When a download is blocked

Some downloads from this site are blocked by Edge, and then warned about again by Windows when you run them. Nothing is wrong with the file. This page explains why it happens and what to press.

Why it happens

The installers here are not code signed. A code signing certificate is a paid yearly subscription that puts a verified name on a program, and until one is in place Windows has no way to tell who wrote the file.

SmartScreen, which is the part of Edge and Windows doing the blocking, also counts how many people have downloaded a program before. A new program almost nobody has installed yet is treated as suspicious purely because it is new. That easing happens on its own as more people download it.

This is not a virus warning. Windows Defender scans the file separately, and if Defender had found something it would say so in different words and remove the file rather than asking you.

Only programs are affected. The NVDA add-on on this site is not a program Windows runs, so it is never blocked.

Getting past the block in Edge

The download appears in the downloads list, marked as blocked rather than finished.

1. Press Control and J together to open Downloads.
2. Move to the blocked file.
3. Open the more actions menu on that item. It is the button next to the file name, and the applications key opens it if you would rather not hunt for it.
4. Choose Keep.
5. Edge asks once more, with a short explanation and a Show more button. Choose Show more, then Keep anyway.

The file then finishes downloading and sits in your Downloads folder as normal.

Getting past the warning when it runs

The first time you run the installer, Windows shows a blue window headed "Windows protected your PC". It has one obvious button, Don't run, and the one you want is hidden.

1. Choose More info. This is a link in the body of the window, above the button.
2. The window then shows the file name and a Run anyway button.
3. Choose Run anyway.

Windows only asks this the first time. Later versions of the same program may ask again, because each new file is new to SmartScreen.

If something looks different

Edge and Windows both reword these dialogs from time to time. The shape stays the same: the option you want is never the obvious button, and it is usually behind something worded like More info, Show more, or a menu on the item itself.

If you hit a wall, the address at the bottom of this page reaches me and I would rather hear about it than have you give up on the download.