Perform a clean uninstall of BlackBerry Desktop Software
Doc ID : KB02206
Last Modified : 2008-05-01
Document Type : How To
Environment
- BlackBerry® Desktop Software
Procedure
The five tasks outlined below should be completed if you are installing BlackBerry Desktop Software on a Windows® based computer that had a previous version of BlackBerry Desktop Software installed. These tasks should also be completed if the BlackBerry Desktop Software installation or uninstallation procedures did not complete successfully.
Complete all five tasks in the order listed to remove all information related to BlackBerry Desktop Software and prepare the computer for a new installation of BlackBerry Desktop Software.
Task 1: Uninstall BlackBerry Desktop Software
For Windows 98/ME/2000/XP- Close BlackBerry® Desktop Manager, if it is running.
- Open the Control Panel and double-click Add/Remove Programs.
- Select BlackBerry Desktop Software and click Change/Remove.
- On the InstallShield® Wizard window, select the Remove option and click Next.
- On the Uninstall Options window, select the check box labeled Remove all user settings for BlackBerry Desktop Software.
- On the Confirm Uninstall window, click OK.
- On the InstallShield Wizard window, click Finish.
For Windows Vista™- Close BlackBerry Desktop Manager, if it is running.
- Open the Control Panel and click Programs and Features.
- Select Uninstall a program.
- Select BlackBerry Desktop Software and click Change/Remove.
- On the InstallShield Wizard window, select the Remove option and click Next.
- On the Uninstall Options window, select the check box labeled Remove all user settings for BlackBerry Desktop Software.
- On the Confirm Uninstall window, click OK.
- On the InstallShield Wizard window, click Finish.
Task 2: Remove computer registry entries
Warning: The following procedure involves modifying the computer registry. This can cause substantial damage to the Windows operating system. Document and back up the registry entries prior to implementing any changes.
Note: This task removes registry entries for any Research In Motion® software on the computer, including BlackBerry Manager for the BlackBerry® Enterprise Server.
For reasons that may or may not be known, BlackBerry Desktop Software may not have been installed or uninstalled properly. As a result, some registry keys mentioned below may not be present. If you cannot locate a particular registry key that is mentioned, proceed to the next step.
To delete the Research In Motion registry keys, complete the following steps:
- On the computer, click Start > Run.
- Type regedit and click OK. The Registry Editor opens.
- Delete the Research In Motion and Puma Technology keys under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\, if present.
- Delete the Research In Motion and Puma Technology keys under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\, if present.
- If BlackBerry Desktop Software remains listed on the Add/Remove Programs list, remove the BlackBerry Desktop Software registry key under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion\Uninstall.
Note: Two registry keys may exist at this location. An alphabetical list starts at the bottom of the {<number>} entries. The BlackBerry registry keys appear as follows:
1. {<number>}
2. BlackBerry {<number>}
To determine which {<number>} key to remove, click on each one until the display name on the right side of the window displays BlackBerry Desktop Software.
- Close the Registry Editor.
Task 3: Delete folders from the computer
To delete the Research In Motion folders, complete the appropriate procedure below, depending on the version of Windows that is installed on the computer.
For Windows 2000 or XP- Open Windows Explorer.
- Browse to C:\Program Files\. Delete the Research In Motion folder, if present.
- Browse to C:\Program Files\Common Files\. Delete the Research In Motion, Pumatech Shared, and Pumatech Desktop Setup folders, if present.
- In C:\Program Files\Common Files\, rename the InstallShield folder to InstallShield_Old.
- Browse to C:\Documents and Settings\<user name>\Application Data\. Delete the Research In Motion and BlackBerry Desktop folders, if present.
Note: If you are unable to see the Application Data folder, it may be a hidden system folder. See the Additional Information section of this article for instructions on how to display hidden files and folders.
For Windows Vista- Open Windows Explorer.
- Browse to C:\Program Files\. Delete the Research In Motion folder, if present.
- Browse to C:\Program Files\Common Files\. Delete the Research In Motion folder, if present.
- In C:\Program Files\Common Files\, rename the InstallShield folder to InstallShield_Old.
- Browse to C:\Users\<user name>\AppData\Roaming\ and delete the Research In Motion and BlackBerry Desktop folders, if present.
Note: If you are unable to see the Roaming folder, it may be a hidden system folder. See the Additional Information section of this article for instructions on how to display hidden files and folders.
Note: If the Pumatech software is being used by synchronization software for other devices, re-install the synchronization software.
For Windows 98 or ME- Right-click on the Start button and select Explore to open Windows Explorer.
- Browse to C:\Program Files\. Delete the Research In Motion folder, if present.
- Browse to C:\Windows\Application Data\. Delete the Research In Motion folder, if present.
Task 4: Register the atl.dll file
For instructions on how to register the
atl.dll file, see
KB04840.
Task 5: Restart the computer
When the computer restarts, you are ready to re-install BlackBerry Desktop Software.
Additional Info
To display hidden files and folders, complete the following steps:
- Open the Control Panel and double-click Folder Options.
- Select the View tab.
- Select the Show hidden files and folders option and then click OK.
Tips for installing BlackBerry Desktop Software
- Turn off any anti-virus automatic file protection features before installing BlackBerry Desktop Software
- Choose the BlackBerry® Internet Service installation option if you are installing BlackBerry Desktop Software on a computer that is not connected to your work network. This applies even if your BlackBerry smartphone is associated with a BlackBerry Enterprise Server and you are not using the BlackBerry Internet Service.
- If you are using Windows Vista, make sure that the profile you are logged in as has administrative priviledges. Alternatively, when you are ready to install BlackBerry Desktop Software, right-click on the installation file and select Run As Administrator.