Avast not opening on Windows

Avast is among the most widely used antiviruses globally because it offers comprehensive and reliable protection to paid users, as well as, free users which is rare. It has made a reputation for being powerful and effective, thanks to the millions of people who use the service on a daily basis. The service has earned thousands of bright reviews from experts and users alike.

Nonetheless, Avast has its fair share of problems. An issue that seems to reoccur for Windows users is the Avast antivirus not opening, without an error message choice and it provides reliable protection for a free antivirus (with a paid version being available). 

Fortunately, there are several ways of fixing this problem that has proven to be successful for other users. In this simple guide, we present some of the most popular and helpful methods. We wish you good luck! Remember to follow the steps carefully. 

Why is it necessary to keep Avast Antivirus up and running?

While surfing online, we may encounter online threats such as Trojans, Ransomware, worms, and spyware that will pry on your privacy, so it’s essential always to be protected.

Thankfully, some people are fighting against these online threats through antivirus software designed to keep you and your data safe. Antiviruses are able to scan and stop all types of malware on your mobile device and computer.

Avast Antivirus is amongst the best antivirus programs in the market, thanks to its comprehensive and robust online security features and threat detection.

It was developed in Czechoslovakia in 1988 and currently has a three-decade-long legacy of protecting users against malware and providing the best in cyber security.

Over 430 million monthly users depend on Avast for their online security; it is extremely popular, reliable, and proven to work. Many experts also recommend Avast Antivirus due to its efficiency and effectiveness. 

What Are the Most Common Causes Of the Avast Will Not Open Issue on Windows?

There might be many reasons why Avast might fail to open. We intend to list a few of the most common causes so you can determine the correct issue and choose the best solution to fix the problem as soon as possible. 

Following are a couple of the prevalent reasons:

Broken Avast installation – A faulty Avast installation may cause the client to be corrupt, so Avast wont open. Although there could be other reasons for the corruption of the software on your Windows computer, issues with the installation happen frequently. Thankfully, Avast provides several repair options, including repairing or a clean installation.

Avast Antivirus service not running properly – On some occasions there are issues with the main service, thus Avast won’t open. This problem can be fixed with a simple system restart.

Solution 1: Perform An Avast Repair

If the problem has occurred during the Avast installation, it will cause Avast not opening windows 10. In this case, the best thing to do would be to perform a repair through the repair wizard program found in the Control Panel. 

This method may be complicated since it may require some readjustments and switching settings to the original suggestion. However, this technique has proven to be effective for many users. 

  • Begin by logging in to the system through the administrator account, which has the permission to delete software and make changes to programs.
  • Click the ‘Start’ menu and navigate to the ‘Control Panel’ via the search tool or go to the settings if you are using Windows 10. 
  • Once there, select the ‘View as: Category’ located in the top right corner and select ‘Uninstall a Program’ found in the ‘Programs’ section.
  • Alternatively for Windows 10 users using the ‘Settings’ app, click on Apps, which will take you to a list of all installed programs on your system.
  • Find ‘Avast’ and then click on Uninstall/Repair.
  • The ‘Uninstall Wizard’ will provide you with several options, including Update, Repair, Modify, and Uninstall. Click on ‘Repair’ and then ‘Next’ to begin fixing the installation.
  • After the repair process is finished, Avast will most likely restart in default settings to rectify the error that was preventing the program from opening.
  • Click Finish. Then restart the computer to check whether Avast opens properly.

Solution 2: Restart the Avast Antivirus Service

It is also possible that an error with the service of Avast Antivirus is stopping the client from opening. An easy solution to this problem is restarting the service. However, it is imperative that you follow the instructions closely to restart the Avast Antivirus service successfully!

  • Start “Run” utility by pressing the Windows Key + R keys on your keyboard. After starting the Run utility, type “services.msc” (without quotation marks) and click OK to open the Services tool.
  • Another method of opening the Control Panel is to locate it in the “Start” menu. Use the Start menu’s search option for further help. 
  • After opening the Control Panel, switch the “View by” option (available in the top right portion of the window) to “Large Icons”. Keep scrolling down until you locate the Administrative Tools. Select it, and you will find the Services shortcut at the bottom. Select to open this option. 
  • Find the “Avast Antivirus Service” on the list, right-click on the option and select Properties from the menu.
  • After starting the service, you should temporarily stop it by selecting the stop button that you will find in the middle of the window.
  • Ensure that the option under the Startup type menu in the service’s properties window is set to “Automatic” before proceeding to the following steps. Confirm any dialogue box that you may receive after switching the type of the startup. Select the “Start” option in the middle of the window before exiting. You might receive an error message after selecting the “Start” option.

Windows failed to start the Avast Antivirus service on Local Computer. Error 1079: The specified account for this service is different from the specified account for other services running in the same process.

In this case, the following instructions will help you fix the issue: 

  • Follow the 1-3 steps above instructions to open the service’s properties window. Go to the Log On tab and select the Browse option.
  • After that, type in your account’s name under the “Enter the object name to select” entry box. Select the name and wait for the specific name to become available. 
  • Select OK after you are done and type the password in the entry box (if you have set up a password). 

Solution 3: Perform a Clean Install

A clean install is a surefire way of fixing nearly every issue you might be facing with your Avast client, especially the Avast not working error on Windows. Thankfully performing a clean reinstall is pretty straightforward, and it works if other methods fail to fix the problem.

 A clean reinstall involves more than just a regular reinstall because it includes deleting cache files and removing related registry entries which may be the reason behind Avast not loading.

Start by downloading the newest version of the Avast installation by visiting the Avast website and clicking the ‘Download Free Antivirus’ icon located in the center of the webpage. 

  • Also, download the Avast Uninstall Utility from the website. 
  • After downloading these files, disconnect from the Internet and boot the system in Safe Mode by pressing the Windows + R key combination on your keyboard, type “msconfig” and click OK.
  • Check the Safe boot in the System Configuration window, found in the ‘Boot’ tab located at the and then press OK before restarting your computer. 
  • Once the system is in Safe mode, run the Avast Uninstall Utility and go to the folder containing Avast or keep the default settings if you installed it in the Program Files. Be sure to select the correct folder or the contents of the folder will be deleted or corrupted.
  • Click ‘Remove’ and then restart the computer in the normal mode. Check if Avast usually works.

Solution 4: Manually Run AvastEmUpdate.exe

The AvastEmUpdate.exe application is a well-known background update tool for Avast security. It will be downloaded automatically when you install the latest version of Avast antivirus. You can use a few procedures that will assist you in resolving the problem.

  • To begin, open File Explorer and double-click on the ‘This PC’ or ‘My Machine’ icon on your computer.
  • In addition, go to the following path: Program FilesAVAST SoftwareAvast. That folder is the Avast antivirus installation directory.
  • Now, double-click the ‘AvastEmUpdate.exe’ file to open it.
  • Wait a few minutes before rebooting your system.

You can also follow another process given below.

  • Open the Settings and then navigate to the ‘App & features’ area.
  • Look for the Avast free antivirus in the appropriate section and click on it. Then click the ‘Modify’ button.
  • Now, a UAC dialog box will appear; click ‘yes’ to proceed.
  • In addition, an Avast app window will appear on your screen, and you should press the ‘update’ option. Restart your computer to finish the task.

Conclusion

We hope that this simple guide helps you fix this issue, and you can open Avast antivirus on Windows 10 without an error message.

Although there are several methods to fix this error; however, the above mentioned 4 methods are our tried and tested solutions for successfully opening Avast without an error message. Please let us know which method worked for you in the comments section below.

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By Markhascole

Mark is a cyber security enthusiast. He loves to spread knowledge about cybersecurity with his peers. He also loves to travel and writing his travel diaries.

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