Scary word, boring truth: this screen is a checklist. Vanguard lists exactly which Windows security switches it wants on, HVCI, Secure Boot or TPM 2.0, and your fix is whichever lines your screen names. Nothing is held against you.
By Neeraj Singh ~10 min Updated Jul 2026 85% found this helpful
Error message
VAN: RESTRICTION. Your account does not meet the following requirements in order to play: HVCI enabled / UEFI secure boot enabled / TPM 2.0 enabled (your screen lists only the lines that failed)
Quick fix
Seeing “Your account does not meet the following requirements in order to play”? Breathe, it is a checklist, not a ban. Read the lines under that sentence, they name exactly what to switch on, and each line has one home: HVCI lives in Windows Security, Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 live in the BIOS.
Screen says “UEFI secure boot enabled” or “TPM 2.0 enabled”? Those switches live in the BIOS and take five minutes, Methods 4 and 5 cover both.
Everything already enabled and the screen persists? Check the BIOS virtualization prerequisite (Method 3), and if only one account is affected, see the account note at the end, that one is for Riot Support.
Read the screen, it names your fix
Unlike most Vanguard errors, this screen tells you exactly what it wants. Vanguard checks your system for the Windows security features it depends on, and every line under the headline sentence is one failed check. The three lines in circulation are HVCI enabled (Memory Integrity, a Windows Security toggle), UEFI secure boot enabled and TPM 2.0 enabled (both BIOS switches), and a screen can list one or several at once. Why Riot insists: together these close the doors cheats load through, boot-time driver signing, a hardware identity for the machine and a kernel locked against untrusted code. Your job is only to flip the exact switches your screen names, and the methods below take them one line at a time. Worth knowing if the screen appeared out of nowhere: the HVCI line joined Vanguard's checklist in 2024, and because Windows 11 ships with Memory Integrity on by default while Windows 10 often does not, that line lands mostly on Windows 10 machines and fresh upgrades, your PC did not break, the requirement arrived.
Figure 1: the restriction screen decoded, each line has one switch
✓ How to fix it
Work only the methods matching your screen's lines: Methods 1 and 2 for the HVCI line, Method 3 if the toggle is missing entirely, Methods 4 and 5 for the BIOS lines. Method 6 mops up the rare stragglers.
Method 1
“HVCI enabled”: switch Memory Integrity on
1HVCI is what Windows calls Memory integrity. Open Windows Security > Device security > Core isolation details.
2Switch Memory integrity to On and restart the PC, the feature only arms at boot.
3Launch VALORANT. The restriction screen not appearing is your success sign. Toggle greyed out, erroring or flipping itself back off? That is a blocked driver, go straight to Method 2.
Method 2
Toggle refuses? Clear the incompatible drivers
1When Memory integrity cannot enable, Windows shows a Review incompatible drivers link right under the toggle. Open it, this list names your exact blockers, typically old GPU, storage, network or peripheral drivers.
2Update each named driver from the maker's site, and uninstall the ones belonging to hardware or tools you no longer use, orphaned peripheral drivers are frequent offenders. Third-party antivirus drivers show up in this list too, update the antivirus or remove it temporarily if it is named.
3Restart, then toggle Memory integrity again. An empty incompatible-drivers list and a toggle that stays On means you have cleared the block, restart once more and launch the game.
Figure 2: the driver-review loop that unblocks Memory Integrity
Method 3
No toggle at all? Enable virtualization in the BIOS
1Memory integrity runs on hardware virtualization, so if Core isolation is missing or the toggle will not exist, restart into the BIOS (usually Delete, F2 or F10 during startup).
2Find Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x) or AMD-V / SVM, usually under CPU or Advanced settings, set it to Enabled, save and boot back into Windows.
3Return to Core isolation, the Memory integrity toggle should now be present and willing. One more note: Windows features that reserve virtualization for themselves, Windows Sandbox, Hyper-V, Windows Hypervisor Platform and Virtual Machine Platform, can stop HVCI running correctly on some systems, so untick unused ones in Turn Windows features on or off if the line persists.
Method 4
“UEFI secure boot enabled”: flip it in the BIOS
1Restart into the BIOS and find Secure Boot under Boot or Security. Set it to Enabled, on many boards you must first switch CSM or Legacy Boot off for the option to unlock.
2Older Windows installs on MBR disks cannot boot with Secure Boot on, convert first with Microsoft's mbr2gpt tool, then enable it. Our VAN 9001 guide walks the whole Secure Boot journey per BIOS brand.
3Boot back into Windows and confirm: run msinfo32 and check Secure Boot State reads On. That readout is your success sign for this line.
Method 5
“TPM 2.0 enabled”: switch on fTPM or PTT
1In the BIOS, find the TPM setting, AMD boards call it fTPM, Intel boards PTT or Intel Platform Trust Technology, and set it to Enabled.
2Back in Windows, press Win+R, run tpm.msc and check for “The TPM is ready for use” with specification version 2.0. That readout closes this line.
3If the BIOS switch is on but Windows still cannot find the TPM, the VAN 9001 guide covers the deeper firmware cases, and your board maker's support page is the final authority for that hardware.
Method 6
Lines fixed but the screen persists? Update and reinstall
1Run Windows Update to the end, the security features need current components, and old Windows builds are missing pieces the checks rely on.
2Reinstall Riot Vanguard so it re-reads your system fresh: uninstall it, restart, launch the game and let it reinstall, then restart once more. The Riot Client's own repair option is the lighter alternative if you would rather not reinstall.
3On Windows Pro or Enterprise, a stubborn HVCI line can also be enforced from the top: run gpedit.msc, open Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Device Guard, and set Turn On Virtualization Based Security to Enabled, and inside that policy set Virtualization Based Protection of Code Integrity to Enabled too, then restart. The screen staying gone through a full session confirms the checklist is satisfied.
One planning note before you flip BIOS switches: on a standard single-Windows PC these settings are safe to enable and are what Windows 11 ships with anyway. Dual-booters are the exception, Secure Boot can refuse to start an unsigned or legacy second OS, so sort your bootloader situation first if that describes your machine.
Common causes of the VAN: RESTRICTION screen
Memory Integrity (HVCI) switched off, or never enabled on an older install.
An incompatible driver silently blocking the Memory Integrity toggle.
Secure Boot switched off, locked behind CSM or Legacy Boot, sometimes with an MBR-era Windows install underneath.
TPM 2.0 disabled in the BIOS, shipped off on many boards as fTPM or Intel PTT.
Virtualization (VT-x / AMD-V) off in the BIOS, removing the ground HVCI stands on.
Expert insight
“This is the one Vanguard screen I am almost glad to see, because it hands you the fix list in writing. People panic at the word restriction and miss that the lines underneath are literally instructions. My routine: read the lines, flip only those switches, restart between each. The trick most people never find is the Review incompatible drivers link, when Memory Integrity will not turn on, Windows has already written down which driver is in the way, you only have to click and read. And I always ask about dual-boot before touching Secure Boot, that is the one machine where flipping it without a plan ruins your evening.”
Manager, Tech Support & Operations · 19+ years fixing Windows and system errors
Make sure this is the error you have
Vanguard has several restriction-flavoured screens. VAN 9001 and VAN 9003 are numeric codes for the same Secure Boot and TPM requirements shown at launch, with per-BIOS walkthroughs in the VAN 9001 guide. VAN 138 and VAN 152 use the restriction word for very different things, virtual machine detection and hardware bans, covered in the VAN 138 / 152 guide. This page is only for the VAN: RESTRICTION requirements checklist, the screen that says your account does not meet the following requirements and then lists them.
Frequently asked questions
What does the VAN: RESTRICTION screen mean?
It is a requirements checklist, not a punishment. Vanguard checked your system for the Windows security features it requires and lists every one that is missing, HVCI, UEFI Secure Boot or TPM 2.0. Enable exactly the switches named on your screen and the restriction clears, nothing is held against your account.
Is VAN: RESTRICTION a ban?
No. Despite the intimidating word, this screen only reports missing system requirements. Bans and hardware restrictions use their own codes and messages. Flip the listed switches on and you play normally, with your account untouched throughout.
What is HVCI or Memory Integrity?
HVCI, shown in Windows as Memory Integrity under Core isolation, uses virtualization to ensure only trusted code runs at the deepest level of Windows. Vanguard requires it on some systems because it hardens the kernel it patrols. Turn it on in Windows Security under Device security, Core isolation details, then restart.
Memory Integrity will not turn on, what blocks it?
Almost always an incompatible driver. When the toggle fails, Windows shows a Review incompatible drivers link that names the exact culprits, usually old GPU, storage, network or peripheral drivers. Update or remove each named driver, restart and toggle again. Virtualization must also be enabled in the BIOS for the feature to work at all.
Why does Riot require Secure Boot, TPM and HVCI?
They close the routes cheats use to load. Secure Boot ensures Windows enforces signed kernel drivers from the first moment of startup, TPM gives the machine a hardware identity and HVCI locks the kernel against untrusted code. Vanguard leans on all three so it can trust the system it is protecting.
Is it safe to enable Secure Boot and TPM for VALORANT?
For a standard single-Windows PC, yes, these are the same protections Windows 11 ships with by default and daily use does not change. The exception is a dual-boot setup with an unsigned or legacy operating system, which Secure Boot can block from starting, so dual-booters should plan before flipping it.
The requirements are all enabled but one account still gets the screen, why?
That pattern, one account restricted while another plays fine on the same PC, points at the account rather than the machine. Confirm Memory Integrity, Secure Boot and TPM really are active, then contact Riot Support about the specific account, local switches cannot fix an account-side flag.
Can I fix VAN: RESTRICTION on a Steam Deck or unsupported device?
Usually not. Devices that cannot enable the listed requirement, the Steam Deck for example has no supported Secure Boot path for this, cannot satisfy Vanguard's check, and that is Riot's requirement rather than a settings problem. On such hardware the honest answer is that VALORANT is not currently playable.
Still not working?
Verify each line's readout rather than its switch: msinfo32 for Secure Boot State and Virtualization-based security, tpm.msc for the TPM, because a switch that is on but not taking effect is its own clue, usually pointing back at CSM, an MBR disk or a BIOS needing an update from the board maker. If every readout is green and one account still hits the screen, that is the Riot Support case from the FAQ. Browse the full set of Riot Vanguard error guides, or submit your error to us for a tailored fix.
