Is it OK to Delete Internet Explorer?

MUff1N said:

whs said:

CoolioG said:

You can deactivate it from the Add & Remove programs window under Windows Services. Then Reboot, and you'll never have to worry about it again.

Windows Features - Turn On or Off

Where do you see IE on that?

BTW: I would leave it - you can only deactivate it anyhow. You can never have enough browsers. I have 5 because some can do what others can't.

You see it here in the screenshot.
Just uncheck the box & click OK, then you'll probably
have to restart your computer for it to take effect.

Here again, that does deactivate it, but does not uninstall it. But the OP wanted to uninstall it.

Whs,

Yes, just deactivating it. It will seem deleted because you wont see it, but technically it is not uninstalled

Anyone have any idea if deactivating IE frees up any memory, improves boot speed, etc? Or is IE so rooted into the OS that it still takes up resources when it's disabled?

How do I uninstall or remove Internet Explorer 8?

It's is not advised to uninstall it but only to disable.
However it is still possible to uninstall it

Wikipedia said:

While a major upgrade of Internet Explorer can be uninstalled in a traditional way if the user has saved the original application files for installation, the matter of uninstalling the version of the browser that has shipped with an operating system remains a controversial one.
The idea of removing a stock install of Internet Explorer from a Windows system was proposed during the United States v. Microsoft case. One of Microsoft's arguments during the trial was that removing Internet Explorer from Windows may result in system instability.
Removing Internet Explorer does have a number of consequences. Applications that depend on libraries installed by IE will fail to function, or have unexpected behaviors. The Windows help and support system will also not function due to the heavy reliance on HTML help files and components of IE. In versions of Windows before Vista, it is also not possible to run Microsoft's Windows Update or Microsoft Update with any other browser due to the service's implementation of an ActiveX control, which no other browser supports. In Windows Vista, Windows Update is implemented as a Control Panel applet.
With Windows 7, Microsoft added the ability to safely remove Internet Explorer 8 from Windows.[88] Microsoft does not allow the dependencies to be removed through this process, but the Internet Explorer executable (iexplore.exe) is removed without harming any other Windows components.

Simply installing and using another browser does not prevent third party programs and core operating system components from using IE libraries. Thus, a user who does not use IE to browse the Web can still be targeted by attacks against vulnerabilities in these libraries—for instance, via Outlook Express or the Windows Help subsystem. However, removing the IE libraries will cause these programs, and other software which depends upon them, to cease functioning or even to crash the system.

http://kb.mozillazine.org/Mozilla_Suite_:_FAQs_:_Remove_IE#Remove_Internet_Explorer_from_Windows said:

Remove Internet Explorer from Windows
Although uninstalling Internet Explorer from Windows is possible, you are strongly advised not to remove IE, for a number of reasons [1]:

• Many web sites are programmed to work only with Internet Explorer. For example, webmasters authoring a site may have not tested with other web browsers. The majority of websites on the Internet should work with Mozilla browsers, but there are some sites that appear distorted or inaccessible unless IE is used as a browser.
• Windows Update requires Internet Explorer. As an alternative, you may be able to manually download security updates, but it will require more monitoring and work than letting Windows Update handle this for you. (Personal comment: not true for Windows 7)
• Some applications depend on libraries installed by Internet Explorer. These applications may no longer work or they may behave unexpectedly if IE is removed.
• Some anti-virus products require IE for updates. Live updates or automatic DAT updates used by both Norton and McAfee are built on Internet Explorer's foundation. You may be able to manually update your virus signature files but it could require more work.
• Both removing and restoring IE is risky and difficult. IE is complex with extensive hooks built into Windows, for efficiency and functionality. Thus unplugging it from your system may impact Internet connectivity, Windows functionality, and break functionality in Microsoft Office and non-MS products.
• IE is more than a browser, it is the foundation for Internet functionality in Windows.

If you still want to remove IE despite these warnings, there are third-party programs available like LitePC that remove IE but these are most definitely not recommended for novice users. Instead of uninstalling IE, you should consider the alternatives first, such as making IE more secure, or hiding Internet Explorer.

more: Removal of Internet Explorer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Zathras said:

Anyone have any idea if deactivating IE frees up any memory, improves boot speed, etc? Or is IE so rooted into the OS that it still takes up resources when it's disabled?

There shouldn't be much difference.

I think you are chasing a red herring. Disabling IE is completely counterproductive and does not help with anything. I suggest you leave it as is. You can never have enough browser options.

Thanks Barman - good info.