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Silent uninstall not working

Question asked by Sam S on Oct 5, 2008
Latest reply on Nov 5, 2008 by Steve Schaufler

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It has been several years since the last time I used a batch file to do a silent install and I am having some trouble.

I created a "one step" admin image for sw2008sp0.0 from a DVD that had been copied to a folder on my hard drive.
Next I installed by using StartSWInstall.hta. The installation seemed to work fine and solidworks operates fine.

So next I wanted to test my silent uninstall bat file. Initially I created my uninstall bat file by copying the contents from tech tip solution ID S-013266. I commented out the lines for cleaning the registery, I just want to start by uninstalling solidworks.
I also edited the line for uninstalling solidworks and replaced with my information (see below).
msiexec -x \\DELL-M90\sw2008sp0.0\SolidWorks\English_i386_SolidWorks.msi

When I launch the bat file I get a message asking "Are you sure you want to uninstall this product?", I select yes to that message, next I get a message for just a second that appears to indicate that the uninstall process is starting then I get a message stating
"This installation package could not be opened. Contact the application vendor to verify that this is a valid Windows Installer package.
I select Ok to that message and the process is terminated without uninstalling solidworks. I am able to uninstall by manually launching English_i386_SolidWorks.Msi

The only other thing to note is that I also have sw2009sp0.0 installed, it was installed manually from a download from the sw portal (the "old school" download method). I am not sure that this will cause a problem but I thought I would mention it here.

So why is my uninstall bat file not working???
Can anyone post their uninstall bat file contents here so I acan compare to mine?

Thanks,

Sam

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Michael Beem Oct 6, 2008 4:14 PM
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Sam,

This is what I've used in the past:

msiexec /x "\\server\Dropbox\SolidWorks2008\SolidWorks\English_i386_SolidWorks.msi" /qn

/x for the uninstall (not -x?) and the /qn to be silent.

Keep in mind there are separate MSI files for edrawings, swexplorer, etc.

I also found that the installation manager (actually titled SolidWorks 2008 SP4.0) continues to be in the add remove programs area even after all parts are removed. I have not found a way to script that one away without user interaction, but on my system if I run:

"C:\WINDOWS\SolidWorks\IM_20080-40400-1100-200\sldim\sldim.exe" /remove "C:\WINDOWS\SolidWorks\IM_20080-40400-1100-200\sldim\sldIM_installed.xml"

it will bring up the dialog box to uninstall it. This line may vary on installations so see knowledge base: S-04787 for further info.

-MB
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William Crosby Oct 6, 2008 4:18 PM
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I like to use /passive so that I can see status of it being remove without user interaction.
msiexec /x "\\server\Dropbox\SolidWorks2008\SolidWorks\English_i386_SolidWorks.msi" /passive

I use this to get rid of the SolidWorks 2008 SP4.0 Add/Remove entry:

' --------------------------------------------------------------------
' Create WSHShell Object
' --------------------------------------------------------------------
Set WSHShell = Nothing
Set WSHShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
If WSHShell Is Nothing Then
MsgBox ("Error: Failed to create shell")
Wscript.Quit 99
End If
If WSHShell.RegRead ("HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\SolidWorks Installation Manager 20080-40400-1100-200") Then
WSHShell.Run ("""REG""" & "DELETE ""HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\SolidWorks Installation Manager 20080-40400-1100-200"" /f"), 7, True
End If
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- Michael Beem @ William Crosby on Oct 6, 2008 4:59 PM
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  William,
  
  Does WSHShell truely uninstall the IM or does it just make it "disappear" from the Add/Remove programs list?
  
  -MB
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William Crosby Oct 6, 2008 5:50 PM
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Michael,
After using the MSI files to remove all the products, you use the WshShell to RegRead and validate and remove the entry from the Add/Remove. Look at this code you'll see what I mean:

If WSHShell.RegRead ("HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\SolidWorks Installation Manager 20080-40400-1100-200") Then
WSHShell.Run ("""REG""" & "DELETE ""HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\SolidWorks Installation Manager 20080-40400-1100-200"" /f"), 7, True
End If
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- Sam S @ William Crosby on Oct 6, 2008 8:57 PM
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  Hey guys, thanks for the help. I was finally able to get it to work but I still do not understand what the problem was.
  
  What I had to do was to add the parent folder that contains the folder that in turn contains the admin image to the bat file and share that folder as well. So in the line below folder sw2008 is shared and sw2008sp0.0 is shared and sw2008sp0.0 actually contains the admin image. It appears to work correctly now, it is currently uninstalling right now...
  
  msiexec /x "\\DELL-M90\sw2008\sw2008sp0.0\SolidWorks\English_i386_SolidWorks.msi" /passive
  
  Thanks again for your help...
  
  Sam
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  - Jason Capriotti @ Sam S on Nov 3, 2008 8:35 PM
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    I run the uninstall using the class id. That way the image isn't require to uninstall. Of course, you need the CLSID for each product and each service pack.
    
    Here's the batch code I use for just removing SolidWorks 2008. It just runs through the list until it hits the service pack the user has installed. This covers removing 2008 SP2,3,4,5 both 32 and 64bit.
    
    eDrawings, SolidWorks Explorer, Cosmos, CosmosMotion, Floworks, Dwgeditor all have their own CLSIDs for each service pack so it can be quite a few numbers to keep track of. SolidWorks will also provide a list if you request it through your VAR.
    
    ::SolidWorks 2008 uninstall
    :SP5.0x32
    MsiExec /x {E2B8DE62-4F05-44BD-BEFC-78CF302466B4} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    
    :SP5.0x64
    MsiExec /x {5C039CB6-9026-4C74-9A63-152592021841} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    
    :SP4.0x32
    MsiExec /x {5CBB856A-B9A6-4239-9AAE-732242813D67} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    
    :SP4.0x64
    MsiExec /x {C431266B-4B1A-4BAF-836A-77B60911BE79} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    
    :SP3.0x32
    MsiExec /x {266EB766-9ABB-40D0-AB9F-41EE46D23876} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    
    :SP3.0x64
    MsiExec /x {E081D84F-CCBE-44C5-B8CA-E853B8F05EFB} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    
    :SP2.0x32
    MsiExec /x {A0744DBD-6227-49CE-8377-D23A23EF0360} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    
    :sp2.1x64
    MsiExec /x {80CF2B65-D996-4AF5-9A7F-0631AA90A77F} /passive
    if %ERRORLEVEL% == 0 goto NEXT
    goto error1
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    - Steve Schaufler @ Jason Capriotti on Nov 5, 2008 4:02 PM
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      Here is something I have been working on relentlessly for my 09 rollout (still on 2007 everything) and think I have it tweaked were it appears to be working nicely. The snippit below is just for the MSI types. The SETUP.exe's are different (and can be a major PAIN "silent wise") which I have in another area but this should cover the MSI's. This will cycle through the reg for any of the apps you input and automatically uninstall them silently. Only a progress window is displayed! No switches to input or uninstall strings to know prior.
      
      As an aside, I have seventy seats located in three sites (one in Europe) and have about ten CAD apps to uninstall and reinstall etc.. I have a master program that uninstalls, cleans reg, dirs, user profiles, reboots etc and then installs the new version of everything silently. We run this app via remote desktop to every user's system - launch it "walk away" so to speak. There is too much at stake and thus we don't "advertise" the install or have users run or install any of this stuff. Its done on a weekend after hours. The key in no baby sitting the master app, or at least as little as possible. Its quite a task to say the least. I sure wish SW would create something.
      
      I attached a screen shot of my 07 and 09 master application.
      
      I hope this little piece will help someone out.
      
      Dim $MyApps[6] = ["Solidworks","CosmosWorks","CosmosMotion","DesignStar","DWGeditor","eDrawings"]
      $InstalledAppsCount = 1
      $Found = 0
      
      While 1
      
      $SubKey = RegEnumKey("HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall", $InstalledAppsCount)
      If @error Then ExitLoop
      
      $DisplayName = RegRead("HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\" & $SubKey, "DisplayName")
      $Uninstallstring = RegRead("HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\" & $SubKey, "UninstallString")
      
      For $i = 0 To UBound($MyApps)-1
      If StringInStr($DisplayName, $MyApps[$i]) And StringInStr($Uninstallstring, "msiexec") Then
      
      $Found += 1
      If Not StringInStr($Uninstallstring, "/qb") And Not StringInStr($Uninstallstring, "/qn") Then $Uninstallstring &= " /qb"
      RunWait(StringReplace($Uninstallstring,"/I{","/X{"),"")
      EndIf
      Next
      
      $InstalledAppsCount += 1
      
      WEnd
      
      If Not $Found Then
      MsgBox(64, "Uninstall Apps Error", "No apps found", 3)
      EndIf
      
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