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I'm installing MSE on a XP Professional SP3 PC. After the initial install and update, an error pops up:

Microsoft Security Essentials cannot start real-time protection
This operation has been cancelled due to timeout error
Error code: 0x800705b4

I'm translating from the original spanish error message:

Security Essentials no pudo activar la protección en tiempo real
Esta operación ha regresado debido a que el tiempo de espera ha caducado
...

I tried uninstalling / reinstalling with no luck, all the posts I found on the subject suggests problems with active malware or posible interactions with other anti-mailware software: it isn't my case, I did a fresh Windows XP SP3 installation before install MSE.

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  • Are you sure the current version of MSE even supports Windows XP? This indicates either an incapatability with Windows XP or your Windows installation is corrupt.
    – Ramhound
    Nov 9, 2012 at 13:32
  • I used the same pre-downloaded installer that works fine over more than a dozen XP installations.
    – PabloG
    Nov 9, 2012 at 13:43
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    Are there any other real-time anti-malware products installed? If so, try removing them (list of removal tools). Also try downloading the latest version of the installer from Microsoft.com and going through this checklist before installing.
    – Indrek
    Nov 9, 2012 at 14:20
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    Is your clock (Time, Date and Timezone) properly set? Was the install media a standard Windows XP install, or an OEM restore disk full of bloatware? Are all Windows Updates up-to-date? Nov 9, 2012 at 14:28
  • @Indrek: as said in the original post, it's a fresh Windows installation: no malware, no anti-malware. I downloaded the latest MSE from the MS site, same result
    – PabloG
    Nov 9, 2012 at 17:32

2 Answers 2

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I believe the update is failing and timing out is due to the fact there is no server/service to answer the request. The problem is the fact you are trying to install an unsupported product on an unsupported operating system. Support for Windows XP ended on April 8, 2014. Not only that, Microsoft Security Essentials was replaced by Windows Defender long ago. The only operating systems that Microsoft still supports Microsoft Security Essentials on Windows Vista and Windows 7. When those go out of support, MSE will be gone with them.

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This is usually an indication of some sort of conflict. Sometimes it has to do with software you did not install. For instance, Adobe, Google and others send smaller programs with updates unless you choose not to install (like toolbars). Because of that, there is not one fix for all instances of this issue.

Below is a great answer in the Microsoft Community which should be very helpful to you to troubleshoot your way through this.

Can't turn on MSE: error code 0x800705b4

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  • You said it right. It will be a sort of complication from some other application.
    – TomJ
    Apr 7, 2014 at 1:44

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