今天，您可以找到许多有助于删除程序和清理剩余文件、文件夹和注册表设置的软件。从理论上讲，这是一件好事，因为它有助于消除Windows 计算机(Windows computer)上的一些臃肿。但这些解决方案真的能有效去除所有痕迹吗？为了找出答案，我测试了这个利基市场中一些最受欢迎的应用程序，包括免费的和商业的。让我们看看我发现了什么。
卸载软件(Uninstalling Software)的方法(Approaches)
处理卸载其他软件的软件产品(software product)可以采用两种主要方法：
- 首先运行程序的原始卸载程序，扫描应用程序常用的存储文件和注册表设置的位置，找到未删除的项目并将其删除；
- 监视(Monitor)程序的安装，记录它创建的文件、文件夹和注册表项，并在卸载它时，根据这个初始快照删除所有内容。
我选择测试IObit Uninstaller（2.0 版）、Ashampoo Uninstaller（4.2 版）和Revo Uninstaller Pro（2.5.5 版）的三个原因：
- 它们是这个利基市场中一些最受欢迎的解决方案；
- 它们代表了可用于从系统中删除软件的两种方法；
- 我们收到了读者的请求，他们希望了解更多关于这些解决方案以及它们有多好（或不好）的信息。
IObit Uninstaller仅使用第一种方法来删除软件，而Ashampoo Uninstaller仅使用第二种方法。Revo Uninstaller Pro是一个很好的第三种选择，因为它可以同时使用这两种方法。
测试程序
我通过要求卸载程序删除以下应用程序来评估卸载程序的工作情况：Firefox、Skype、Google Chrome、Panda Internet Security 2012、Adobe Reader X和LibreOffice。我还为Panda Internet Security 2012创建了一个手动桌面快捷方式(desktop shortcut)，看看它是否会被删除。
在测试IObit Uninstaller时，我安装了所有这些应用程序，除了Panda Internet Security 2012，使用Ninite（一种自动安装一些最常用应用程序的解决方案）来加快安装过程(installation process)。在测试Ashampoo 和 Revo(Ashampoo and Revo)的解决方案时，我了解到使用Ninite并不能很好地工作，所以我使用了Ninite安装程序（当它有意义时）和每个程序的单独安装程序。安装是使用默认设置进行的。
所有这些程序都启动和使用一次，以便它们生成常用的用户文件和设置。此外，Panda Internet Security 2012已更新为最新的恶意软件签名。
在卸载Firefox和Google Chrome时，我有意将这些程序的卸载功能设置为留下用户数据和自定义项，以查看卸载程序是否会将其删除。
为了评估卸载性能，我使用CCleaner扫描了计算机，以识别每个卸载程序完成工作后剩余的无效注册表项。然后，我在以下位置手动搜索剩余文件和文件夹：程序文件、程序数据(Program Data)和用户(User)文件夹（桌面(Desktop)、开始菜单(Start Menu)、所有用户和 AppData(All Users & AppData)）。为了评估Panda Internet Security 2012是否被正确删除，我还查看了Windows服务列表并检查Panda服务是否仍然显示。
IObit 卸载程序 2.0
我以前没有使用过 IOBit(IOBit)应用程序，我必须说使用IObit Uninstaller的体验是一个惊喜。首先(First)，你不需要安装这个程序，你只需运行它的可执行文件。此外，它是三款产品中最纤薄的一款，大小仅为 1.2MB。这使得它非常便携且易于随身携带。
IObit Uninstaller采用的方法是一种非常安全的方法：删除应用程序时，它首先会创建一个还原点(restore point)，以确保您可以在出现故障时恢复。然后，它运行该应用程序的原始卸载，等待它结束，然后扫描应用程序用来存储数据的一系列常用位置。如果它找到任何剩余的文件夹、文件和注册表项，它会通知您并让您选择从该列表中删除您想要的内容。
无论是否了解系统文件和注册表项，任何用户都可以轻松遵循该方法。此外，IObit Uninstaller不建议删除属于其他应用程序或Windows本身的文件。如果您选择删除它建议删除的所有内容，您不会破坏您的操作系统(operating system)。
这也意味着它不会绝对删除应用程序留下的所有内容。CCleaner确定了一些剩余的注册表项。不过没什么大不了的，只有几个键，例如：LibreOffice的安装程序参考， (LibreOffice)Panda Internet Security 2012的过时软件密钥，以及Adobe Reader、Skype和LibreOffice的一些缺少的MUI（多语言用户界面(Multilingual User Interface)）参考。所有这些键都可能导致Windows 注册表(Windows registry)比必要的大一些，但它们不会对系统产生负面影响。
关于文件和文件夹，我喜欢IObit Uninstaller扫描我的桌面(Desktop)，识别我为Panda Internet Security 2012创建的快捷方式并将其删除的事实。这是唯一可以做到这一点的软件。IObit Uninstaller的弱点是它不会扫描和删除由应用程序在常见用户位置创建的文件，例如："C:UsersUser nameAppDataLocal"、"C:UsersUser nameAppDataRoaming"或"C:UsersAll Users"。删除由这些位置的应用程序创建的文件夹通常不会有害，因为它们主要存储用户文件和用户配置。
我对IObit Uninstaller(IObit Uninstaller)感到困惑的一件事是它有一个关于Windows 更新(Windows Updates)的部分，这让你认为它可以帮助删除它们。但是，在我的测试系统(test system)上，它没有列出任何更新，我无法将它用于此任务。但是，这最终是一件好事，因为我不建议将卸载Windows 更新(Windows Updates)交给第三方软件。如果您这样做，破坏您的 Windows 安装的风险会成倍增加。
IObit Uninstaller还有一个名为Forced Uninstall的功能，它也存在于Revo Uninstaller Pro中。两种产品的功能几乎相同。但是，我无法在损坏的软件上对其进行测试以证明其性能。我建议在使用Forced Uninstall时要小心。可能会建议您删除不属于您要删除其痕迹的应用程序的文件或注册表项。
Ashampoo 卸载程序 4.2
Ashampoo Uninstaller 4.2的用户界面非常丰富多彩。您可以访问有关卸载软件的选项，还可以访问与此主题不一定相关的各种其他工具，例如：Internet 清洁器(Internet cleaner)、删除重复文件和临时文件、“取消删除”文件等。因为我有兴趣只测试卸载功能，我没有详述所有其他可用的功能。
Ashampoo Uninstaller选择首先监控程序的安装，以便稍后帮助您删除它们。当您开始安装时，Ashampoo会弹出并要求您等待，直到它扫描您的系统。如果你在一个大硬盘上有几个分区，你连接了一个U 盘(USB stick)和一个外部硬盘，就像我一样，你让自己等待一段时间，因为Ashampoo Uninstaller坚持扫描所有东西。完成后，它会通知您继续安装应用程序。
安装应用程序后，系统会要求您运行该应用程序一次。然后Ashampoo Uninstaller进行另一次扫描，以识别对您的系统所做的更改。如果你不是病人类型(patient type)，你会不喜欢这个。
从我看到它的那一刻起，我就不喜欢这种行为。在我的职业生涯中，我致力于为各种类型的商业和消费软件(business and consumer software)创建定制安装程序，当我第一次看到Ashampoo Uninstaller运行时，很多钟声开始响起。(Ashampoo Uninstaller)不幸的是，我所有的担心都成真了，因为这种方法只适用于简单的应用程序，不需要重新启动系统，也不需要安装其他软件才能运行。
例如，LibreOffice以自解压档案的形式分发。Ashampoo Uninstaller将自解压存档检测为安装程序，并要求我为其制作安装日志(install log)。然后，它检测到LibreOffice作为单独的安装程序安装并对其进行了扫描，以及LibreOffice所需的其他依赖项（如Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables ）的安装。突然间，我的屏幕上充满了来自Ashampoo Uninstaller的窗口和提示，它正在扫描系统，然后要求我保存发生的安装日志。最大的麻烦是我跟不上安装日志(install log)适用于什么应用程序。我无法确定哪个是哪个，Ashampoo也没有努力给我任何线索。我最终得到了三个安装日志，我不清楚我是否正确保存了它们。
这是一个巨大的问题，因为许多应用程序都是作为自解压档案分发的。此外，计算机游戏尤其倾向于安装运行游戏所需的第三方软件(party software)（例如DirectX更新或Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables）。Ashampoo Uninstaller根本无法成功应对它们。
此外，由于这种方法，您不应该使用像Ninite这样的软件来安装应用程序。Ashampoo Uninstaller会将它们视为一个正在安装的应用程序。
我在安装Panda Internet Security 2012(Panda Internet Security 2012)时遇到的另一个大问题，需要重新启动。Ashampoo Uninstaller根本无法完成安装日志(installation log)，因为它不会在重启后恢复扫描。因此，我必须将系统恢复到安装Panda Internet Security 2012之前的状态，然后在重新启动之前保存安装日志(installation log)。一开始这很糟糕，因为Ashampoo Uninstaller无法捕获重新启动后所做的所有更改。
当要求Ashampoo Uninstaller删除我刚刚安装的应用程序时，问题仍然存在。首先(First)，如果没有为应用程序创建安装日志， (installation log)Ashampoo Uninstaller只会要求您使用其默认的卸载功能自行删除它。而已！
如果您有安装日志文件(log file)，则需要加载它，然后开始删除过程(removal process)。这相当于Ashampoo Uninstaller手动删除它在安装过程中(installation process)找到的所有文件、文件夹和注册表项。
使用像Skype(Skype)这样的小而简单的应用程序，删除工作没有问题。但是，当删除LibreOffice时，事情变得一团糟。我认为用于LibreOffice的安装日志(installation log)删除了其他内容。然后，我使用当时创建的所有安装日志卸载了LibreOffice安装的所有应用程序。(LibreOffice)不幸的是，我最终发现LibreOffice在我的计算机上仍然处于活动状态，并且安装它的自解压器以及Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable的一部分被删除。在删除过程(removal process)中的某个时刻，Ashampoo Uninstaller建议我删除在"C:WindowsInstaller"中找到的一些未知文件。在这一点上我真的很困惑，我只是让Ashampoo Uninstaller做任何推荐的事情。
这削弱了我的Windows 安装(Windows installation)，我开始收到奇怪的错误消息。
删除Panda Internet Security 2012时，事情变得非常混乱。我开始收到Ashampoo Uninstaller无法删除某些文件的错误。唯一的选择是忽略它们并继续删除过程(removal process)。一切完成后，我重新启动了系统，当我重新登录时，男孩给了我一个丑陋的惊喜！
首先，Ashampoo Uninstaller在我的屏幕上填满了无法运行的错误。显然，在所有软件删除过程中的某个时刻，它删除了运行所需的文件。
然后，Windows 告诉我Panda Internet Security 2012停止工作。显然，它的大部分文件仍然可以在Program Files中找到，它的服务没有被删除，而是显示为已启动且无法工作。
我的系统严重瘫痪，到处都是错误。而这一切只花了我“49.99 美元”。
Revo 卸载程序 Pro 2.5.5
在测试Revo Uninstaller Pro时，我又开始感觉良好了。在体验Ashampoo Uninstaller(Ashampoo Uninstaller)之后需要进行更改。
和 Ashampoo 一样，Revo Uninstaller Pro提供了删除应用程序范围之外的其他工具，例如：浏览器清理器、Microsoft Office 清理器(Microsoft Office cleaner)、证据删除器(evidence remover)等。但是，我只测试了删除应用程序的功能。
不过，与Ashampoo不同的是，它提供了您希望如何处理删除过程(removal process)的选择。您可以跟踪安装后的程序，这意味着您只能使用安装日志(installation log)将其删除。
在安装由Revo Uninstaller Pro监控的应用程序时，您会收到一个重要方面的警告：在安装程序期间不要运行其他安装文件、程序或其他任何东西(do not run other setup files, programs or anything else during the installation of the program)。这充分说明了这种方法的局限性。如果您要安装更复杂的应用程序，例如电脑游戏(computer game)、办公套件(office suite)、商业应用程序(business application)，则不应跟踪安装并保存日志。
尽管如此，我还是请Revo Uninstaller Pro监控Panda Internet Security 2012的安装，看看它是否比Ashampoo处理得更好。我还做了一个单独的测试，没有要求Revo Uninstaller Pro监控这个安全套件(security suite)的安装。
删除未跟踪的应用程序时，Revo Uninstaller Pro首先创建一个系统还原点(system restore point)，然后备份注册表(Registry)，然后才启动要删除的程序的卸载功能。这确实有助于确保万一发生(case something)故障时您的安全。完成后，它会进行扫描，您可以设置其积极性，并建议您删除它识别的剩余文件、文件夹和注册表项。
注意不要选择高级(Advanced)扫描，因为它更有可能建议您删除属于其他应用程序或Windows本身的文件或注册表项。安全(Safe)和中等(Moderate)扫描返回了良好的结果，并建议删除仅属于我之前安装的应用程序的内容。
在对程序进行跟踪卸载时，Revo Uninstaller Pro首先会删除它包含在安装日志(installation log)中的所有内容。然后，它会检测到与您卸载的程序相关的一些数据由于在安装后生成而没有被删除。确实如此。我很高兴看到Revo Uninstaller Pro意识到这一点并提示我进行Advanced Uninstall。
高级卸载的问题在于你真的需要知道你的东西。您被要求对要删除的内容做出选择，并且某些决定很难做出，即使是专家也是如此。例如，Revo Uninstaller Pro要求您就删除某些与Windows服务相关的注册表项做出决定。即使您非常了解Windows 注册表(Windows registry)，也很难做出好的选择。因此，我只删除了我确信可以安全删除的内容。
完成高级卸载后，发现Panda Internet Security 2012没有完全卸载，我并不感到惊讶。我没有收到错误消息，Panda服务已正确删除，但仍然在Program Files中的一些文件及其图标显示在任务栏的通知区域(notification area)中。单击它没有返回任何结果。该界面从未启动，但至少我可以平静地使用我的电脑。
Revo Uninstaller Pro在删除(Revo Uninstaller Pro)行为不良的软件(behaving software)时还有一项有趣的功能- 它称为强制卸载(Forced Uninstall)。您提供安装应用程序的文件夹或其主要可执行文件的路径。然后，Revo Uninstaller Pro会搜索该应用程序的卸载程序。如果找到它，则执行与通常相同的过程，首先进行备份和系统还原(system restore)以及所有其他步骤。如果没有找到卸载程序，它会分析Windows 注册表(Windows registry)中指向该文件夹和文件的键(folder & file)以及任何类似的键，然后建议删除它们，此外它还会删除在给定位置找到的文件和子文件夹。这在尝试删除一些损坏的应用程序时会很有帮助。但是，由于我测试的应用程序并没有真正损坏，我无法评估此功能的性能。
关于未跟踪应用程序的结果，它们与IObit Uninstaller(IObit Uninstaller)的结果非常相似：Revo Uninstaller Pro不会扫描和删除由应用程序在常见用户位置创建的文件，例如：“C:UsersUser nameAppDataLocal”、“C:UsersUser nameAppDataRoaming"或"C:UsersAll Users"。与IObit不同，它不会在您的桌面(Desktop)上删除您可能手动创建的任何快捷方式。
在注册表方面(registry side)，结果再次与IObit Uninstaller几乎相同- 只是留下了一些键，例如：LibreOffice的安装程序引用， (LibreOffice)Panda Internet Security 2012和Mozilla的过时软件键，以及一些丢失的MUI（多语言用户接口(Multilingual User Interface)）Skype的参考资料。所有这些键都可能导致Windows 注册表(Windows registry)比必要的大一些，但它们不会对系统产生负面影响。
获胜者是...
让我们尝试对我测试过的解决方案进行排名，看看推荐哪些解决方案以及何时推荐：
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IObit Uninstaller - 我想你现在已经猜到了，这个软件是我在 Windows 中卸载应用程序的首选。它体积小、便携、免费，最重要的是使用安全。它的简单性和缺乏“附加功能”实际上是一个优势 - 使用IObit Uninstaller删除应用程序效果很好并且不会破坏您的系统。
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Revo Uninstaller Pro - 如果您对在其免费解决方案之上提供的附加功能感兴趣，这是一个不错的选择。但是，跟踪应用程序安装然后根据其生成的日志进行删除的能力对于安装附加软件或在其生命周期内经常更新的复杂应用程序（例如安全解决方案）来说效果不佳。这严重削弱了此功能的价值，因为人们可能会想用它来摆脱留下许多痕迹的复杂软件。如果您对附加功能不感兴趣，我真诚地推荐 Revo Uninstaller 的免费版本。它包含的功能与 Pro 版本中的功能相同，卸载应用程序时您会获得合理且安全的结果。
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Ashampoo Uninstaller - 是一个令人沮丧的软件。它似乎陷入了一个不同的计算时代，提供的功能仅适用于删除简单的应用程序。对于它提供的大量挫败感和问题，我无法理解为什么 Ashampoo 向人们收取使用它的费用，而不是免费提供它并根据用户的反馈改进产品。
我希望这种比较有助于做出明智的选择。如果您有任何问题，请随时发表评论。
Roundup of Software Uninstallers - Reviewing IObit vs Ashampoo vs Revo
Today you can find lots of software which helpѕ remove programs and clean up leftover files, folders and rеgіstry ѕettings. In theory thiѕ is a good thing, as it helps eliminate some of the bloаt on your Windows computer. But arе these solutions really effective at removing all traces? To find out, I tested some of the most popular applications іn this niche, both free and commercial. Let's seе what I discovered.
The Approaches to Uninstalling Software
There are two main approaches that can be taken by a software product that deals with uninstalling other software:
- First run the original uninstaller of a program, scan the locations commonly used by applications to store files and registry settings for items that were not removed and delete them;
- Monitor the installation of a program, make a log of the files, folders and registry keys it created and, when uninstalling it, remove everything based on this initial snapshot.
I chose to test IObit Uninstaller (version 2.0), Ashampoo Uninstaller (version 4.2) and Revo Uninstaller Pro (version 2.5.5) for three reasons:
- They are some of the most popular solutions in this niche;
- They are representative of the two approaches that can be taken to remove software from a system;
- We received requests from our readers wanting to know more about these solutions and how good (or not) they are.
IObit Uninstaller uses only the first approach to remove software, while Ashampoo Uninstaller uses only the second approach. Revo Uninstaller Pro is a good third alternative as it can use both approaches.
The Testing Procedure
I evaluated how well uninstallers work by asking them to remove the following applications: Firefox, Skype, Google Chrome, Panda Internet Security 2012, Adobe Reader X and LibreOffice. I also created a manual desktop shortcut for Panda Internet Security 2012, to see if it would be removed.
When testing IObit Uninstaller, I installed all these applications, except Panda Internet Security 2012, using Ninite (a solution which automates the installation of some of the most used applications) to speed up the installation process. When testing the solutions from Ashampoo and Revo I learned that using Ninite doesn't work that well, so I've used both the Ninite installer (when it made sense) and the individual installers for each of these programs. The installations were made using the default settings.
All these programs were started & used once, so that they generate their usual user files and settings. Also, Panda Internet Security 2012 was updated to the latest malware signatures.
When uninstalling Firefox and Google Chrome, I intentionally set the uninstall functionality of these programs to leave behind user data and customizations, to see if the uninstallers will remove it or not.
To evaluate uninstall performance, I scanned the computer with CCleaner, to identify the invalid registry keys that remained after each uninstaller finished its job. Then, I manually searched for leftover files and folders in locations such as: Program Files, Program Data and the User folders (Desktop, Start Menu, All Users & AppData). To evaluate if Panda Internet Security 2012 was removed correctly, I also looked through the list of Windows services and checked if the Panda services still show up or not.
IObit Uninstaller 2.0
I have not used IOBit applications before and I must say that the experience of working with IObit Uninstaller was a nice surprise. First of all, you don't need to install this program, you simply run its executable. Also, it is the slimmest product of all three, having a size of only 1.2MB. This makes it very portable and easy to have with you at all times.
The approach taken by IObit Uninstaller is a very safe one: when removing an application, it first creates a restore point, to make sure you can revert back in case of failure. Then, it runs the original uninstall of that application, waits for it to end, and then scans a series of common locations used by applications to store data. If it finds any remaining folders, files and registry keys, it informs you and gives the choice to delete what you want from that list.
The approach is easy to follow by any user, with or without knowledge about system files and registry keys. Also, IObit Uninstaller does not suggest for deleting files which belong to other applications or to Windows itself. If you choose to delete everything it recommends for deletion, you won't break your operating system.
This also means that it will not delete absolutely everything left behind by an application. CCleaner identified a few registry keys that were left over. Nothing big though, just a few keys like: installer references for LibreOffice, an obsolete software key for Panda Internet Security 2012, and few missing MUI (Multilingual User Interface) references for Adobe Reader, Skype and LibreOffice. All these keys might contribute to making the Windows registry a bit larger than necessary but they don't negatively impact the system.
Regarding files and folders, I liked the fact that IObit Uninstaller scanned my Desktop, identified the shortcut I created for Panda Internet Security 2012 and deleted it. It was the only piece of software that did this. The weak spot of IObit Uninstaller is that it doesn't scan and remove files created by applications in common user locations like: "C:UsersUser nameAppDataLocal", "C:UsersUser nameAppDataRoaming" or "C:UsersAll Users". Removing the folders created by applications in these locations is generally not harmful as they store mostly user files and user configuration.
One thing that I found confusing about IObit Uninstaller is that it has a section about Windows Updates, which leads you to think that it can help remove them. On my test system though, it did not list any updates and I could not use it for this task. However, that's a good thing in the end, as I would not recommend leaving uninstalling Windows Updates in the hands of third-party software. The risk of breaking your Windows installation rises exponentially if you do this.
IObit Uninstaller has also a featured called Forced Uninstall that exists also in Revo Uninstaller Pro. The functionality is almost identical between the two products. However, I was not able to test it on a broken piece of software to testify on its performance. I recommend caution when using a Forced Uninstall. Chances are you will be recommended to delete files or registry keys which do not belong to the application whose traces you are trying to remove.
Ashampoo Uninstaller 4.2
The user interface of Ashampoo Uninstaller 4.2 is a very colorful one. You get access to options regarding uninstalling software but also to all kinds of other tools not necessarily related to this subject, such as: Internet cleaner, deletion of duplicate files and temporary files, "undeletion" of files, etc. Since I was interested to test only the uninstall functionality, I did not dwell on all the other features made available.
Ashampoo Uninstaller chooses to monitor first the installation of programs so that it can help you remove them later. When you start an installation, Ashampoo pop up and asks you to wait until it makes a scan of your system. If you have a couple of partitions on a big hard disk, you attached an USB stick and an external hard disk, as I did, you set yourself for some waiting, as Ashampoo Uninstaller insists on scanning everything. When done, it informs you that you continue with the installation of the application.
After you install the application, you are asked to run the application once. Then Ashampoo Uninstaller makes another scan, to identify the changes made to your system. If you are not the patient type, you will dislike this.
I did not like this behavior from the moment I've seen it. During my career I worked on creating customized installers for various types of business and consumer software and lots of bells started ringing when seeing Ashampoo Uninstaller in action for the first time. Unfortunately all my worries came true, as this approach works well only for simple applications, which do not require system reboots, and do not install other software so that they can function.
For example, LibreOffice is distributed as a self-extracting archive. Ashampoo Uninstaller detected the self-extracting archive as an installer and asked me to make an install log for it. Then, it detected the installation of LibreOffice as a separate installer and made a scan for it too, as well as the installation of other dependencies like Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables, needed by the LibreOffice. All of a sudden my screen was filled with windows and prompts from Ashampoo Uninstaller, that was scanning the system and then asking me to save logs for the installations that took place. The big trouble was that I could not keep the pace with which install log is for what application. There was no way for me to identify which is which and Ashampoo made no effort in giving me clues. I ended up with three installation logs and I wasn't clear if I saved them correctly or not.
This is a huge problem as many applications are distributed as self-extracting archives. Also, computer games in particular tend to install third party software needed to run games (such as DirectX updates or Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables). Ashampoo Uninstaller will simply be unable to cope with them successfully.
Also, due to this approach, you should never use software like Ninite, to install applications. Ashampoo Uninstaller will consider them as one application being installed.
Another big problem I encountered when installing Panda Internet Security 2012, which requires a restart. Ashampoo Uninstaller simply doesn't get to finish the installation log as it doesn't resume scanning after the reboot. Therefore I had to revert back my system to a state prior to installing Panda Internet Security 2012 and then save the installation log before making the reboot. This was bad to begin with, as Ashampoo Uninstaller failed to capture all the changes made after the restart.
The trouble continued when asking Ashampoo Uninstaller to remove the applications I just installed. First, if an installation log is not created for an application, then Ashampoo Uninstaller simply asks you to remove it yourself, using its default uninstall functionality. That's it!
If you have a log file of the installation, you need to load it and then the removal process begins. This is the equivalent of Ashampoo Uninstaller manually removing all the files, folders and registry keys it found during the installation process.
With small & simple applications like Skype, the removal worked without problems. However, when removing LibreOffice things got messy. The installation log which I thought was for LibreOffice removed something else. Then, I uninstalled all the applications installed by LibreOffice, using all the install logs I created at that point. Unfortunately I ended up with LibreOffice still being active on my computer and the self-extractor that installed it and portions of the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable being removed. At some point during the removal process, Ashampoo Uninstaller recommended me to remove some unknown files found in "C:WindowsInstaller". I was really confused at this point and I simply let Ashampoo Uninstaller do whatever it recommended.
This crippled my Windows installation and I was starting to receive weird error messages.
When removing Panda Internet Security 2012, things got really messy. I started receiving errors that Ashampoo Uninstaller cannot remove certain files. The only option was to ignore them and continue with the removal process. I rebooted the system once it was all done and, when I logged back in, boy was I in for one ugly surprise!
First, Ashampoo Uninstaller was filling my screen with errors that it can no longer function. Apparently, at some point during all the software removals, it removed files it needed to function.
Then, Windows was telling me that Panda Internet Security 2012 stopped working. Apparently, most of its files where still found in Program Files, its services were not removed but appeared as started and failing to work.
My system was severely crippled and there were errors all over the place. And all this would have cost me "only $49.99".
Revo Uninstaller Pro 2.5.5
When testing Revo Uninstaller Pro I started to feel good again. A change was needed after the Ashampoo Uninstaller experience.
Just like Ashampoo, Revo Uninstaller Pro offers additional tools outside the scope of removing applications, such as: browsers cleaners, Microsoft Office cleaner, evidence remover, etc. However, I tested only the functionality for removing applications.
Unlike Ashampoo though, it gives a choice on how you want to handle the removal process. You can trace a program since its installation, which means you can remove it only by using the installation log.
When installing an application which is monitored by Revo Uninstaller Pro, you are being warned about one important aspect: do not run other setup files, programs or anything else during the installation of the program. This speaks loudly on the limitations this approach has. If you are about to install a more complex application such as a computer game, an office suite, a business application, you should not trace the installation and save a log of it.
Even so, I did ask Revo Uninstaller Pro to monitor the installation of Panda Internet Security 2012 to see if it handles things better than Ashampoo. I also made a separate test without asking Revo Uninstaller Pro to monitor the installation of this security suite.
When removing applications which are not traced, Revo Uninstaller Pro first creates a system restore point, then it makes a backup of the Registry and only then starts the uninstall functionality of the program you want to remove. This really helps in making sure you are safe in case something breaks. Once that is done, it makes a scan for which you can set its aggressiveness and recommends you to remove the leftover files, folders and registry keys it identifies.
Be careful not to choose and Advanced scan, as it is more likely to recommend that you to delete files or registry keys which belong to other applications or to Windows itself. The Safe and Moderate scans returned good results and recommended to delete things which belonged only to the applications previously installed by me.
When making a traced uninstall of a program, Revo Uninstaller Pro first removes all the things it included in the installation log. Then, it detects that there is some data related to the program you uninstalled that did not get deleted due to being generated after the install took place. That's true indeed. I was happy to see Revo Uninstaller Pro realized this and prompted me to make an Advanced Uninstall.
The trouble with the advanced uninstall is that you really need to know your stuff. You are being asked to make choices on what to remove and certain decisions are tough to make, even by specialists. For example, Revo Uninstaller Pro asks you to make a decision regarding deleting some Windows services related registry keys. Even if you know the Windows registry well, it is hard to make a good choice. Therefore I deleted only the things I was convinced were safe to delete.
Once I finished the advanced uninstall, I was not surprised to see that Panda Internet Security 2012 was not fully uninstalled. I did not get error messages, the Panda services were removed correctly but some files where still in Program Files and its icon showed up in the notification area of the taskbar. Clicking on it returned no result. The interface never started but at least I could use my computer peacefully.
Revo Uninstaller Pro has one more feature that's interesting when removing bad behaving software - it is called Forced Uninstall. You give the path to where the folder where the application is installed, or to its main executable. Then, Revo Uninstaller Pro searches for an uninstaller of that application. If it finds it, then executes the same procedure as it normally would, with first making a backup and a system restore and all the other steps. If it doesn't find an uninstaller, it analyzes the Windows registry for keys that point to that folder & file and any similar keys to it and then recommends them for deletion, plus it deletes the files and sub-folders found at the given location. This can be helpful when trying to remove some broken applications. However, since the applications I've tested were not really broken, I could not evaluate the performance of this functionality.
Regarding the results of the non-traced applications, they were very similar to those of IObit Uninstaller: Revo Uninstaller Pro doesn't scan and remove files created by applications in common user locations like: "C:UsersUser nameAppDataLocal", "C:UsersUser nameAppDataRoaming" or "C:UsersAll Users". Unlike IObit, it doesn't look on your Desktop to remove any shortcuts you might have created manually.
On the registry side, the results were again almost identical to IObit Uninstaller - just a few keys being left behind, such as: installer references for LibreOffice, an obsolete software key for Panda Internet Security 2012 and Mozilla, and few missing MUI (Multilingual User Interface) references for Skype. All these keys might contribute to making the Windows registry a bit larger than necessary but they don't negatively impact the system.
The Winner is...
Let's try to rank the solutions I tested and see which would be recommended & when:
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IObit Uninstaller - I think you guessed by now that this piece of software is my top choice for uninstalling applications in Windows. It is small, portable, free of charge and, most of all, safe to use. Its simplicity and lack of "additional features" is actually a strength - removing applications with IObit Uninstaller works well and doesn't break your system.
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Revo Uninstaller Pro - is a good choice if you are interested in the additional functionality, provided on top of their free solution. However, the capability to trace application installs and then make removals based on the logs it makes, doesn't work well for complex applications which install additional software or get updated often during their lifetime (e.g. security solutions). This seriously dilutes the value of this feature as people might be tempted to use it to get rid of complex software which leave many traces behind. If you are not interested in the additional features though, I honestly recommend the free version of Revo Uninstaller. The functionality it includes works the same as in the Pro version and you get reasonable and safe results when uninstalling applications.
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Ashampoo Uninstaller - is a frustrating piece of software. It seems to be stuck in a different era of computing, offering features which would work well only for removing simple applications. For the amount of frustration and problems it offers, I cannot understand why Ashampoo bills people for using it, instead of offering it for free and improving the product based on the feedback received from users.
I hope this comparison has been useful in making an informed choice. If you have any questions don't hesitate to leave a comment.
