Revo Uninstaller is one of the most popular third party programs to clean up leftovers after program uninstallations in Windows. The program runs the default program uninstaller first, before it scans the system for leftovers to make sure that no traces remain on the PC.

The standard version is freeware. Revo Uninstaller Pro has all the features of the standard version plus several more that are especially suitable for tech savvy users and professional work environments.

The application displays a list of all installed programs on start up. The list is immediately available and divided into new programs at the top and all programs below that.

All functionality provided by the free version of the program is available in the pro version. The interface displays all program modules of Revo Uninstaller Free more or less in the same place. New options have been added to the interface. This includes a sidebar menu on the left linking to a set of related tools (which are also available in the free version but there only under Tools), additional options in the main menu bar and tabs to display multiple program modules at the same time.

The program uninstaller works nearly identical to that of the free program version. A few differences exist that are worth mentioning. It is first possible to configure and manage program groups in the pro version. You could move all important programs in a work group, or all Internet applications into the Internet group. This can be used to distinguish important apps from ones that can be removed from the system.

The pro version creates a system restore point and a full Registry backup before running the default program uninstaller and its cleanup module. The cleanup module benefits from advanced scanning algorithms that are not integrated in the free version.

What’s more? A forced uninstall feature is available to get rid of program remnants that are not listed (anymore) in the installed program list. That’s useful for instance if you have deleted a program directory accidentally, or when you want to remove partially installed or uninstalled programs.

Another interesting option that is only offered by the pro version of Revo Uninstaller is the ability to monitor program installations. This basically monitors all changes made to the system during program installation. Programs installed this way are listed under traced programs in Revo Uninstaller Pro. The monitoring makes sure that all traces of a program will be removed from the system during uninstallation.

Additional pro-only features include the ability to export or print the list of installed programs, a customizable user interface, visual themes support, command line program support and full 64-bit compatibility.

The program options display several interesting preferences. Registry keys, folders and files can for instance be excluded from being analyzed and included by the program during cleanup.

Verdict

Revo Uninstaller Pro tops the free version in many regards. Backups, full 64-bit support, real-time monitoring of program installations, and forced uninstallations are all features that extend the free version’s functionality. The developers could work on the reporting and log accessibility though. An option to create uninstallation reports would come in handy in business and professional environments.

In the end it all comes down whether you are satisfied with the functionality that the excellent free version offers, or if you need one or multiple of the features that the pro version adds on top of that.

Both the free version and a 30-day trial version of the professional program version can be downloaded from the developer website. A portable version is offered there as well.

Giveaway

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While it is usually relatively easy to resolve uninstallation issues, for instance by using a third party software uninstaller like Revo Uninstaller, the same cannot be said for installation problems, especially if the programs do not throw error messages or hint at the problem during the installation attempt.

Microsoft has released one of their Fix-It tools to “diagnose and fix program installing and uninstalling problems automatically”. A Fix-It is a small portable program that Windows users can run to resolve and repair issues on their operating system semi-automatically.

The Microsoft Support page, which is also the page where the Fix-It can be downloaded, lists the following issues that are repaired by the application:

• Removes bad registry key on 64 bit operating systems.
  Windows registry keys that control the upgrade (patching) data that become corrupted.
• Resolves problems that prevent new programs from being installed.
• Resolves problems that prevent programs from being completely uninstalled and blocking new installations and updates.
• Use this troubleshooter for an uninstall only if the program fails to uninstall using the windows add/remove programs feature.

Windows users who run the program can select to let the program handle both the detection of problems and the fixes, or to let the user apply the fixes manually after issues have been identified.

The second option gives more control over the process and is usually the better choice.

The type of problem, installing or uninstalling related, needs to be selected in the second step. If uninstalling is selected, a list of all programs that are currently being detected as installed is displayed. There is also an option to select Not Listed if the program that is causing the uninstalling problems is not listed here.

If the program is not listed, users can still uninstall the application by entering the program’s product code represented as a string GUID.

Windows users who have problems installing or uninstalling software can download the Fix-It from the official Microsoft Support website.

Third party application uninstallers use two methods to thoroughly uninstall software: Some uninstallers, like Revo Uninstaller, scan the computer system after the default uninstallation for leftovers. They list the files and Registry keys found so that the user can delete them.

Then there are programs that offer to monitor software installations. These applications record every file, folder and Registry key created during installation. These information are then used during uninstallation to remove the software completely from the system.

ZSoft Uninstaller combines both methods and then some in an easy to use interface.

The software uninstaller lists all installed programs after program start. By default, everything is lumped into the listing including Windows Updates. The Filters menu at the top offers to filter out specific groups including Windows Updates.

Programs can be uninstalled with a double-click on the program name in the listing of installed programs. This triggers the standard program uninstaller. ZSoft Uninstaller afterwards offers to search the system for leftovers. This has to be initiated by the user by double-clicking on the program title in the leftover section that opens up after at least one program has been uninstalled from the system.

The scan offers an interesting option. It will extract keywords automatically, but gives the user the choice to add keywords to the list of search words as well. This can be used to fine tune the search for leftovers. The uninstaller will search the file system and the Registry and display the findings in list form.

If there is something to criticize it is little things, like the missing option to mark all leftovers for deletion. The uninstaller creates backups of file and Registry leftover removals so that the data can be restored in the event that something has been deleted that is still needed.

But there is more to Zsoft Uninstaller than just the uninstallation of programs itself. The Analyze function offers to analyze a software installation, or to uninstall a previously analyzed program.

Those features alone make ZSoft Uninstaller one of the best, if not the best uninstaller for the Windows operating system. But there is more. It includes several nice to have tools, like a temp file finder, empty folder cleaner, startup program manager, badware finder among the installed programs and a tool to uninstall portable applications.

Programs can also be hidden from the installed programs list to avoid deleting them by accident. Windows users who would like to give ZSoft Uninstaller a try can download the application from the developer website over at ZSoft.dk. The uninstaller has been tested on a 64-bit Windows 7 Professional system, it should run fine on other Windows versions and editions as well.

Software uninstallers such as Revo Uninstaller or IOBit Uninstaller perform a scan of the operating system after the uninstallation to catch those leftovers giving the user the choice to keep or delete them.

These uninstallers have another advantage over the standard Windows uninstallation Control Panel applet as they provide the user with additional information about the installed programs.

Uninstall A Program displays up to five information about each program: Name, Publisher, Installed On, Size and Version. It does not display information about the program path, date the program was last used on, installation source and multiple others that might be useful to the computer users.

uninstall a program control panel

Revo Uninstaller, one of the most popular uninstallation programs, displays those additional information which adds to the usability of the application.

Improving Uninstall A Program

Users who are stuck with – or have to use – the Uninstall A Program applet can extend the information that are displayed in the table. A right-click on the header row in the window displays a context menu with a more link as the last entry.

uninstall program options

The more link opens a new window in which the user can add or remove details from the program uninstallation window.

The details provided are extensive ranging from the program location on the local hard drive to contact information, installation source and readme or support information.

A click on a checkbox next to each detail will enable or disable the information in the software uninstallation window depending on its previous state.

uninstall program details

The same configuration window can be used to change the order of columns in Uninstall or change a program. The same effect is also available by dragging and dropping column headers directly in the main window.

Adding details to the software uninstallation control panel applet adds valuable information to that process. The installation location can for instance be important if multiple versions of the same program have been installed.

Not all details that are enabled provide information on every software entry on the other hand. Windows can retrieve some information like the last used date or installation location but developers are responsible for contact and support information for instance.

uninstall program

The image above shows a modified uninstallation applet in Windows that is displaying the software name, publisher, size and installation location.

The same mechanism applies to uninstalling updates in Windows as well. It is possible to add and remove information from the window in the same way.

uninstall windows update

It can for instance be helpful to add the location of each installed Windows Update to the list so that identification and manual processing becomes easier.

Do you have additional tips about the standard Windows software and update uninstallation applet? Let us know in the comments.

IObit Uninstaller is another application that tackles those uninstallation leftovers. The portable software uninstaller displays a list of installed programs in its interface. The sidebar contains several other useful shortcuts to only list toolbars, programs that have been recently installed, large programs, rarely used software and Windows Updates.

The option to list recently installed software is nice for someone who reviews software on a daily basis.

Installed programs are listed with their name, size and installation date in the interface. A search on top can be used in case lots of software is installed on the PC.

Checkboxes in front of every program entry can be used to select multiple programs for uninstallation at once.

IObit Uninstaller supports both normal and advanced uninstallations. A forced uninstall option is provided as well in case the uninstaller offered by the application itself is not available or working anymore.

The advanced uninstaller performs the same routine that Revo Uninstaller performs. It begins by starting the default software uninstaller of each selected program. The user has to follow the uninstaller until it finishes.

The powerful scan will afterwards scan the system for leftovers. Leftovers that are found are then displayed so that they can be kept on the system or deleted.

All file and Registry leftovers are displayed in this menu. IObit Uninstaller handles this step better than Revo Uninstaller as it lists the entries directly.

IObit Uninstaller creates a system restore point before the uninstallation is started to give the user an option to restore the settings if something went wrong during uninstallation.

The manage menu in the program interface holds options to export a list of installed applications, manage the log files that the program automatically creates and to start System Restore.

IObit Uninstaller is an excellent program to uninstall software in Windows. Its leftover scanner ensures that no entries of the uninstalled program remain on the computer system.

The portable software program is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows. The download is offered at the developer’s website.

A filter on tab can be used to quickly find the desired program in the list. There is also a finder icon which can be dragged onto any open window to uninstall the program or kill the process of it in Windows.

Programs can be uninstalled by right-clicking on them and selecting the uninstall option from the menu. Another option is the uninstall icon in the top menu which is always accessible. A small menu is displayed afterwards giving the user the option to uninstall the program (this will trigger the default uninstaller) and to scan for leftovers.

KUninstall works faster and more reliable than the default Windows uninstaller. It does however lack several features at this stage in development that make Revo Uninstaller superior. It is for example not possible to select multiple programs for uninstallation (which would be executed one after the other). There are also no filters to hide Windows updates from the product list. The scan for leftovers is very fast which could mean that it is not as thorough as the one offered by Revo Uninstaller.

KUninstall is compatible with most Microsoft Windows operating systems (but apparently only 32-bit editions). It can be downloaded from the developer’s website.

Revo Uninstaller is a replacement for the mediocre Windows Uninstaller which more often than not fails to uninstall software properly. It’s probably not even the fault of the Windows Uninstaller but many applications leave traces like temporary or configuration files and registry keys behind after uninstallation.

This is where Revo Uninstaller really excels at. It scans the computer after uninstallation (which is initiated in Revo Uninstaller) and lists all objects that have not been uninstalled depending on the scan mode that you select. The choice is up to the user who can simply uninstall the application which would be equivalent to the Windows Uninstaller or choose between a Safe, Moderate and Advanced Mode of uninstallation.

The difference between the three modes is the depth of the scan after the uninstallation has completed. As I said earlier I would like to point at some features of Revo Uninstaller that are not so commonly known. The main function of Revo Uninstaller is of course the uninstallation of software, a click on the Tools button however reveals additional functions that I did discover a while ago.

Tracks Cleaner is one of those features that I would like to point out. It can be used to remove traces of deleted files on your hard drives which makes them unrecoverable by normal means. In addition to that it is possible to delete files or folders permanently so that they are not recoverable as well.

The three other entries in the Tracks Cleaner menu are not that useful in my opinion because they cannot be automated. In case you are asking you can delete the recent documents history in Microsoft Office, several traces in Windows like the Start Menu Run History and temporary files and settings in browsers.

It would be nice if the option to delete files permanently would be integrated in the uninstallation process so that it would not be necessary to visit the Tools page to delete them afterwards again.

A much faster method would be to use the so-called PC DE-Crapifier to uninstall most of not all of them in one go. Starting the software simply displays a list of products that is currently installed on your computer. This is not the uninstallation dialog that you see when you select it from your control panel. PC DE-Crapifier only scans the system for known products that are preinstalled when buying a new computer.

You may select to remove none, some or all of the programs that are found during the scan. This ensures that you can keep all the programs that sound interesting or have been installed on purpose. The list of programs that PC DE-Crapifier supports is a long one, here we go:

• QuickBooks Trial
• NetZero Installers
• Earthlink Setup Files
• Corel Photo Album 6
• Tiscali Internet
• Wanadoo Europe Installer
• Get High Speed Internet!
• Internet Service Offers Launcher
• Dell Search Assistant
• Norton Ghost 10.0
• Symantec Live Update
• MS Plus Photo Story 2LE
• MS Plus Digital Media Installer
• McAffee
• Norton Internet Security
• Google Desktop
• AOL US
• AOL UK
• MusicMatch Jukebox
• MusicMatch Music Services
• Wild Tangent Games
• Norton AntiVirus 2005
• Norton Security Center
• Norton AntiSpam
• PC-cillin Internet Security 12
• Run Registry Entries
• Desktop Icons
• Corel WordPerfect
• Roxio RecordNow
• Sonic DLA
• Sonic Update Manager
• Sonic RecordNow Audio
• Sonic RecordNow Copy
• Roxio MyDVD LE
• Microsoft Office Standard Edition 2003
• Quicken 2006

As you can see a lot of programs. Please note that some of the listed programs are so called light versions that do not offer the functionality of the full priced product. Others can be trial versions that you can only use for a certain time with the option to buy them if you want to continue using them.

I’d say this is pretty useful if you want a fast efficient solution.