Riot Games’ anti-cheat system, Vanguard, has been the subject of repeated criticism since its release. The company now wants to change that and is introducing an “on-demand” option.
With League of Legends and Valorant, developer Riot Games operates two of today’s most popular online games. While the majority of users play these games the traditional way, there are also those who resort to unfair means to win or spoil the fun for their teammates and opponents.
To prevent this, Riot Games introduced its in-house anti-cheat program, Vanguard, a few years ago. This program ensures that any third-party programs or additional script applications are detected and that the respective users are banned from the outset. While this sounds like a good thing in principle, it is repeatedly the subject of critical discussion due to the system access granted to Vanguard.
Problem Area: Kernel
To prevent such discussions from arising in the first place—or at least to largely prevent them—Riot Games now allows Vanguard and the general anti-cheat protection to run “as needed.”
In plain language, this means that Vanguard is only activated when a Riot Games title is actively being played. This allows players to configure certain settings.
In doing so, the developer has achieved a feat that was previously considered impossible. Riot Games immediately explained the reason for this: It had previously been assumed that third-party software would bypass kernel protection measures even before the actual game was launched. The company now appears to have this issue under control.
The kernel is an essential core component of an operating system that, for example, controls which programs are allowed to use the CPU and when. It has special access privileges for this purpose and acts as a bridge between software and hardware.
On Demand with Restrictions
To configure the new “Vanguard on Demand” setting, players must meet several criteria.
Windows 11 must have at least Update 25H2 installed, with UEFI Mode and Secure Boot enabled. Enabling TPM 2.0 must be possible, the BIOS must be up to date, Virtualization-Based Security (VBS) and Hypervisor-Protected Code Integrity (HVCI) must be enabled, and the Input-Output Memory Management Unit (IOMMU) must be activated.
Vanguard indicates which of these requirements a system already meets and which ones users still need to adjust. However, for those who wish to run the anti-cheat software continuously or have no other option, Vanguard remains active when the operating system starts.