Reference number: CH000347

Uninstalling Windows software.

Issue:

Uninstalling Windows software.

Solution:

If a software program or game is no longer being used or played or additional space is required it may be necessary to uninstall or delete it. Below is a listing of different methods of uninstalling software from a computer running Microsoft Windows.

Install/Uninstall option

Pro: Will remove all or the majority of all files copied to the computer during installation.
Con: Not all programs support or use this feature.

1. Click Start
2. Click Control Panel or Settings and then Control Panel
3. Double-click Add/Remove Programs or Uninstall a program.
4. Within the new window select the program you wish to uninstall and click the Remove button or Uninstall/Change button.

How do I know what to delete? Often users may be concerned about what is safe and what is not safe to delete our best suggestion is if you don't know what it is we suggest that it not be removed or ask about what it is first.

If the program or game is not listed within this list, continue reading this document for alternative methods to uninstalling software.

• Users who are having issues removing programs from the Add/Remove programs should refer to document CH000568.

Unwise Wizard

Pro: Generally created or programmed by the developer of the program that will allow the program to delete any files that were originally installed.
Con: May cause errors with other software because it can uninstall files that other programs may be using.

1. Click Start
2. Open the Programs folder under Programs or All Programs.
3. Within the folder look for an Unwise or Uninstall shortcut. Click this shortcut to start the uninstall.

or

1. Open Windows Explorer.
2. In Explorer Open the folder containing the program you wish to uninstall. If you're not sure where this is located a good place to check first would be the Program files folder.
3. Once the folder has been located and opened look for an unwise or uninstall shortcut link or executable program.

Note: Do not search for unwise.exe since it's likely several of these files exist on your computer and may be associated with another program.

If the program or game you have does not have this option, continue reading this document for alternative methods to uninstalling software.

Third-party software

Pro: Will generally remove files and registry settings associated with the program, which manually deleting the program will not.
Con: May not remove everything since it's third-party and not something the developer created.

There are various commercial and free available solutions for uninstalling software on your computer. We highly recommend and suggest users use Revo Uninstaller, a free and easy to use uninstall program and junk file utility.

Manually delete

Pro: Manually deleting the software from the computer will help save space when no other options are available.
Con: May cause additional errors if the operating system or other programs require files that are deleted.

Before manually deleting any software from the computer we recommend you do each of the below suggestions.

1. Make sure your Recycle Bin is empty and that files that are deleted are sent to the Recycle Bin. This will help allow you to restore those files if they are required or cause you errors after deleted.
2. Backup all important data.

Once you are ready follow the below steps to manually delete the files.

1. Open Windows Explorer.
2. Highlight the program or game folder making sure you're not highlighting its containing folder such as  Programs files.
3. Press delete to delete the files.
4. After deleted reboot the computer to verify no errors occur. If errors occur the files can be recovered from the Recycle Bin.