Scheduled Task Changing Dates

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The date for the next scan keeps advancing by one day each day to the next
day. Consequently, the Auto Scan is not taking place.

This change takes place within a few hours of the scheduled start time.

This is happening on two laptops (different brands)

Any suggestions?
 
Thanks--that's pretty interesting, and may explain some cases of failure to
scan on schedule.

I've bugged earlier, the case that when a scan time is changed, the date is
incremented as well--so that if you miss a 6 PM scan, and decide to
re-schedule for 9 PM, that scan won't happen until the next day.

Next question is what is triggering the continual changes--I wonder if the
scan time is refreshed somehow, if you make any changes to settings on a
given day?

Any ideas--from your knowledge of how these machines are used?
 
Is the date adding one day more to what it is meant to..? Do you have it set
for a daily scan? If so, after each scan, it will automatically set it to the
next date. So, if it scanned today for 3/31, it will be set for 4/1 once the
scan completes... If set for a specific day, for example Saturday, once it
finishes, it will be set automatically for one week from the scan. The
program will display the date of the last scan on the status menu on the
bottom of the application automatically at the end of any scan...

If this is set for a once a week, and the specific day of scan changes
automatically, then there could be an incremental problem with registers...a
number that controls which day is being changed somehow...which might reflect
why it wouldn't be running. Just to confirm, does the program work if you do
a manual start scan?

If this is related only to scheduling, did you ever have these programs
working normally, or did they always act like this? Have you tried
uninstalling, reinstalling, updating...? The more detail you can give about
what you did, the better. It can help more people help you. Besides what I've
said, a possible bug in the counter, I'll have to pass this one off to
someone else. If you have anything else you can give more detail, what
specific day it's set to, Moday, Tudesday, ???, what version you have of the
program (engine#), what operating system and service pack...whatever you give
may be helpful to solve the prolem for others.
 
Bill,
I have not tinkered around with the time nor the frequency. However, I have
performed a manual scan either before or after the missed time.
So, for the next day, I will not perform any manual scan and see it the date
advances.
Not sure exactly what you mean about what the machines are use for.
Internet, word, excel, powerpoint, email, photos and music.
Will get back to you on my results of not performing the manual scan.
Tks
 
JJH
Here some of the info you requested:
I have it scheduled to run daily at 9 pm
Windows Defender Version: 1.1.1051.0
Engine Version: 1.1.1303.0
Signature Version: 1.14.1361.6
Windows XP SP2

As I've stated in a post above, I have done manual scans perhaps before a
scheduled scan and definitely after a failed scheduled scan. I will avoid a
manaual scan over the next few days to determine if the scheduled scan kicks
in.
As other suggestion or info you need.
TIA
 
As I think someone said, if you miss a scan for the week, it won't scan...so
if you leave the computer on before the scheduled scan, let there be time on
either side of the scan and don't turn off the computer so that the time can
come to scan.

You have the most recent versions, just came out yesterday morning, and I
just got them. I'll see if it has anything to do with the new version since I
haven't tested it lately. But leave your computer on for the test time and
report back any errors in your event viewer to help others out determine the
exact problem. Since it is 2 different computers, it could be some software
you have on there now that I think about it. If there is some program
installed that does not work together or has a timer of its own... or if it
is connected to a network that might change the time. Try doing the same with
both computers at the same time. Do you think they both change at the same
time? Watch your event viewer... also what comes to mind is what time your
automatic update for your clock is set for... once a day, your computer will
attempt to connect to the network to syncronize time to the exact second.
Perhaps that might be something. Also, time change is this weekend. Don't
forget to consider that... one hour ahead. Any chances your computers are
already thinking of this and doing this, and for some reason, once a day it's
stuck in a loop not able to get out of it, and at that one time it adds an
hour...? Possibly? Just throwing out guesses... monitor your events for your
system and applications for any automatic changes that take place.
 
Thanks--you gave me part of what I was interested in--whether you've done
manual scans. The other part would be whether you've gone into the "general
settings" page on a given day and made other changes. I'm wondering if
there's a bug such that touching other things on that page results in the
scan date getting set forward.

I can test that myself directly, now I think of it!

I suspect this may well be something Microsoft is well aware of at this
point, but that we won't see a fix for until a revision to the UI code is
issued.

So--I think at this point I'd keep an eye on it, and also watch for
revisions to the UI code and re-check after such a rev is available.

Thanks again!

--
 
Well my theory about doing a manual scan before or after a failed schedules
task (scan) can be eliminated .

It is now Sat 4/1 7:26 pm CT and the scheduled date has changed to 4/2 at 9
pm. Orginal scan was at 4/1/ at 9 pm.
I have it set for a daily scan at 9 pm

Tonight at 7 pm I turned on my laptop for the first time today and the
scdeduled date was still showing 4/1 at 9 pm.
Yesterday, I had the laptop turn off and on several times and up until
severeal hours before the scheduled time it was still showing the current
date. Then several hours before the shedules time the date changes as it did
today

BTW: Windows on my Laptop is set to check for updates at 7 am.
 
I just went into general settings, unchecked something down near the end,
then rechecked it and hit save. The date on the scan is still tomorrow,
which is what it should be, since it is set for 9 AM.


--
 
You know what... maybe I'll try setting my scan for an assigned day and see
what happens. I have it set for Daily scan. Now, do you schedule the scan
through Windows Defender schedule or through Windows task scheduler. I'm
wondering if they are separate, then might it be the scheduler on Windows
Defender is a problem. ... Pointing to the problem is difficult, but I'll
observe my Event Viewer in Administrative tools. If you saw the change, do
the same and document any software changes that could have possibly changed
it. Even if it is unrelated, something else could be triggering the change.
Especially look at clock change time. Once a day, your computer usually goes
out to the internet to resync the system time, exact time is shown in
internet time tab in the clock app. If I see a change, then it could be a
programming error.

Just also thinking of it, does the assigned scan date change daily along
with the regular date. A counter for the change of current date could be
triggering a change in scheduled date if they used the wrong date object in
their code. Just a guess... with those new coding programs, it is easy to
pick the wrong object by accident...just another theory. I come up with a
bunch of them until I finally find the problem...
 
Just to be clear:
In Defender in Tools and General Settings the scan is set for Daily at 9 pm.
In Schedule Tasks (through the Control Panel) the scan date keeps advancing
by one day. This occurs about two hours before the schedule scan.
Consequently the scan doesn't occurs.
No, I have not tried uninstalling and reinstalling.
TIA
 
Oh, ok I gotcha! I thought you might be using a different scheduler than
Defender's.... You're using Windows scheduler for defender though? If
defender has one, why not just stick with the internal one rather than a
global version of windows, especially if Windows version keeps changing?

I'm set up to test it, midnight weekly Mondays..less than 11 hours from now.
I'll post if I see a change. Again, having 2 separate schedules could be
clashing. The counter for the one could be disrupting windows version.
Depending which schedule is first, the scan of one could effect the schedule
of the other depending on settings we can't see embedded in code. They make
programs so smart now, if Windows notices something has occurred, it will
adapt to the changes and schedule for a later date, or if a process is
currently taking place, it can't schedule a second one to occur at the same
time since the resources may be tied up. Best said most likely, you can not
run Windows defender two times. The dominant program, defender, will take
it's course as the primary defined program to schedule. It happens that it is
listed also on Windows scheduler. If it is clear that Defender is not in use,
the Windows scheduler will take its course and run. Of course, if it is
changing the actual data of the assigned time, most I guess is it is either
pushing back the time each time it tries to scan (but can't since Defender is
in constant use--windows was programmed before defender and can't adapt to
change in new technology, therefore, it just keeps pushing back further and
further, never able to get that window of opportunity to scan)... or
secondary guess, most unlikely now that I think about the first theory, some
counter is changing it, some other resource...

Really, I bet it is the reason that it can't access the new version of the
program since the program is already in use. Defender has priority as
programmed, and therefore, Windows adapts to the problem by changing the time
to get the next possible opportunity which never comes.

Since Win Defender has a scheduler, I'd suggest sticking with that one. If
Windows can't get it for me on a tower, not a notebook like yours are I think
you said, then it's either a problem with windows and Defender or it was
programmed specifically to do that. I'll reply later this week if/when I
notice a change...
 
Defender uses the Windows Scheduler. On XP, it is a hidden job--go to
advanced to set display of hidden tasks.

I suspect this will get fixed in the next UI rev, but I am curious about
what would be triggering the date change 2 hours before the scan time--this
is reminiscent of some issues with Microsoft Antispyware where a scan ran
twice at about the same time, etc....

--
 
Well here's the latest on my two laptops:
The scan ran as scheduled at 9pm tonight on my laptop.
The scan didn't run as scheduled on my wife's laptop. The date advance
about 1/2 hour before the scheduled scan.
Go Figure.
TIA
 
MAybe you still have traces of old Microsoft Antispyware program left...
possibly? If that was previously on your machine, and Defender uses some of
the same data sets, maybe conflicting time setups could be changing it. If
you had the program on there then uninstalled it once Defender came around,
something in defender and registers from either the old Antispyware or
Defender version 1 traces, if they still exist, could be doing something. If
you are comfortable, try looking through your registry for it, under
HKey_Current_User\Software\Microsoft\* (where * = name of Windows defender
(check if you had version 1 on there before) or Microsoft Antispyware... also
loook at Hkey_Local_machine\Software\Microsoft\* for traces of old software.
DO NOT EDIT THIS AT ALL! DO NOT DELETE ANYTHING! If you do have extra old
data left in there, it could be a problem between the old data registers and
the new software and it's registers. Windows could be using the registers to
attempt to run the old program, as my theory. If not there, I don't know yet.
It worked absolutely fine for me last night, to the second at midnight!
 
Well tonight, both of my laptops performed the scan according to the
scheduled time and the date did not change prior to the scheduled time.

BTW My latptop had Defender as a clean install. My wife's laptop was a
conversion from Microsoft Antispyware. Both laptops have experienced the
same "advancing date" issue.
Tks
 
There's a message from Joe Faulhaber in another group today which is
peripherally relevant to this thread. He mentions that you get a particular
message from Windows Defender when it updates the schedule, if you have the
setting checked to show changes to known apps.

From your description, I can't tell for sure--is each of these machines
essentially single-user? i.e. do you use fast user switching and multiple
logins? (or multiple logins without fast user switching?)

--
 
Bill,
Each laptop has one user. No login and passwords involved to access the
laptops.
TIA
 
So...did it ever work before, or is it the first time windows allowed it to
work by schedule? The date/time did not change at all? If that's the case,
did you have both set up for the same time? Which one was taking the setup?
The daily internal version using Defender, or Window's scheduler? I hope it
stays working. I understand if another user is signed up for the computer and
doesn't have the same schedule, logs in and doesn't share resources, that's
one thing, but if they are set up to share the data, it should work.
Normally, if you make a change on one user in Defender, it takes effect for
the entire computer, defined in the "local_machine" part of registry
(software->Microsoft)... each user has their own priorities though... so it
is defined and stored in "current_user", only available to the person who is
logged in at that time--if you were to look through "regedit"...

If it continues to work, best bet is leave it alone. Maybe there was an
update from defender also...could have done something, or the new engine just
needed a reset on the scan schedule to take effect using new version.
Sometimes its the smallest thing you don't recognize, a simple rescheduling
after the update could be the trick. Good luck with it in the future!
 
Both laptops are used exclusively by each user. No sharing, no dual logon etc.
The scheduled scans worked well on each laptop after initially setting them
up both in Defender scheduler scan and through the Scheduled Task in the
Control Panel.

Then then were a couple of days where the date would advance prior to the
schedule scan times.

BTW I have the same time set in the Defender app and the Schedule Task in
the Control Panel.
Tks
 
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