Microsoft is pushing its PC Health Check App to Windows 10 systems. Here is how you uninstall it
Microsoft started the roll out of the PC Health Check application to Windows 10 PCs running Windows 10 version 2004 or newer. The application is installed automatically on devices as part of the Windows Update KB5005463.
Microsoft released an updated version of the PC Health Check application recently. The initial version was pulled by Microsoft because it did not provide essential information.
PC Health Check is designed to provide compatibility information to users. The app checks if the Windows PC meets the system requirements of Microsoft's Windows 11 operating system.
The application provides other key information, including information about a device's battery and storage capacity, startup time, Windows Update, and backup & sync.
Microsoft published a support page on its website that offers additional information on the installation.
This update installs the PC Health Check application onto Windows 10,version 2004 and later devices. However, we will not install PC Health Check on Windows 11 devices. PC Health Check includes diagnostics to monitor device health and troubleshooting to improve performance, all from the convenience of a single dashboard.
Microsoft does not reveal why the application is installed on Windows 10 devices. one explanation is that it wants the app to be on devices to provide compatibility information to administrators to improve the process.
Another, that it is interested in pushing PC sales, and what better way to achieve this than to tell users that their devices are not compatible with the company's new operating system. Then again, the application is not started automatically after installation through the update.
Windows 10 is supported until 2025, but the focus of development has moved to Windows 11. Some Windows 11 features will find their way to Windows 10, but the majority won't become available on the previous version of Windows.
PC Health Check will check for updates automatically when it is opened on the device after installation. Microsoft notes that this can't be turned off by users.
Windows 10 users who don't want the application installed can uninstall it in the following way.
Uninstall the Windows PC Health Check application
- Open Start and select Settings.
- Go to Apps
- Search for PC Health. The Windows PC Health Check app should be returned.
- Select it and then the Uninstall button.
- Confirm the process by selecting uninstall again when the prompt is displayed.
The application's main purpose is compatibility testing. There is no need to keep it around if the compatibility test failed, or if the compatibility test was run already.
The PC Health Check can be downloaded again from Microsoft's website at any time.
Now You: what is your take on this?
‘Microsoft Update Health Tools’ appears in the list (1.05 MB, installed 10/12/2021). Can I safely uninstall this, too?
What does it mean when there is no “Check Now” button in PC Health Check for Windows 11 Compatibility? After I install I only see the “Open Windows 11” button, does this mean my system is compatible?
I recently purchased (x2) Win-10 Enterprise edition … legit and very reasonable price.
Two copies for wife and myself … $60 usd each
I hope “it” avoids the MS bloat-shovelling.
KB5006463 seems to get re-offered and reinstalled after removing/uninstalling it.
see this recent Bleepingcomputer article with a reg hack to “block” KB5006463:
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-is-force-installing-pc-health-check-in-windows-10/
Good Lord man, how many of these “ideas” & “innovations” from MS do we need to fight off?
Please put this crap in the store or at least make it an optional install. No more hidden forced installs. Don’t want.
On 10/20 my laptop was offered W11 over 21H1 build 19043.1288 which I declined. On 10/26 I installed 21H1 build 19043.1320 and Note 7 of PCHealthCheck now simply says “The Windows 11 upgrade will be delivered to qualifying devices late 2021 into 2022. Timing will vary by device.”
It is a good thing I do not want Windows 11 for a long time.
FYI PCHealthCheck was upgraded on my laptop from 3.0.210914001-s2 to 3.1.210929003-s2. Both versions said my machine is qualified for Windows 11.
If you have windows 10 and are running an older version of Windows like 1909 or 2004, use the group policy editor to set the target Feature Update version to 1909 or 2004. If you do, the PC Health Care App won’t even run. If you try to run it is simply says that your Adminstrator is controlling updates. Problem solved :-). I assume this would also work for newer versions of Windows but I have not tested it as I don’t want to ‘upgrade’ any further at present.
Another forced Windows update, another bloated spyware app that can only mean problems for users. The most recent one wasn’t that long ago, when they forced the ‘news’ toolbar on users. The Windows 10 circus rolls on.
I blocked the store, stuff is showing up outside of win updates.
The race to the bottom and lower continues in Big So Called Tech.
If any of them do anything worthwhile, it’s a side effect of doing something else to make a tiny bit more money. Products don’t matter, only an extra cent regardless of damage to users.
You so feel bad and buy a new computer.
j/k
I haven’t received Win11 update. My hardware is incompatible and it was diagnosed as such by the Windows Update Service (or whatever). So the Health check app is superfluous and won’t change anything, I won’t have Win11 anyway. Why then?
I’ve tried that app before.
As a result, I have confirmed that Microsoft’s PC Health Check application is completely useless.
The information I get from those tools is not specific enough, too abstract, and does not give me the useful information I want to know.
This program, even as a stand-alone program, has a large executable program size and a large amount of resources (RAM, CPU) at runtime. Moreover, it requires installation and “generates a huge number of registry keys”, so uninstalling it is not easy (e.g., registry remains).
Even if the program is not executed, it repeats suspicious communications. We have determined that it is in fact a very suspicious tool.
What does “This PC doesn’t currently meet all the system requirements for Windows 11″ mean? | gHacks Tech News
https://www.ghacks.net/2021/10/05/what-does-this-pc-doesnt-currently-meet-all-the-system-requirements-for-windows-11-mean/
A number of people have complained that even if PC Health Check gives them the OK that “This PC currently meets the Windows 11 system requirements,” they are actually “denied the upgrade to Windows 11.
If you want to check compatibility with Windows 11, in my experience, the open source WhyNotWin11 is the best. It requires no installation and has low runtime resource requirements.
WhyNotWin11: Detection Script to help identify why your PC is not Windows 11 Release Ready | GitHub – rcmaehl
https://github.com/rcmaehl/WhyNotWin11
The heavy and complicated specifications made by Microsoft make us distrust “whether it is a lack of technical skills, a cheap product, or a hidden agenda.
In short, Microsoft probably just wants to collect “unique usage data such as specific PC usage and system configuration” under a plausible pretext.
Google and Microsoft have made deceitful “fraud” a regular feature of their business, and like the “Red Riding Hood” in Grimm’s fairy tale, I can’t believe what they say.
As of the end of September,
only 1.3% of users on Windows OS are on Windows 11.
https://reports.adduplex.com/#/r/2021-09
My current using:
Windows 10 (x64) Version 20H2 (build 19042.1288)
KB5005463—PC Health Check Application | support.microsoft.com
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/kb5005463-pc-health-check-application-e33cf4e2-49e2-4727-b913-f3c5b1ee0e56
Excerpt:
Summary
This update installs the PC Health Check application onto Windows 10,version 2004 and later devices. However, we will not install PC Health Check on Windows 11 devices.
Important
By default, when you open the PC Health Check application, it will automatically install important application updates when they become available.
PC Health Check users will not be able to turn off automatic updates.
Windows Update and Microsoft Update
This update will be downloaded and installed automatically from Windows Update.
To get the standalone package for this update, go to the Microsoft Update Catalog website.
I used Belarc Advisor, WULF Express 3, and BCUninstaller to see if “KB5005463” and “PC Health Check” were reinstalled and mixed into the system, I have confirmed that they are completely shut out.
On a related subject: The System Audit and Windows Update History apps I use.
1. Applications useful for auditing the system.
> Belarc Advisor: The Belarc Advisor builds a detailed profile of your installed software and hardware, network inventory, missing security updates, anti-virus status, security benchmarks, and displays the results in your Web browser.
https://www.belarc.com/products_belarc_advisor
> WinAudit v3.2.1
WinAudit: an inventory utility for Windows computers. It creates a comprehensive report on a machine’s configuration, hardware and software.
http://www.parmavex.co.uk/winaudit.html
> HWiNFO64
HWiNFO: Free System Information, Monitoring and Diagnostics | HWiNFO
https://www.hwinfo.com/
> WizTree v4.00
WizTree – The Fastest Disk Space Analyzer
https://diskanalyzer.com/
> System Monitoring Tools Package for Windows: find the best 15 system tools available in NirSoft Website. | Nirsoft.net
https://www.nirsoft.net/system_tools.html
2. An application that can list the entire history of Windows updates applied.
> WULF Express 3
WULF(Windows Update List & File) lists the update history of Windows Update and allows you to get the history instantly. | hokusosha.com
http://hokusosha.com/software/default.html
https://freesoft-100.com/review/wulf-express.html
Martin’s article >
Quote:
Uninstall the Windows PC Health Check application
uninstall Windows pc health check
1. Open Start and select Settings.
2. Go to Apps
3. Search for PC Health. The Windows PC Health Check app should be returned.
4. Select it and then the Uninstall button.
5. Confirm the process by selecting uninstall again when the prompt is displayed.
:Quote
With the method in that article, the registry remains.
I uninstalled it with “BCUninstaller” and cleaned up the registry etc.
Bulk-Crap-Uninstaller: Remove large amounts of unwanted applications quickly. | GitHub – Klocman
https://github.com/Klocman/Bulk-Crap-Uninstaller
Windows, not your operating system anymore.
It never was. Ownership of Windows does not transfer from Microsoft to the purchaser. Anyone who installs it is licensed to use it and does not own it. Hence, there is no point grumbling about it. Either accept its foibles or change to another OS.
Didn’t find that particular app. Did find ‘Microsoft Update Health Tools’, installed 2021/10/09. I don’t believe it undid any Telemetry tweaks but I am yet to check the lot.
PCHealthCheck.exe is NOT listed in Apps & features list. I only found it by ‘searching’ for it as instructed above. Only ‘Microsoft Update Health Tools’ appears in the list (1.05 MB, installed 10/12/2021). Can I safely uninstall this, too?
“one explanation is that it wants the app to be on devices to provide compatibility information to administrators to improve the process”
What administrators? If you run this in active directory environment you just get “Your organization manages updates on this PC” and zero information on Win11 compatibility!