how do you uninstall an xampp installation that refuses to uninstall?

Question

I downloaded xampp 1.7.3 (32) on windows 7 (64) in the programs(86) folder. both MySql and Apache refuse to run, they start and then instantly turn of. All ports are free.

So I decide to uninstall however, when i run the uninstaller I receive the following error

"Input Error: Can not find script file "C:\Program Files (x86)\xampp\uninst.temp\xampp_uninstall.vbs" XAMPP uninstall not OK

Why is there spaces in the above line and does this matter "C:\Program Files (x86)" ?

Can somebody please help me to understand the problem & uninstall xampp (or get it to work). It does not show in the control panel so I am stuck. The documentation clearly states the uninstaller should be used.

I have asked this question on serverfault but since ive had so much help here, i was wondering if anybody here knows what the problem could be? All help is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Answer 1

Never install xampp to the x86 folder on windows 7.

directly to the C drive works fine.

Solution for the time being: System Restore or delete the folder and pretend it never happened.

Answer 2

Uninstalling Service using XAMPP Control Panel for 1.7.3 and 1.7.7: Right click on /xampp/xampp-control.exe, select Run as administrator, then remove the check marks next to the service you want to uninstall as a service. The trick here is to open XAMPP Control Panel using the 'Run as administrator' option.

If you experience some issues with the XAMPP Control Panel, you might need to do this from the Command Line. See next section for notes on this.

Uninstalling Service using Command Prompt for 1.7.3 and 1.7.7:

• Apache: Locate and right click /xampp/apache/apache_uninstallservice.bat, select Run as administrator, follow prompts until completed.

• MySQL: Locate and right click /xampp/mysql/mysql_uninstallservice.bat, select Run as administrator, follow prompts until completed.

Additional Notes: Much of what will work may depend on the user account you installed the service to run as. The Run as administrator may not be necessary. However, it usually does the trick.

Also, you may need to restart your computer and use the Service Manager to Manually Stop the Apache and MySQL Services before trying to run the uninstall scripts.

Let me know if this works. It may require a few attempts.

Best of Luck,

David Carroll

Answer 3

You may want to try rerunning the XAMPP installer. There may have been some files in the background that corrupted or did not copy correctly on initial install, so a reinstall might help. Also, if sometimes installers will give you the option to remove their program if they detect it is already installed. That might help you get it uninstalled if XAMPP installer supports that feature.

Answer 4

when you unisintall xampp on windows it rest xampp server on system. you must delete it before install another. to delete it open terminal as admin and tipe this command inside

sc delete sevice_name

replace service name by the name of xampp service in your computer to get it do this tipe win+E --> right click on desktop and select manage(gerer) --> select service in the pannel who will be open and then fin xampp, frequently the name is XAMPP Service

good luck for the rest