10 replies to this topic

[briensmith]

you have McAfee antivirus installed and want to replace it with another antivirus product, but the uninstaller is broken. You go the control panel and add/remove programs, select mcafee and choose uninstall. Nothing happens. So, do you change your plans and stick with McAfee? You find the McAfee product removal tool and use that to remove McAfee from the system.

Unfortunately the way all software is packaged on windows it is not uncommon for the uninstaller to fail to completely remove the software. Fortunately, both Norton and McAfee offer removal tools for their software and during the course of my computer service work I have had to use these tools MULTIPLE times to either move to another antivirus vendor or to perform a clean reinstall of the antivirus product.

To clean out Symantec’s Norton antivirus products you’re looking for the Norton Removal Tool.

If you’re needing to clean out one of McAfee’s antivirus products you will need the McAfee Consumer Product Removal Tool.

Avast has a removal tool as well and it’s address ishere.

The links above connect to the support pages at each respective site and do not link directly to the named tools.

For other products, if there is not a removal tool available it may be possible to reinstall the software (to repair the uninstall information), then to uninstall it.