I just installed Windows 8 Pro. One of the first things I went to do is install Microsoft Security Essentials, thinking I still needed add-on security software, but I've learned here that it isn't required for Windows 8. Witness:

Got Windows 8 or Windows RT?

Windows Defender for Windows 8 and Windows RT provides the same level of protection against malware as Microsoft Security Essentials. You can't use Microsoft Security Essentials with Windows 8, but you don't need to — Windows Defender is already included and ready to go. [...]

All well and good.

However, on Windows 7, once you installed Microsoft Security Essentials, you got a tray icon, and from there you could access the features of MSE, such as perform custom scans, turn off real-time protection (temporarily, of course), check for updates, etc. However, Defender on Windows 8 doesn't display a tray icon – and yes, I've already made sure I'm displaying all icons in the notification area.

So, how to access the similar specific features of Windows Defender on Windows 8?