Purpose:
dUninstaller is stand-alone, portable, definition based automatic application uninstall utility. dUninstaller utilizes a definitions system containing search terms, and the ability to run automated/silently uninstalling what it can, and reporting what it cannot uninstall automatically, as it can generate a log file and/or send an email with the results. The intent of dUninstaller is for PC repair technicians to script its usage, or for other IT providers and MSPs to push out via group policy to workstations or to managed PCs from remote monitoring / managed services software such as Kaseya, nAble, Level Platforms, GFI, etc. etc.
dUninstaller does NOT see or work with Windows 10 Store Apps at this time, only standard program installations are supported.
Visit our Message Forums to post your questions or feature suggestions, or contact us for official support.
Usage:
- Run dUninstaller.exe normally to manually view installed applications, uninstall them, and/or add them to your ‘definitions’ for automated removal.
- Add any partial search term to your definitions to uninstall matching items, e.g. “toolbar” will uninstall EVERYTHING with “toolbar” in the name.
- New in v2.0! Add any partial search term to your whitelist.
- Example: now you can blacklist “toolbar” and whitelist “bing” and “google” to uninstall any toolbars that don’t have bing or google in the name.
- Run dUninstaller.exe /auto from a command prompt or script for automated/silent removal of items in your definitions, excluding any items matching your whitelist.
- New in v2.0! Run dUninstaller.exe /u=App Name To Uninstall to bypass definition files and remove any app matching that search string.
- This can be stacked multiple times on the same command line, e.g. dUninstaller.exe /u=App One /u=App Two /u=App Three
- dUninstaller /update will update the app itself from my website before running any other passed command line parameters.
- dUninstaller /fixbrowsers will fix web browsers not launching on the chance that dUninstaller stalls while removing an app and is terminated before it can process the command to restore browser functionality (browsers are disabled while dUninstaller runs so that it can deliver a hassle free and automated uninstall.) It is always recommended to put this last in your scripts.
- NEW in v3.7.2 – dUninstaller /sendreport will run a report of installed apps not matching definitions, and any installed apps matching the blacklist, and email that automatically to your pre-configured email address. dUninstaller /logreport does the same report, but saves it to the current directory as “dUninstaller_Report.txt”
- NEW in 3.8.0 – Remote config/defs update usage:
- dUninstaller /getconfig=[URL-to-ZIP-file]
- RECOMMENDED: Use an encrypted settings file so your email settings aren’t just sitting out there on the internet. The password is encrypted with versions prior to v3.8, however the v3.8 update encrypts all non-numeric email settings to keep your server/login info secure also. If upgrading from a previous version YOU MUST RE-SAVE YOUR CONFIG TO USE NEW ENCRYPTION SETTINGS PRIOR TO ZIP+UPLOAD OF THE INI FILE! (Just run dUninstaller.exe with no parameters, click the options tab, and then the Save button – all done!)
- Zip dUninstaller.ini by itself and put it on a web server. The zip file name can be anything as long as it is part of the URL (e.g.
- Cannot be combined with other command line parameters!
- dUninstaller /getdefs=[URL-to-ZIP-file]
- Zip all your definition files (*.txt inside the dUninstaller directory) and put the zip file on a web server. The zip file name can be anything as long as it is part of the URL (e.g.
- This feature requires the purchased/registered version! dUninstaller.ini must be in the same dir as dUninstaller.exe and it must have previously been registered.
- Cannot be combined with other command line parameters!
- dUninstaller /getconfig=[URL-to-ZIP-file]
Deployment and Scripting Notes:
- Command line parameters provided for scripting are for the purchased/registered version only, with the exception of the /getconfig=[URL] parameter which obviously must function without being registered (if no configuration/ini file existed for dUninstaller – but the gist is that it would presumably download a registered configuration for use – otherwise subsequent command line parameters would fail.)
- The included codejock OCX file – In later versions with the tabbed interface, a codejock ocx control for some visual elements is included (was v15.3.1, since dUninstaller v3.8 it has been updated to v16.4.0) and bundled with the download and update package. Note you DO NOT have to deploy the Codejock OCX file if you are using dUninstaller.exe in a scripted environment only with no user interface – the ocx is only required for the UI.
Registration gives you these benefits:
Silent and Automated usage.
Whitelisting & Blacklisting Capabilities.
Generate Log Files with Results.
Automated Email with the Results.
Automated/Scripted Retrieval of Updated Config/Definitions.
* NOTE full uninstall automation is not guaranteed with all applications. Some program uninstallers may require user input to complete.
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How it works:
dUninstaller reads the section of the registry where installed applications are registered with Windows. Within these registry entries is an “uninstallstring” value that tells Windows (via Control Panel) how to uninstall the application. With any luck, there is ALSO a “quietuninstallstring” value, which allows for silent /automatic uninstall. THAT is where dUninstaller’s usefulness comes into play. It reads the quietuninstallstring (if present) and executes that command. If the quietuninstallstring is NOT present, dUninstaller will pass the /quiet /noreboot parameters to MSI based installers, the /sp- /silent /noreboot parameters to Inno Setup based installers, and /S for all other installers when running the uninstall command, which should do the trick. Note sometimes using this method causes certain installers to throw an invalid parameter or similar error – though this has been rarely reported.
License:
dUninstaller is free for all personal use and usage by a PC repair shop or technician. Registration is required for the additional silent operation, command line parameters, logging, whitelisting, and email features. Licensing and registration carries these terms:
- Once you purchase dUninstaller, you own the rights to use it on as many of your clients’ computers as you like.
- You may NOT distribute your registered version of dUninstaller or registration information for dUninstaller to those outside of your employment.
- You may NOT redistribute the registered version of this application to any 3rd party torrent/download sites, etc., however you may host the application on your own web space for the sole purpose of providing it for your and your employees usage outside your place of business.
- Any use of this software requires that you accept the fact that only you are responsible for anything you do with any software, including this app, which comes with no warranties or guarantees of any kind. You bear sole responsibility for any use or misuse of this application and for any resulting damages.
Labtech RMM Plugin:
Squatting Dog Development is a software company that produces a plugin for dUninstaller to integrate with Labtech RMM software. We like the company and developer, and we want to promote the best possible usage for dUninstaller; but please keep in mind this is an independent, unaffiliated, “3rd party” software company, meaning we’re otherwise NOT affiliated nor can we provide product support for their software. Read more on Squatting Dog Development’s dUninstaller Labtech plugin at their website.
News:
- v3.8 – 07/22/2015
- Added remote update options for your configuration files and definitions! (see usage notes above!)
- Added encryption of registration and all non-numeric email settings.
- Codejock control for some visual elements was updated from 15.3.1 to 16.4.0 and bundled with the update package. Note you DO NOT have to deploy the Codejock OCX file if you are using dUninstaller.exe in a scripted environment only with no user interface.
- v3.7.8 – 02/25/2015
- Fixed an issue with data loss affecting the saving of file/registry deletion definition lists when edited via the dUninstaller UI.
- More on the above issue here: http://foolishtech.com/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=2193
- v3.7.5
- Fixed an issue where the whitelist would not be processed if a blacklist did not exist.
- 3.7.2
- Added dUninstaller /sendreport command line parameter to run a report of installed apps not matching definitions, and any installed apps matching the blacklist, and email that automatically to your pre-configured email address. Also added dUninstaller /logreport which does the same report, but saves it to the current directory as “dUninstaller_Report.txt”
- v3.6.2
- Fixed: Uninstall Now button was uninstalling items that were highlighted in the list in addition to items that were checked off in the list.
- v3.6
- Added Whitelist button
- Added capability of whitelist/blacklist to match against publisher/mfgr names and not just app names.
- v3.5
- ATTN: dUninstaller log file renamed from dUninstaller.log to dUninstaller_log.txt (to make it easier to open the file in notepad for quick viewing.)
- dUninstaller log file now shows when an application has failed to uninstall (may be somewhat prone to a false positive when multiple apps contain the same string of text, e.g. “program name” and “program name v2.0” ONLY IF “program name” is the first one to get uninstalled instead of the v2.0 of it. The fix is to always have items arranged in an appropriate order in your defs.)
- Fixed a recent issue with emails not sending as configured when uninstalling apps via the GUI.
- Fixed a recent issue with the log file not being generated in the GUI or in command line mode when scripted.
- v3.4
- Added internal update functionality!! No more downloading updates from the website.
- Added new /update command line parameter to auto-update itself before running other command line parameters passed to it.
- Fix for the /auto parameter not working as expected under certain circumstances.
- v3.3.1
- CRITICAL FIX for failure to process whitelist under certain circumstances.
- CRITICAL FIX for failure to process uninstall list during command line operation under certain circumstances.
Registration gives you these benefits:
Silent and Automated usage.
Whitelisting & Blacklisting Capabilities.
Generate Log Files with Results.
Automated Email with the Results.
Automated/Scripted Retrieval of Updated Config/Definitions.
* NOTE full uninstall automation is not guaranteed with all applications. Some program uninstallers may require user input to complete.
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