disease Chest or quarantine, and then deleting them.
It can take a while to run a boot check. To accelerate the process it’s best to disable any non-essential startup software and unplug external hard drives or USB devices. This will decrease the risk of conflict and let the scan concentrate on internal storage. It’s also an ideal idea to allocate some time during the day when you won’t be using your computer for any other purpose, so that the boot process can run without interruption.
To enable the boot scan, go to the Avast user interface, and then click Settings (the gear icon). Select Protection > Scan settings, and check the option to scan for boot time. Then, set the options to your preference and click OK. The Avast Boot-Time Scan is a powerful program to protect your PC from malware and to provide a more efficient computing environment.