A few posts today deal with un-installing programs. Trouble is, most program removal leaves quite a bit of garbage behind. In fact, I've never seen any program removal do such a complete job that some additional effort wasn't needed to get every nook and cranny clean.
This page seems dedicated to downloads which could help freewarearena.com in this area.
When removing a program from your system, the main areas needing attention seem to be Registry, .DLL files put into Windows folders and subfolders, .INI files, (yes, they're still with us.) Temporary files, Shortcuts in the Start Menu tree, program files and folders, and data files created by the program itself. Manually removing this stuff takes some effort since each area requires some work, and every file removed adds risk. It's difficult to know if the file you're about to remove is needed by another program.
My approach:
Remove the program files and folders.
Remove data files the program may have created.
Remove .INI files the program may have installed.
Check AUTOEXEC.BAT, MSDOS.SYS and CONFIG.SYS for extra lines.
Remove shortcuts from Start Menu, Desktop, Schedule agent.
Edit registry to remove references to unwanted program.
Remove any .DLL files I KNOW were added by program.
Now I'm done except for .DLL files I'm not sure about. I use a .DLL verifier to check that my system doesn't contain any unused .DLL files. These programs move unused .DLL files to a new folder, and if the system works OK for some time without them, I can delete them with confidence. So far, I've never needed replace a .DLL that has been moved.
I also use Imaging software. This is much easier, safer, and faster, but it depends on a clean image being available, and clean image creation depends on me; hence, the flaw.
Some of the steps I outlined require either advanced computer skills or raw courage. Those who have insufficient of either would be advised to avoid this route.
Cheers, PW. |
