Updated: January 28, 2025 (January 6, 2025)

Endpoint Protection Services with Defender in the Name

Wes Miller analyzes and writes about Microsoft’s security, identity management, and systems management technologies. Before joining Directions on Microsoft, Wes... more

Name	Description	Applies To
Microsoft Defender Antivirus	Free antivirus product built into Windows 11 and Windows Server.	Windows clients and servers
Microsoft Defender for Cloud	An umbrella brand offering free cloud security posture management (CSPM) security recommendations and numerous paid cloud workload protection (CWP) services that secure workloads in Azure, AWS, and GCP, including Microsoft Defender for Servers.	Windows Server and Linux servers
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint	Antimalware and endpoint detection and response (EDR) capabilities for PCs and Macs, and to a limited degree, mobile devices. Original brand prior to arrival of MDE Plan 1 and rebranded for clients as Plan 2.	Client PCs and mobile devices
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Plan 1	Cloud-managed antimalware for PCs and Macs, and to a very limited degree, mobile devices. This is a subset of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Plan 2.	Client PCs and mobile devices
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Plan 2	Full-featured EDR capabilities

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