Depends how you've configured it.
Most AV software's default config doesn't even do the detailed scans you describe, just a quick scans of registry and whatnot.
Have a look through your configs and see how its setup.
And if you're still running Windows XP, then you've got bigger things to worry about and should be prioritising an upgrade from that first, because AV on XP is worthless now that XP is obsolete (for reasons I've explained a multitude of times before surrounding software APIs etc).