Riot Games is changing one of the most controversial parts of its anti-cheat system, Vanguard. On supported PCs, it will no longer need to stay active from the moment the computer starts and will instead run only when a Riot game such as Valorant or League of Legends is launched.
The new approach is called Vanguard: On-Demand, and it is meant to reduce the long-standing complaint that the anti-cheat keeps running in the background even when players are not gaming. Once a play session ends, Vanguard will shut down automatically rather than remain as a persistent process.
A narrower anti-cheat footprint
Riot said the update was announced through its official blog on 24 June 2026. Anti-Cheat Director Philip Koskinas explained that the on-demand mode depends on pre-boot security mechanisms and built-in Windows protections.
He also said the Vanguard driver component will no longer launch when the system boots. Instead, the feature will only be available on PCs that meet a set of modern security requirements.
Who can use it, and who cannot
Riot said only 35% of its player base currently meets the requirements for on-demand mode. Newer machines marked as “secured core” will see a toggle to enable the feature when the update arrives.
For other users, the path is still available, but only after enabling the required Windows security features manually. Riot stressed that the mode is optional and does not prevent players who fail the initial checks from continuing to play Valorant or League of Legends.
| Requirement | Status Needed |
|---|---|
| Windows version | Windows 11 25H2 |
| Secure Boot | Enabled |
| TPM 2.0 | Enabled |
| Virtualization-Based Security | Enabled |
| HVCI | Enabled |
| IOMMU | Enabled |
How players will check readiness
To make the transition easier, Riot said the Vanguard Tray, or VGTray, will scan the system and show which settings still need to be turned on. The goal is to give players a clear path toward the new mode without leaving them to guess which requirement is missing.
According to Riot, about 3% of its player base still uses older hardware and must remain on the always-on version. Those users will not be forced out of the game, but they will not be able to switch to the on-demand setup unless their PCs meet the security standard.
The change marks a notable shift in how Vanguard is handled on supported systems. It lowers the boot-time burden for players with newer, better-protected PCs while leaving older machines on the original approach.
