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chenks76
Contributor
Contributor

can't uninstall workstation 12 - windows 10

how can i uninstall vmware workstation 12 from windows 10?
in the windows 10 control panel for app removal, the "modify" and "uninstall" buttons are greyed out when selecting vmware.
there is no "uninstall.exe" file in the vmware installation folder.

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chenks76
Contributor
Contributor

no-one?

gimmely
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

I'm afraid it's not an issue with VMware.  "Modify/Uninstall" being greyed out normally means that you don't have (enough) local admin rights.  So, is your host on a LAN/intranet?  Did you use the same user account to install the VMware earlier, which may not guarantee that you can uninstall VMware with the same user account?  If it's a stand-alone machine, you can use a local admin account to uninstall it; if it's on LAN/intranet, you can ask your SA to uninstall it for you.

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chenks76
Contributor
Contributor

It's a standalone machine and the user account logged in is the local admin and the same user account that was used to install VMware.

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gimmely
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

Okay, then try to run the same installer, e.g. setup.exe, which may give you an option to "remove" it.

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chenks76
Contributor
Contributor

It doesn't give any option to uninstall

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gimmely
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

If you don't see the same as below, then the user account you're using doesn't have all the rights, even if it's a local admin:

pastedImage_0.png

chenks76
Contributor
Contributor

The installer I have is nothing like that.

It's just a plane installation.

And this system only has one account and always has.

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gimmely
Hot Shot
Hot Shot

Perhaps it's your turn to show us something, e.g. some screenshots of your installer before/when it's running, VMware when running and etc.  In any case, it doesn't look like a problem with VMware.

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ChrisW359
Contributor
Contributor

Same issue for me.

To fix:

  1. Right click on your start button and select "Command Prompt (Admin)".
  2. In the command prompt, type "control appwiz.cpl".
  3. The old style uninstall screen should open, so you can select "VMWare Player" from the list, then at the top, select "Change"
  4. In the pop up window, choose "Uninstall"

Hope this helps!

virtuj
Contributor
Contributor

As you pointed out even using the old appwiz.cpl there is no direct uninstall available. Other installed software packages have a direct "Deinstall" button in the control panel.

Therefore this is a bug of the installer. Hence it is a bug of VMWare and not of Windows.

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AhmedMajid88
Contributor
Contributor

Thank you ChrisW359, your command "control appwiz.cpl" works like a charm.

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jmbraben
Contributor
Contributor

Thanks...that worked.

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mbhuvan
Contributor
Contributor

Able to kick-start "remove" ... It's should have been simple to integrate on "Add remove Programs" which really su..ks.. 

Anyway your workaround solution is awesome ! Thanks a lot !

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