RealPlayer acts strange, but I cannot uninstall it

WimYogya · 10 Jan 2012

A few times when my memory/cpu consumption was high I noticed that I had SEVERAL instances of RealPlayer running. I wasnt aware I still had it installed (thought not) but anyhow: had no idea what it could be playing.
I don't need the program, so I killed the instances and wanted to uninstall RealPlayer.
But: in both Windows Control Panel and in Revo Uninstaller there IS NO RealPlayer to uninstall. However, in the folder C:\Program files\Real\RealPlayer there seem to be all the files of the application.
Questions:
1. How can RP have 'installed itself'?
2. What is RP playing (in 2 or 3 separate instances) where I have no audio or video running?
3. Why can't I uninstall RP with the usual uninstall features (note: in the RP folder there is NO RP-uninstall.exe file.
4. How to uninstall RP?

kodi · 10 Jan 2012

In Revo Pro there is a forced uninstall (not sure if it is in free version) try using that, if not try CCleaner it may delete the orphan files for you.

Gornot · 10 Jan 2012

Anything can be uninstalled, even that little virus called RealPlayer. Like kodi suggested, Using Revo Uninstaller is the best option to completely wipe out the program and all the junk it leaves behind. You can use the Free version. Just download it, install, run the program, double click the RealPlayer icon, use the Advanced option. Let the program make a restore point and proceed with uninstall. After it was finished, click next and let Revo scan for leftover registry keys. Delete them ALL and click next to scan for garbage files left behind that Windows couldn't delete, once again, check them ALL and delete. And you're done :)

WimYogya · 11 Jan 2012

@kodi: I use Revo Free only
@gornot: I know how to use Revo, but you assume that there IS an RP icon to click on. Well, there is NOT. RP seems to be absent in the list. But then, how was it installed, how can it run, why does it run for nothing?
you call it 'a little virus' - is it REALLY a virus? I thought RP is/was a reputable application, though not interesting enough for me.

Gornot · 11 Jan 2012

It is a reputable application of crap! It has been known to case numerious problems on Windows when installed.

Check your previous restore points and see if you can revert your system to a time prior to RealPlayer being installed. If that doesn't work you can always just delete any and all files related to Real you find on your PC, including the one in your Program Files folder, and the C:\Users\(you)\AppData folder. Also you may want to check all folders in the AppData folder, because it's most likely that the folder(s) related to Real is in all three of the subdirs.

As for the registry, that can't be fixed easily.

WimYogya · 12 Jan 2012

Will do, but still several questions remain open:
1. How can RP have installed itself (I don't remember I installed it again, in my newest computer configuration.
2. How can it be invisible for un-installation in Windows and Revo?
3. If I see several RP instances running (and consuming lots of resources) WHAT is it doing, since I see/hear no video/audio.

Gornot · 12 Jan 2012

I haven't used anything by Real since... Wow, probably 2005? So I wouldn't really know. Some programs I saw recently offer RealPlayer as a third-party in its installers, maybe it came from one of them?