Secure Boot can interfere with Linux bootloaders (like GRUB) if they aren’t properly signed. While most modern distros (Ubuntu, Fedora) support Secure Boot via Microsoft’s signature, others require you to disable it. VALORANT forces you to choose between your favorite Linux distro and the game.
If you are getting the error , here is your step-by-step guide. Note: This requires entering your BIOS/UEFI.
As a gamer, being asked to dig into your BIOS is frustrating. Being told your perfectly functional five-year-old PC is suddenly "incompatible" stings. And the privacy concerns surrounding kernel-level anti-cheat are valid and worth discussing.
. Why It's Required Anti-Cheat Integrity: Vanguard requires Secure Boot to prevent unauthorized software or "rootkits" from loading during the computer's startup process. Windows 11 Compatibility: Since Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 are native hardware requirements for Windows 11, Valorant enforces these to match the operating system's security standards. Reddit +2 How to Check Your Status You can verify if Secure Boot is active without entering your BIOS: Press
For Valorant , the enforcement of Secure Boot is a strategic necessity to ensure the integrity of the environment in which the game runs. By requiring Secure Boot, Riot Games ensures that the operating system has not been tampered with during the boot process. If a cheat developer attempts to load an unsigned or malicious driver—often required for kernel-level cheats—to hijack the system before the anti-cheat loads, Secure Boot will block the driver and prevent the system from starting or the cheat from functioning. This effectively forces cheaters to operate within the boundaries set by the operating system and the anti-cheat, stripping them of the ability to hide at the deepest levels of the machine. Without Secure Boot, Vanguard’s kernel-level access would be far less effective, as it could never be certain that the kernel itself was reporting accurate information.
In the contemporary landscape of competitive gaming, the battle against cheating has evolved into a sophisticated arms race. For years, developers relied on software-based anti-cheat solutions that operated within the user-mode of an operating system. However, as cheat developers moved their exploits deeper into the kernel, game publishers were forced to respond with increasingly intrusive measures. Riot Games’ tactical shooter, Valorant , stands at the forefront of this evolution with its Vanguard anti-cheat system. A critical, and often debated, component of Vanguard’s security architecture is its requirement for Secure Boot. This essay explores the technical necessity of Secure Boot in Valorant , examining how it functions as a foundational defense mechanism, the controversy surrounding its mandatory enforcement, and its broader implications for the gaming industry.
To understand Secure Boot, you first have to understand the enemy. In the early 2010s, cheating software was relatively simple. Bots would read pixel colors; aimbots would move your mouse. Traditional anti-cheat software (like Easy Anti-Cheat or BattlEye) worked by scanning the game’s memory .
Secure Boot acts as a gatekeeper that prevents this compromise from occurring in the first place. Secure Boot is a security standard developed by members of the PC industry to help make sure that a device boots using only software that is trusted by the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM). When a computer starts, the firmware checks the signature of each piece of boot software, including UEFI firmware drivers, EFI applications, and the operating system. If the signatures are valid, the machine boots, and the firmware passes control to the operating system.
In five years, you likely won’t be able to play any major competitive online game without Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 enabled.
This should say On . If it says "Off," you need to enable it in your BIOS. Step 2: How to Enable Secure Boot in BIOS/UEFI
Since every motherboard brand (Asus, MSI, Gigabyte, etc.) has a different layout, use these general steps to find the settings:
Valorant is known for its aggressive stance against cheaters. To maintain competitive integrity, Riot’s Vanguard anti-cheat operates at a very deep level of your system (the kernel level).
For many players, this felt like a violation. “Why does a video game need to control my BIOS settings?” others asked. “Is Riot spying on me?”