I recently uninstalled Ad Aware 2008 from my system and then noticed that my Add/Remove list in WinXP showed that the LSP Explorer plugin was still registered. But, when I try to uninstall it, WinXP complains that there is no uninstaller for it. What do I do? Do I need to download and install it again and then uninstall it? Where and what files does the installation put on my system?

Thanks

It looks like this may have been leftover from the SE version:

http://www.lavasoft.com/download_and_buy/p...sp_explorer.php

When I uninstalled SE, rather than use the uninstaller, I manually deleted all files, folders, and registry entries for Lavasoft and I didn't have any leftovers. You could try it yourself, or use Revo Uninstaller (revouninstaller.com) on the highest setting to see if it finds/deletes it.

Thanks, I should have said I did use Revo Uninstaller, which actually warned me that it couldn't find the uninstaller. I haven't tried to use the WinXP Add/Remove control because I don't want to lose the reference to the program through some bug.

I wish I knew where the installer put the LSP executable so I could check for it. It may be gone if it was in the Program Files\Ad Aware folders. I have run the CCleaner analysis of my registry and I don't see anything in it from Ad Aware. I don't feel comfortable with editing the registry and have never used software to clean it.

I also looked for it with the Microsoft Windows Installer Cleanup Utility and didn't see it listed. And I ran an analysis with MyUninstaller from NirSoft which has better reporting than Revo Uninstaller, and it said:

==================================================
Entry Name : LSP Explorer plug-in for Ad-Aware SE
Product Name :
Version :
Company : Lavasoft
Description :
Obsolete : Yes
Uninstall : Yes
Installation Folder : C:\PROGRA~1\Lavasoft\AD-AWA~2\Plugins\LSPEXP~1
Install Source :
Web Site : http://www.lavasoftsupport.com
Installation Date : 9/17/2004 7:54:45 PM
Uninstall String : C:\PROGRA~1\Lavasoft\AD-AWA~2\Plugins\LSPEXP~1\UNWISE.EXE C:\PROGRA~1\Lavasoft\AD-AWA~2\Plugins\LSPEXP~1\INSTALL.LOG
Installation Change String:
Quiet Uninstall : No
Registry Key : LSP Explorer plug-in for Ad-Aware SE
Installer : Wise Installer
Root Key : HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
==================================================

So, if it is correct, I deleted the uninstaller when I deleted the folders for Ad Aware.

I suppose it would be best to reinstall it then uninstall with Revo Uninstaller. Do you know whether LSP explorer will install over itself?

Yes, it looks like the file is gone, but left the Add/Remove entry. It should install again OK, but you might experience problems when Ad-Aware 2008 tries to update itself. But that would only affect usability - I think at that point you'd be able to uninstall using Revo or MyUninstaller.

Let me know if you want to try it manually. I have instructions for deleting the registry entries for Add/Remove, and it was straight forward - only deleting Lavasoft and nothing else.

Well, I was just going to try and install the plugin and not the whole Ad Aware 2008 program. I am thinking I could just create the folders as they were when Ad Aware was installed and hope the installer for LSP Explorer will be happy.

I would be interested in seeing your registry fixes. Can you just paste them into the forum? I can always use your instructions to look into the registry to see if there are any entries to worry about. If there are no entries for Ad Aware, I may just delete the Add/Remove entry for LSP Explorer and not worry about it anymore.

Thanks

Note: I had LSP Explorer installed with Ad-Aware SE. Before installing Ad-Aware AE, I used these instructions to do a clean uninstall of SE first. I deleted all Lavasoft/Ad-Aware files, folders, and registry entries. Now I have only AE listed in my Add/Delete list, so it should work for you too (I have XP Pro SP2). Before messing with your registry, you should set a system restore point and backup the registry:

http://www.lavasoftsupport.com/index.php?showtopic=13639

instead of ERUNT, I export my registry using regedit:
start > run > regedit > select "My Computer" > file > export > export range "all"

Here are the notes - specifically Add/Remove entries highlighted in blue below:

Just because Windows XP has the Add/Remove Programs feature it doesn't mean your application will appear in the list. Furthermore, even if it does appear, it's no guarantee that the uninstall feature will work. When you run across one of these situations the items listed below will help in getting rid of the application. Be aware that these steps may not remove everything associated with the application and can impact other applications on the computer. Have a backup or restore point and use caution.

Find the directory for the application and delete all the files in the directory. Delete the directory.

Open regedit and navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE and find the folder for the application. Delete the folder.

Open regedit and navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE and find the folder for the application. Delete the folder.

To remove the application entry from Add/Remove Programs (if present) open regedit and navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall and find the folder for the application. Delete the folder.

also check:
SOFTWARE\Classes\Drive\shell\ for program or company name
SOFTWARE\Classes\Directory\shell\ for program or company name

Some applications have Services attached to them. If this is the case, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services, locate and delete the service.

In Windows Explorer, navigate to the individual user settings and delete program references. Common places to check would be:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs and delete relevant entries.
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Startup and delete relevant entries.
C:\Documents and Settings\%YourUserID%\Start Menu\Programs and delete relevant entries.
[Do this for each User ID listed]
C:\Documents and Settings\%YourUserID%\Start Menu\Programs\Startup and delete relevant entries.
[Do this for each User ID listed]

If no entries were found in the previous step and the application launches automatically, navigate to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows
and delete the entry.

Thanks, I went in and deleted the entry in the registry for the uninstall and it no longer shows up in Revo-Uninstaller or Add/Remove. I suspect most of its components were kept in the folders I deleted.

Since this issue appears to be resolved ... this Topic has been closed. Glad we could help

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Thank you !