We always say that when we don’t need a program, the best we can do is uninstall it from the PC. In this way we will save space, we will have the operating system in order with what we need and, in addition, we will avoid that nothing runs in the background and can affect the performance of our PC. However, we may have ever found that, when deleting programs and restarting the PC, some program reappears. As if it was never gone. Why this problem?
There are several reasons why programs can appear again and again after uninstalling. Some can be easily solved, while solving other problems requires much more advanced techniques to keep uninstalled programs.
Is it a work, school or someone else’s computer?
The first thing we should know is that, often, the computers that are shared with several people (for example, the one at work, the one in a school, etc.) are usually controlled to prevent anyone from making changes without permission. For example, it may be the system administrator himself who controls it from a central computer, or tools such as Deep Freeze may be used to freeze the state of the hard disk and it is restored every time we turn on the PC.
In case we encounter this situation, we cannot do much. Since the computer is under someone else’s control, all we can do is talk to the system manager and ask them to make the changes we ask for. But in the end it will be up to him to decide whether to uninstall the software or not.
Windows default apps are reinstalled over and over again
Windows 10 comes standard with its own programs and its own adware . And the safest thing is that we are not interested in having them on the PC. Most of these programs, unless essential for the operating system, can be uninstalled like any other software. But of course, Windows 10 will try to install them again as soon as it gets a chance.
It is very common to find applications that we have uninstalled after updating and installing a new version of Windows. These big updates, which usually arrive every 6 months, reinstall the operating system on top of ours (respecting the changes) and, therefore, the apps that we had deleted reappear.
There is not much we can do in this regard, just uninstall them again and wait for the next update.
Unwanted programs get installed over and over again
Another very common reason that a program can appear again and again is because of a virus . This happens, for example, when adware that installs adware, unwanted software, on the PC, or when a fake antivirus tries to “keep us safe” sneaks into our computer.
These programs, even if we delete them from the PC, usually leave resident services that, when turned off and on again, cause them to be installed again. Therefore, it is practically impossible to erase them and that they do not appear again.
Broadly speaking, these programs are considered “malware”, therefore, they tend to fall easily in most of the security solutions against malware. One of the most common is Malwarebytes Anti-Malware. In addition to deleting the fake antivirus, it will also delete the program that automatically reinstalls the unwanted program.
Tips to Force Uninstall Rogue Programs
It can also happen that the program is not reinstalled, but we cannot uninstall it directly. This can be for two reasons. On the one hand, because we have a problem with the PC’s permissions and therefore we cannot uninstall programs. And on the other hand, that the program itself is somewhat persistent.
Update programs before uninstalling
It may seem strange, but it may happen that the problem is precisely in this, that due to an error in the version we are using, the software cannot be uninstalled or its registry entry has been deleted. When updating the program, we will download the latest version of it (supposedly without failures) and the software information in the operating system will be updated again. Therefore, once updated, we can uninstall it.
Use an Administrator account
If we do not have an administrator account on the computer, that may be another reason why we cannot delete the programs. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out this task with administrator permissions. Either launching the uninstaller with these permissions, or logging in with the account with privileges, in order to carry out the deletion of the program.
Use an advanced program uninstaller
When we install a program on the computer, it usually creates an uninstaller from which we can delete it. However, what happens if not? What if we can’t find a way to delete the program?
If it is a portable program, which has not been installed on the PC, we will be able to delete it by deleting its folder, there is nothing more to do. However, if it is an installed program, then we will have to resort to a specialized uninstaller . These programs usually use more advanced techniques to delete the programs, and they help us to keep our PC much cleaner. An example of these programs is, for example, Revo Uninstaller .
Clear Windows bloatware
And what about the bloatware, or garbage, that Windows installs by default with each update? From the panel itself to uninstall programs we can surely delete it. Or we can also do it by clicking on it with the right mouse button from the start menu. But we can also resort to the use of programs, such as 10AppsManager , that help us delete all these unwanted Windows applications that are installed over and over again with the operating system.