Cannot Uninstall an Application?


If you cannot uninstall applications this can be a real nightmare, but luckily there are a number of straight forward ways that will remove just about any application cleanly.

When I say cleanly I mean without having to manually remove it, which can and usually is very messy as you need to delete the application directory.

Then you need to remove all shortcuts and now you need to remove all invalid registry entries which can take hours or even longer. (this should really be a last resort)

1. Repairing, many applications offer repair options via the add/remove option, select to uninstall the application and you may see this option to repair, try this and then attempt to remove it again.

2. An easy way to remove any application is to simply reinstall it,
and then remove it via add/remove afterwards. Reinstalling the application repairs any installation problems making uninstalling a breeze in most cases.

3. A Windows system restore offers another easy way to remove any problem applications that you cannot uninstall. The only downside of the Windows system restore is, you need to make sure you have a restore point back to a date before the application was installed, and you will also lose any other applications that were installed after this period. (you will not lose any files you have created in this period.

4. Check the manufacturers website, you never know there may be an uninstall application or procedure which will cleanly remove the application. The chances are if you have had problems then someone else has probably encountered this issue as well. Many manufacturers’ websites have forums where you can find out.

5. The dreaded manual removal – if you’re really left with no option then a manual removal may be the only way to go. There are various areas that need to be cleaned and deleted, this involves deleting.

The main application directory and any sub directories,
Any application shortcuts,

Application fragments from the registry need to be removed, there will probably be far too many to check manually, applications such as Regclean or Registry Mechanic are very good at this.

Now reboot your computer and see if you get any errors. If you don’t then great, but if you do then it means a shortcut to the deleted application is trying to run.

From the start/run menu select MSCONFIG and then look under the Startup tab to see what is loading when the computer starts up and disable anything that is trying to access the application.

Search for more when you cannot uninstall applications


Make sure your computer does not have disk issues - this could be another cause if you cannot uninstall apps or games.

A system restore is a good way to uninstall an application

Still cannot uninstall applications? ask on the forum

Windows XP startup problem – what’s the cause - read our help and ...
If your computer has a Windows XP startup problem much of the time it can be fixed relatively quickly and easily, Luckily for us just about all versions of ...
www.computer-adviser.com/windows-xp-startup-problem.html

Keyboard problem - keyboard not working installing windows - how ...
keyboard problem - is your keyboard not working installing windows in safe mode or running or booting from any DOS apps - fix USB legacy support problems at ...
www.computer-adviser.com/keyboard-problem.html

Windows Live messenger port problems - find out more on how to ...
Windows Live messenger port problems simply happen when messenger cannot gain web access via its normal ports.
www.computer-adviser.com/windows-live-messenger-port.html

Fix computer problem, what do you do when the worst happens ?
If your computer has a Windows XP startup problem much of the time it can be fixed relatively quickly and easily with little or no technical knowledge . ...
www.computer-adviser.com/fix-computer-problem.html

Got an external hard disk problem ? How to troubleshoot and repair it
Common fixes for a USB driver problem including how to fix a windows USB driver database, and how to diagnose an external hard disk problem more at ...
www.computer-adviser.com/external-hard-disk-problem.html

computer adviser cannot uninstall article

Cannot start Windows firewall what causes this - how to fix the ...
Cannot start Windows firewall could be considered a critical error - after all no ... Keyboard Problems ˇ Fix Internet Explorer ˇ What’s a Computer Virus ...
www.computer-adviser.com/cannot-start-windows-firewall.html

You need windows antispyware make sure your computer is not ...
Hidden spyware windows processes. One of the hardest types of spyware to find and remove is the hidden process type, if your experiencing problems and your ...
www.computer-adviser.com/windows-antispyware.html

Need to fix internet explorer problems?
If you are using Internet Explorer with Windows XP SP1 , it's worth upgrading to service pack 2 to see if this will solve the problem. ...
www.computer-adviser.com/fix-internet-explorer.html

Windows opening off screen ? Find out how to get them back, more here.
This method of resolving windows opening off screen problems will only work with newer applications; many older types will not allow this. ...
www.computer-adviser.com/windows-opening-off-screen.html

Fixing a USB problem - find out what caused and tips and help on ...
If this works you're looking at a USB port problem, this will probably be a hardware issue, but it's worth repairing Windows in case it's a Windows XP USB ...
www.computer-adviser.com/Usb-problem.html

computer adviser cannot uninstall article