Windivert Driver Cannot Be Installed You Must Restart Your Computer May 2026

If other network drivers or software are installed, try disabling them to see if they are causing conflicts:

When Windows updates a driver, it often marks the old driver file for deletion upon the next reboot. If you try to install a new version of WinDivert before rebooting, the installer detects that the old driver is still "pending deletion" (locked). The installer cannot overwrite a file that is scheduled to be removed, so it aborts with this error.

If restarting doesn’t help, try reinstalling the driver manually.

Option A – Use the program’s own repair
Check if the application has a “repair” or “reinstall drivers” option in its settings or installer. If other network drivers or software are installed,

Option B – Manual installation (advanced)
Download the WinDivert package from its official repository (e.g., github.com/basil00/Divert). Extract and run as Administrator:

cd C:\path\to\WinDivert
WinDivert.exe -install

If it fails, first uninstall:

WinDivert.exe -uninstall

then reboot and reinstall.

Option C – Use devcon
If you have Windows Driver Kit tools, you can force removal/installation via devcon.

Windows maintains a PendingFileRenameOperations registry key (under HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager). If a previous installation attempted to overwrite windivert64.sys but the file was in use, Windows schedules a replacement on next reboot. Subsequent installers detect this pending operation and demand a reboot before proceeding.

If none of the above steps work, perform a Clean Boot of Windows. This prevents third-party software (other than Microsoft services) from loading. If it fails, first uninstall: WinDivert

If a restart is impossible (e.g., production server), attempt:

Caution: Forcibly deleting pending rename entries can cause system instability if legitimate pending operations exist (e.g., from Windows Update). Validate the registry value’s contents first.

The WinDivert driver may already be running because another application (for example, a VPN client running in your system tray) is using it. You cannot install a new driver over an active one. The installer detects the driver is already loaded and refuses to proceed. then reboot and reinstall

Many users right-click → “Run as admin” and stop there. Instead:

This ensures the driver installation runs under the SYSTEM account, not just admin.