How to completely remove preinstalled software?

I bought a new sony vaio laptop Win 7-64bit that of course came with preinstalled software which I would like to delete. Norton Internet Security and Microsoft Office 2010. The Norton is just a 30 day trial which looks like it got installed somehow the first time we took the laptop online. No idea about the MSoft Office but I'm sure it's just a trial also. Can anyone tell me if just going through the normal windows uninstall will be enough to remove this stuff from my system or will I still need to get special removal tools from their sites? Thanks in advance.

haha, thanks but how trustworthy is that software? I have tried to download the norton removal tool from symantec 3 times and it never gets the full 898kb file. First time it stopped at 434kb and said it was complete and 2nd time at 551kb, 3rd time at 300+ kb. No idea why I can't d/l the full 898kb file for the removal tool.

Another option is Revo Uninstaller, there is a free and pro version, there is a free trial of the pro version, both can create system restore points before uninstalling

Revo Uninstaller Pro - Uninstall Software, Remove Programs easily

http://www.revouninstaller.com/revo_..._download.html

Stop being lazy and uninstall unneeded programs via the Control panel-Programs and Features route. You can clean up left behind junk and obsolete reg entries with CCleaner. IDK why people want fancy tools for doing simple things.

As for that Office version that came preinstalled, check- it might be Starter edition, thats a full version which does excellently for everyday use of Word and Excel. Once you uninstall it, factory recovery is the only way to reinstall.

Bill2 said:

As for that Office version that came preinstalled, check- it might be Starter edition, thats a full version which does excellently for everyday use of Word and Excel. Once you uninstall it, factory recovery is the only way to reinstall.

I've not even clicked on the MSoft Office icon yet as was afraid it might fully install it but then again, maybe it's already installed. Please bear with me but how could I tell if it's the full verion of Word and Excel (starter edition)? Under ProgramFiles I see just Version Text which says it's 201004220 and under ProgramFiles (x86) I have Option14 when I click that I see several folders that are numbered from 1025-3082 and 2 exe files (MSOO.exe/OOBESTUB.exe)

Thanks all for the suggestions. I had to call Symantec and let them connect to my system remotely and THEY downloaded the full removal tool (898kb) to my system through their secure file share. I bet anything the tool will not get rid of all the clsid files in my registry though. I don't know if ccleaner does either but I will manage. Thanks again.

Golden said:

Hi Sher,

You can double check on the Norton removal by following this link :

Download and run the Norton Removal Tool to uninstall your Norton product | Norton Support

I trust you plan to uninstall another ant-virus software application in its place?

For the Office, simply Click Start Orb, then click All Programs. Now find the Microsoft Office folder - what sub-folders do you see under that?

I agree with Bill : in almost all cases uninstalling via Control Panel will get the required result. You should follow that route first before trying anything more complex.

Regards,
Golden

Thanks for the response but if u read my post above, I stated all what I have under the program M Office under both programfiles folders. And as I mentioned, I did try to d/l the norton removal tool from their site but it would not fully download so the symantec peeps connected remotely and got it d/l for me. I do have a list they also gave me for several reg entries that I should delete to be sure the norton is totally gone.

Yes, I plan to install the Microsoft Essential which I've heard great reviews on and am already using on 2 other computers I have.
Thanks Again,
Sher