Prevent problems before they start.

No. PCW Guardian uses software tools for monitoring, maintenance, updates, and plan-specific protection features, but the service is managed with oversight from real PC Warehouse technicians.

Unlike traditional software that you purchase and are responsible for managing yourself, PCW Guardian is designed to operate as an ongoing managed service. Learn more about how PCW Guardian Managed Services work.

No. If your PCW Guardian plan includes managed antivirus or off-site backup, these services are designed to operate automatically in the background. You do not need to routinely open the programs, start antivirus scans, or manually begin scheduled backups.

PC Warehouse manages these services as part of your Guardian plan, including monitoring and maintaining the applicable protection and backup services. This is one of the primary differences between PCW Guardian and traditional unmanaged antivirus or backup software that leaves the customer responsible for managing it.

Learn more about the difference between managed and unmanaged services.

No. PCW Guardian’s managed system monitoring is designed to monitor technical health, security, maintenance, backup status, and other service-related information needed to operate Guardian. It is not designed to watch or observe your personal day-to-day computer activity.

If remote support is needed, PC Warehouse cannot simply begin controlling your computer without your knowledge. A notification will appear on your screen requesting permission to start the remote support session. You have the option to approve or decline the connection. Remote access will only begin after you approve the request.

This helps distinguish the background monitoring that is part of PCW Guardian from an actual interactive remote-support session where a technician can view or control the computer.

Traditional antivirus and backup software can only respond to limited types of problems and generally lack the real-world experience and technical decision-making that comes from working with computers every day.

PC Warehouse technicians regularly work with a wide variety of real computer problems including performance issues, failed updates, malware infections, storage failures, overheating systems, software conflicts, hardware failures, and system instability. This real-world experience helps PCW Guardian focus on maintaining overall system health, stability, and performance not just antivirus protection alone.

Many PCW Guardian customers have already worked directly with PC Warehouse technicians during previous repair services. Guardian extends that relationship by helping maintain your computer over time with ongoing monitoring, maintenance, optimization, and technician oversight.

PCW Guardian plans are licensed per device. Each computer you want protected will require its own Guardian enrollment.

PCW Guardian continuously monitors important system health and stability indicators that commonly lead to larger problems, including slowdowns, failing services, storage issues, excessive startup programs, and overall performance degradation. This helps identify and address many issues before they become major disruptions.

Yes. PCW Guardian Basic and Guardian Gamers allow you to continue using your existing antivirus solution; however, third-party antivirus products are not managed or monitored by PC Warehouse.

Guardian+ and Guardian Pro include PCW-managed SentinelOne protection. If you still have time remaining on an existing antivirus subscription, you can enroll in Guardian and transition to SentinelOne when the existing product expires and is removed.

Yes. You can enroll in any PCW Guardian plan while continuing to use your current antivirus subscription. Once your existing antivirus subscription expires and the software is removed from the system, PCW Guardian can automatically deploy SentinelOne to maintain continuous protection.

No. PCW Guardian is designed to work alongside most existing backup solutions. Guardian+ primarily protects files that are not already synchronized to another cloud service, while Guardian Pro uses full system image backups of the operating system drive for broader recovery protection. PCW Guardian Basic and PCW Guardian Gamers do not include off-site backup services.

SentinelOne next-generation antivirus protection is included with PCW Guardian+ and PCW Guardian Pro.

By default, Guardian+ protects important user data stored within the Windows Users profile that is not already synchronized to another cloud backup provider. Additional folders and drives may be added to the backup plan if desired.

Guardian Pro includes off-site image backup protection for the operating system drive, allowing recovery of the OS, installed applications, settings, and data. Additional drives can be added to Guardian Pro image backup protection for an additional cost. Extra storage is available in 1TB increments.

Off-site cloud backup is included with PCW Guardian+ and PCW Guardian Pro. Guardian+ includes file-level backup protection, while Guardian Pro also includes full off-site image backups of the operating system drive. Each protected device includes 1TB of cloud storage with additional storage available in 1TB increments.

No appointment is necessary. PC Warehouse is walk-in friendly. If in-store service is required, systems enrolled with PCW Guardian receive the highest repair priority ahead of our Standard, Priority, and Ultimate Priority service queues.

No. PCW Guardian provides monitoring, maintenance, optimization, security, and backup-related services depending on the plan selected. Hardware repairs, replacement parts, and physical component failures are billed separately.

PCW Guardian is designed to continue protecting your computer even when a technician is unavailable. Automated maintenance, monitoring, updates, antivirus protection, and backups continue running in the background. PC Warehouse maintains the systems, documentation, and procedures necessary to continue supporting Guardian customers and their enrolled devices.