The Complete Guide: Can I Run Avast with Smadav on One Computer?

September 11, 2025 Post a Comment

Review Security - The question of whether you can run Avast with Smadav on a single machine is more than a simple query; it's a gateway to understanding cybersecurity fundamentals. This complete guide provides a definitive answer, detailing the significant risks of an improper setup and a step-by-step method to make them coexist safely, ensuring robust protection without sacrificing system performance.

Imagine your computer is a high-value vault. To protect it, you hire a globally renowned security firm, Avast. They install state-of-the-art surveillance, employ highly trained guards for every entrance, and use an advanced intelligence network to predict and neutralize threats before they even arrive. You feel secure. But then, you hear about a local specialist, Smadav, a small, unassuming firm with an almost legendary reputation for spotting a very specific type of intruder who uses forged delivery uniforms, a tactic the big firm, in its focus on larger threats, sometimes overlooks. This is the digital equivalent of malware spreading via USB sticks.

The impulse is immediate and seems entirely logical: hire them both. Double the protection, cover all the bases. What could be more secure? So you put both teams on duty. The problem is, they have different protocols, different communication systems, and no established chain of command. The result is not heightened security, but chaos. Guards from both firms challenge each other in the hallways, security systems conflict and trigger false alarms, and the simple act of a legitimate employee entering the building grinds to a halt amid the confusion. This is the reality of running two antivirus programs without a clear, deliberate strategy.

The Allure of Layered Security: Why This Question is So Common

The desire to combine Avast and Smadav stems from a valid and intelligent security concept: defense in depth. No single security solution is infallible. The global cybersecurity landscape is a constantly shifting battlefield, and a threat that evades one product's detection methods might be caught by another's. Independent IT security institutes like AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives, in their regular 2024 and 2025 reports, consistently demonstrate that while top products are excellent, their detection scores can vary against different types of malware.

This is where the combination becomes so tempting. Avast is a powerhouse of broad-spectrum protection. It excels at defending against the most significant global threats: ransomware that encrypts your entire life, spyware that steals your financial data, and phishing attacks that trick you into revealing your passwords. It is the frontline defense against the vast, interconnected threats of the internet.

Smadav, on the other hand, built its reputation in a different arena. It is a master of the local threat, particularly the kind of self-propagating worms and script-based viruses that run rampant on shared USB drives in universities, print shops, and corporate offices. It is uniquely skilled at repairing the specific system damage this type of malware causes, like restoring hidden files or fixing a corrupted registry. For many, this is not a theoretical threat; it is a daily, tangible risk. The idea of pairing Avast’s global shield with Smadav’s specialized toolkit feels like the ultimate security posture.

The Collision Course: Why Two Active Antiviruses Cause Chaos

Before we can build a solution, we must dissect the problem. The conflict does not arise from the two programs simply disliking each other. It stems from the fundamental way that modern antivirus software works. The core of both Avast and Smadav is a real-time protection engine, and this is where the battle begins.

This engine is not a normal application. It integrates itself deep within the operating system's kernel, the most privileged and central part of the system. This is the digital equivalent of a VIP pass to your system's most secure areas. This deep access is necessary for the engine to intercept and scan every single file and process in real time, before it can execute and cause harm. When you have only one engine, this is a highly efficient security process. When you have two, it is a recipe for disaster.

The Battle for System Resources

When you try to open a file, both active engines leap into action simultaneously. They both demand CPU cycles to run their scanning algorithms and both demand RAM to load their virus definitions. Most critically, they both try to read the file from your hard drive or SSD at the exact same moment. This creates a resource conflict that can bring your system to its knees. It is not just slower; it can feel like you have downgraded your computer by a decade.

The Gridlock of System Freezes

Worse than a slowdown is a complete freeze. In their race to scan a file, one program may "lock" it to ensure its integrity during analysis. As the second program tries to do the same, it finds the file locked and waits. But that second program may have already locked another system resource that the first one now needs to complete its scan. The result is a deadlock. Both programs are stuck waiting for each other, and the application you were trying to use, along with potentially your entire operating system, becomes completely unresponsive.

The Paradox of Friendly Fire

Perhaps the most dangerous outcome is when your security tools turn on each other. From a purely behavioral standpoint, the actions of an antivirus engine, hooking into the kernel and manipulating files, look suspiciously like the actions of a sophisticated virus. Avast’s advanced behavioral shield might detect Smadav’s deep system integration as a potential rootkit and attempt to quarantine it. Smadav could see Avast’s constant file access as ransomware-like behavior and try to block it. This infighting does not make you safer; it creates gaping holes in your defense.

The Blueprint for Harmony: A Step-by-Step Configuration Guide

Given these severe risks, does this mean the answer to can I run Avast with Smadav is a definitive no? Not quite. The answer is no if you run them both with default settings. The answer becomes yes, but only if you follow a precise configuration that redefines their relationship from competitors to collaborators.

The entire strategy hinges on one principle: there can only be one real-time protector. One program must be the active, 24/7 guard, while the other must be transformed into a passive, on-demand specialist that you call upon only when needed.

Step 1: Establish Your Primary Defense with Avast

Always begin by installing Avast. If you have both already installed, the best practice is to uninstall both, restart your PC, and start fresh. Install Avast and allow it to fully update and run an initial scan. Confirm that its Core Shields are active. This establishes Avast as the undisputed primary security provider for your system.

Step 2: Install Smadav as a Secondary Tool

With Avast firmly in place, you can now install Smadav. Download the installer from the official source and proceed through the setup.

Step 3: The Critical Configuration to Prevent Conflict

This is the most important step in the entire guide. Once Smadav is installed, you must immediately disable its real-time protection.

Open the main Smadav window.
Look for a tab or section on the left-hand side labeled "Protect" or a similar term.
In this section, you will find the master switch for its real-time scanner. It might be a large button or a checkbox. You must turn this off. The status indicator should change from a green "Protected" to a red or grey "Unprotected."

By performing this one action, you have prevented the core conflict. Smadav will no longer load its active scanning engine on startup and will not fight Avast for control over your files.

Step 4: Setting Mutual Exclusions for Perfect Stability (Recommended)

To ensure the two programs never interfere with each other, even during manual scans, you can set up mutual exclusions. This is like giving each security team a list of the other's personnel and telling them, "these people are friendly; ignore them."

In Avast: Go to Menu > Settings > Exceptions. Add an exception for the entire Smadav installation folder (usually in C:\Program Files\SMADAV).
In Smadav: Find the "Settings" or "Exception List" area and add an exception for the Avast installation folder (usually in C:\Program Files\Avast Software).

A New Workflow: Using Your Layered Security Correctly

With this setup, your PC will be stable and fast. Avast will handle all day-to-day threats automatically. Smadav will sit dormant, using no resources. Your job is now to deploy your specialist tool correctly.

When you receive a USB drive, your new process should be:

Plug in the USB drive.
Do not open it.
Instead, navigate to "This PC," right-click on the USB drive's icon, and select "Scan with Smadav" from the context menu.
Let Smadav perform its targeted scan. It will use its specialized engine to find and remove any threats.
Only after Smadav gives the all-clear should you open the drive to access its files.

In the final analysis, the ability to run Avast with Smadav is not a simple yes or no. It is a question of strategy and user discipline. For the average user, a single, powerful antivirus like Avast is more than enough. But for those who understand the risks and are willing to manage their tools actively, this guide provides the blueprint for creating a truly formidable and layered defense without sacrificing the performance and stability of the system you are trying to protect.