Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) has just been released so I thought I’d throw up a quite guide on how to get it and do the install (this is very basic folks, as the product is really simply put together, but some people like this stuff).

• Go to http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/ and click the big Download Now icon
• Select your location and which version of Windows you have
• Download and run or just Run the setup file, you’ll be prompted to allow the install by User Account Control in most cases
• Read and accept the Ts&Cs by clicking Next and I accept

• MSE can ONLY be installed on a legal version of Windows (yet another reason to stay legal kids) so you next have to accept validation by clicking Validate you will be told if your version passes.  Click the Install button to begin, it’s very quick under 2 minutes for me.

• Finally you’ll have option of scanning your machine, I recommend you do!

• Now that MSE is installed it will download updates, this for me took around 3 minutes on a 10mbit connection and once complete a scan will start, the time the scan takes will vary according to what you have on your PC, the more stuff the longer it’ll take.

The end.  That’s all their is to installing it, and whilst that scan is running you’ll notice that you can use your PC and you can play with settings in MSE if you’d like.