Knowledge Base

This article describes the procedures for cleaning up after an incomplete uninstallation of various VMware products, including VMware ACE Manager on an administrator's computer. If you need information on cleaning up after an incomplete uninstallation of a VMware ACE package on an end user's computer, see Cleaning Up after an incomplete VMware ACE 1.x uninstall on a Windows host (1526).

Why This Problem Might Happen

VMware products might not install on Windows hosts if the installer detects certain other VMware products on the computer.

Sometimes registry keys that should be removed during the uninstallation of a product are left behind. This can happen if, for example, the host computer hangs or resets while you are uninstalling the previous product. When the installer finds these registry keys, it interprets their presence as an indication that the previous product is still installed.

Solving This Issue

1. Be a Local Administrator. Make sure you are logged onto the Windows host as a Local Administrator. (A Domain Administrator imposes the wrong permissions on components the installer must access.)
   
   
2. Disable firewalls on protected systems. If your security policy allows this, disable any firewall software you have installed. Some firewalls can interfere with the installation process.
   
   
3. Uninstall using Add/Remove Programs > Remove. If the VMware product is still listed in Add/Remove Programs, try rebooting and uninstalling the VMware product:
   1. Reboot the Windows host.
   2. From the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Programs.
   3. Select the VMware product in the list.
   4. Click Remove.
   5. Reboot the Windows host again.
   6. Reinstall the VMware software.
      
      
4. Run the VMware registry cleaner script.
   
   Note: VMware_Install_Cleaner.zip is located at the bottom of this KB.
   Remember to run this script and the installer when you are logged on as a member of the Local Administrators group. The registry cleaner utility removes all registry keys used by the installers for Workstation 3.1, Workstation 3.2, Workstation 4.x, Workstation 5.x, Workstation 6.x, GSX Server 2.x, GSX Server 3.0, GSX Server 3.1, ACE Manager 1.0, ACE 1.0, VmPerl 2.0, VmPerl 3.0, VmCOM 2.0, and VmCOM 3.0.
   
   If you are running the Workstation 5.x or 6.x installer. Run the installer command with the /c switch, which automatically removes the MSI installer registration information for VMware Workstation.
   
   VMware-workstation-<version>.exe /c
   
   For example:
   
   VMware-workstation-5.0.0-13124.exe /c VMware-workstation-5.5.0-18463.exe /c
   
   
5. Reboot. After you run the cleaner script or the installer, reboot. It's a good idea to reboot after you install or uninstall any programs on your system, and after you run any other programs that make changes to the registry.
   
   
6. Try the Microsoft CleanUp utility.
   If this previous steps prove unsuccessful, you might find a utility provided by Microsoft helpful. You can find instructions and a link to the utility in Microsoft knowledge base article 290301 at http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;290301.
   
   
7. Clean the registry manually. See the following section.

Manually Cleaning the Registry

1. Log onto the Windows host system as the Local Administrator or a member of the Local Administrators group.
   
   
2. Stop the following services on the Windows host:
   • VMware Authentication Service
   • VMware Registration Service
   • VMware DHCP Service
   • VMware NAT Service
     
     
3. Uninstall the VMware network bridge adapter.
   1. Choose Start > Settings > Network and Dial-up Connections.
   2. Right-click any network adapter icon and choose Properties.
   3. Select VMware Bridge Protocol and click Uninstall.
      
      
4. Uninstall all VMware devices.
   1. Right-click My Computer and choose Manage.
   2. Click Device Manager.
   3. Double-click Network Adapters.
   4. Right-click each adapter whose name begins with VMware and choose Uninstall.
   5. Choose Show hidden devices from the View menu.
   6. Double-click Non-Plug and Play Drivers.
   7. Right-click the following devices and choose Uninstall.
      • hcmon
      • VMware Network Application Interface
      • VMparport
      • vmx86
      • VMware Bridge Protocol
        
        
5. Delete the program folder in which the VMware product was installed. The default installation directory is C:\Program Files\VMware\. (The drive letter is different if your Program Files folder is on a different drive.) If you have installed only one VMware product, you can delete the entire VMware folder; if you have installed other products, such as VirtualCenter Client, delete only the relevant subfolders for the product you are trying to remove. On a GSX Server machine, you should remove the subfolders for VMware GSX Server, VMware Management Interface, VMware Scripting API, and either VMware Virtual Machine Console or VMware Remote Console.
   
   Note: If you have stored virtual machines in a folder under the program folder and want to save them, move them to a different folder before you delete the VMware program folder.
   
   
6. Delete the application data folder. The default locations are C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\VMware\ and C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\VMware. If you have installed only one VMware product, you can delete the entire VMware folder; if you have installed other products, such as VirtualCenter Client, delete only the relevant subfolders for the product you are trying to remove. On a GSX Server machine, you should remove the subfolders for VMware GSX Server, VMware Management Interface, VMware Scripting API, and either VMware Virtual Machine Console or VMware Remote Console.
   
   
7. Delete the VMware program group folder. The default location is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\VMware\. If you have installed only one VMware product, you can delete the entire VMware folder; if you have installed other products, such as VirtualCenter Client, delete only the relevant subfolders for the product you are trying to remove. On a GSX Server machine, you should remove the subfolders for VMware GSX Server, VMware Management Interface, VMware Scripting API, and either VMware Virtual Machine Console or VMware Remote Console.
   
   
8. Delete the VMware shortcut icons from the desktop.
   
   
9. Delete the files below from the Windows system folder. (Not all systems have all of these files installed.)
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vmnat.exe
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vmnetbridge.exe
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\VMNetDHCP.exe
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vmnetdhcp.leases
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vmxw2ksetup.dll
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vnetprobe.exe
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vnetprobelib.dll
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vnetinst.dll
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vnetlib.dll
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\vnetlib.exe
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\vmnet.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\vmnetx.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\VMparport.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\vmx86.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\vmnetadapter.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\vmnetbridge.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\vmnetuserif.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\hcmon.sys
   %SystemDrive%\WINNT\system32\drivers\vmusb.sys
   
   
10. Delete the __vmware_user__ local user and the __vmware__ local group from the Windows system if they exist.
    
    
11. Reboot the Windows host system.