Windows 10 ExifTool EXE hangs or runs very slowly

[Phil Harvey]

A recent update of Windows Defender causes ExifTool to either hang or take a long time to launch.

Adding exiftool to the exclusion list in the Windows Defender settings may help, but ExifTool may still be slower than when Windows Defender is disabled completely.

See this post for more details.

- Phil

[José Oliver-Didier]

Thanks Phil! Indeed, adding Exiftool to the Windows Defender exclusion list has improved performance on my PC.

I also would like to add problems I recently encountered with Acronis True Image 2019, specifically with the Acronis Active Protection feature. I recently noticed a severe slowdown using Geosetter (which uses Exiftool) and traced it down to True Image. That application also provides an exclusion/whitelist under Managed Processes in the Active Protection Settings.

Ref: Active Protection blocks legitimate applications https://kb.acronis.com/content/60193