VT-x is not available Oracle Virtualbox Windows 10

This one stumped for for a while, I’m not going to lie.  VT-x was enabled inside the BIOS of my computer and it’s an i7-7700HQ which according to ark.intel.com supports VT-x.  Just the same, Oracle Virtualbox could not seem to start any VM I created giving me the following error:

VT-x is not available (VERR_VMX_NO_VMX).
Result Code: E_FAIL (0x80004005)
Component: ConsoleWrap
Interface: IConsole {872da645-4a9b-1727-bee2-5585105b9eed}

Some quick searching just tells me to enable VT-x in my BIOS….but it’s already enabled.  Other results talk about Hyper-V grabbing hold of the processor and not relinquishing control.  Advisement there is to use bcdedit to disable and then re-enable the hypervisor service.  I was desperate so why not right?  In that instance, you first set things to off and then back to on using bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype off and then to auto.

Still no go.

After much head scratching with a pinch of teeth gnashing, I ran across an old support ticket on the Virtualbox ticketing system that showed the exact error I had (VT-x is not available).  The ticket referenced Avast Antivirus (which I run the free version of) as the cause.  I saw no way in which I could toggle “Enable Hardware-Assisted Virtualization” because that setting is not present in Avast Free (at least I couldn’t find it).

Uninstalled Avast Free.  Enabled Windows Defender.

The problem is now solved and VM’s now boot with no issues.  I wanted to record this here in case others had the same issue.  Avast Antivirus Free has this on by default and I couldn’t find a way to disable it and a 4 year old ticket submitted to virtualbox saves the day.

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