Riot Games has rolled out an optional "on-demand" mode for its Vanguard anti-cheat software, affecting titles like League of Legends and Valorant. This new feature allows Vanguard to run only when a supported game is actively being played, shutting down automatically once the game is closed. Previously, Vanguard was set to launch upon PC startup and run in the background continuously.
Phillip Koskinas, Riot's head of anti-cheat, announced the update on June 24th, stating that Vanguard’s driver component will now only initiate when a game requires it, contingent on the PC hardware meeting a set of modern security standards. "By opting into pre-boot security mechanisms and Windows’ own native protection features, Vanguard can safely end its watch," Koskinas explained. Players can opt into this mode if their system satisfies what Riot terms a "Vanguard Pre-Check."
Approximately 35% of Riot's player base is estimated to be on newer hardware that likely already meets the Windows 11 secured-core state required for the Pre-Check, enabling them to utilize the on-demand mode immediately. For players with older hardware, enabling on-demand mode will necessitate configuring several system settings. These include running Windows 11 25H2 or later, and ensuring that UEFI mode, secure boot, Trusted Platform Module (TPM) 2.0, Virtualization-Based Security (VBS), Hypervisor-Protected Code Integrity, and Input-Output Memory Management Unit are all enabled. BIOS updates may also be required.
Koskinas noted that around 3% of Riot's weekly player base uses hardware that will not meet the Pre-Check requirements, making the on-demand mode unavailable to them. These players will continue to use the always-on version of Vanguard. Players with eligible PCs also have the choice to continue using the default, always-on Vanguard if they prefer.
"Ultimately, for competitive online spaces to persevere, it is necessary that we be able to trust the endpoints that the games are played on," Koskinas stated. He described the Pre-Check as a "proof-of-life" layer for gaming. Riot intends to keep these checks optional for most scenarios, potentially adding more requirements only for highly competitive segments or unusual hardware configurations.
While the new mode may not fully alleviate concerns about the level of system access Vanguard requires, it offers an alternative to the software's previously constant presence on players' systems.