Norton AntiVirus relies on a subscription to keep your personal computers and workstations protected from the newest viruses and other online threats. Once your subscription expires, Norton will not let you in to the main features of the program, including the virus scanner. In order to restore protection, you need to renew your subscription or buy a different Norton product. Some anti-virus programs differentiate your subscription from the software itself -- even after expiration, you can continue using the program with old virus definitions. Norton, however, disables the entire program when your subscription runs out. You can't run scans or enable background protection in Norton without a current subscription. www.norton.com/setup