Could you help me uninstall Adobe CS4?

[KnowledgeWorker]

SOLVED: Could you help me uninstall Adobe CS4?

Hi there,

### SOLVED (throught Windows Repair) ###

I do have massive problems uninstalling and (subsequently had and have problems) installing the Adobe CS4 Design Standard Edition.
Not only on Windows 7 x64, but even before on Vista Business x64 and Vista Enterprise x32. It pretty much didn't really work a long time at all on any OS. Only on Vista Business x64 it worked a very short time. It is really frustrating, almost disgusting that I paid a lot of money for this software and haven't really been able to really use it every since!

Procedure:
I tried of course uninstalling it normally (via CCleaner), failed. I used the Adobe CS3 CleanScript on "level 4" as advised (by mail support), but it doesn't help.

Of course I also called the (US-) Adobe phone support from Germany (costly when call-by-call is blocked by your ISP -.-) twice and they are just unable to cope or even properly understand my case. (Could be a callcenter somewhere abroad? -.-) They just said, "Windows 7 is not supported", that was it. Then I gave up calling them. (Maybe that all is the cause for this letter?)


Other notes:
I opened several cases on the Customer support portal and also asked on GetSatisfaction, but it just goes so slowly, it is driving one nuts. The point is, I do definitely need Adobe Acrobat + InDesign and I don't want to constantly mess around with demo software of Adobes competitors or the limited free PDF-XChange Viewer software! You might of course understand, that I (still) won't invest into any other PDF software just because Adobe(s (un-)installer) screws it up!

I'd be really happy if you could help me so that I could at least try to reinstall the suite again. Especially as so many people describe that they don't have any problems. There seem to be maybe access/permission problems on my side I was told, but we/I didn't find a way to fix/change them!

Thank you very much in advance.

Kind regards

 

[kodi]

Download and install the Free program "Revo Uninstaller" it will run Adobe's uninstaller and then search the registry for left over files.

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

Hi kodi, thanks for the hint! Know the program but didn't try it yet. Still, where can I search for the program rests? Because the Adobe installer is already gone!

 

[kodi]

The quickest way would be ,if you still have a copy of CS4 reinstall it and then use Revo to uninstall it with the highest settings, it should pick up left overs from prior installs

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

I can't even reinstall / overinstall it, that is the problem! Any additional ideas?

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

I did make massive progress. The Adobe CS4 works now, but only on my Vista x32 system.

On my Windows x64 system it seems I screwed up the Win CS3 Cleanscript by partly removing stuff via CCleaner or manually after "taking ownership". But I'm not sure.
I did it because I thought, this would help get rid of the "2)." message which showed up since I don't know...but it just made it worse(?):

1). It says: "Product code to be zapped: {...} Registry Key Open has failed for the registry HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{product code}. This Registry does not exist.None"

2). And then: "This application has requested the Runtime to terminate it in an unusual way. Please contact the application's support team for more information."

Is anyone able to help me in this regard?

 

[Shark007]

This Microsoft Tool will cleanup the registry.
Install it, find 'Windows Install Clean Up' on your strartmenu/All Programs
In the list of the tool highlight the problem program, and select Remove.

Then it is up to you to manually cleanup the installed files and startmenu entries.

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

Hi Shark007, thanks for the hint. I definitely forgot to check that.
Still (in this state) it doesn't help (anymore). The error persists.

What do you think, would it help (although it would cost a massive amount of time!) to remove these items in the way described here (Solution 6)?

 

[Shark007]

What do you think, would it help (although it would cost a massive amount of time!) to remove these items in the way described here (Solution 6)?

Solution 6 points to the same tool that I linked to.

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

Yes indeed. Didn't you see my answer? It is: The MSICU doesn't help.
I also tried to start without any other programs running and a lot more, it just won't install or run the CS3 CleanScript. I think focusing on the error messages might be the only valuable action:

1). It says: "Product code to be zapped: {...} Registry Key Open has failed for the registry HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{product code}. This Registry does not exist.None"

2). And then: "This application has requested the Runtime to terminate it in an unusual way. Please contact the application's support team for more information."

What do we make of this?

*edit* "Update": Just found out via Google that my problem is not Windows 7, but Adobe (CS) specific and that there wasn't a single answer on this issue anywhere else in the past years!
I also (as some people) now tried registry repair/cleaner, didn't help at all.

Thanks for your help in advance!

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

Would anyone recommend to me to do a repair install of Windows 7, as I now also have problems properly starting up Windows 7 after several registry actions? (Startup repair doesn't help..)

 

[WiFi Ed]

I'd recommend that you do a clean re-installation.

 

[zigzag3143]

wifiED

Clean install. always best solution

ken

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

Of Windows 7? Because of Adobe? No thanks! ...thats no "solution".

And Adobe reinstall doesn't work, but I think that is clear...

 

[Antman]

Your problem reports at Adobe are aging. What has been their response?

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

Hi Antman,

thanks for the question. "Aging" might be correct as the issue is present much longer then my thread. I mailed back and forth for some time and did put a lot comments from my side into the case Tuesday. But I also talked to them via the phone Monday and Tuesday. *Update* I check my case, they are stubbornly refusing to help because of Windows 7 although I'm sure a solution would be possible!

On Monday they helped me with the issue on Vista but as today I had to disclose that I use Windows 7, they weren't really able to help me although the could've maybe! As only afterwards I googled for my exact error message and I'll call them again in some hours and stress that point as it is one that has been present it seems also before, specifically on Vista! So that's all I think I can do, try to point them towards the issue which is somehow (though hard to crack) separate from Windows 7!

Concerning Repair/Upgrade installation:

What means "deauthorize" in this regard?
And what the heck shall be wrong with my storage controller?

 

[stevieray]

If you don't want to do a clean reinstall of your OS (and every app), and none of the powerful clean-up tools like Revo work, then I can think of only one last option: Get a list of all files and all registry entries for CS4 and remove them one-by-one manually. You could email Adobe and ask for the list, but I doubt Abode will send it to you... they will treat that info like its a state secret.

 

[fseal]

What means "deauthorize" in this regard?

Exactly like Photoshop. You have to deauthorise the program on the machine you are currently running it on before uninstalling or reformatting the drive so that you can reauthorize it on the new machine.

Don't know exactly where it is on iTunes but it exists under the Help menu on Photoshop.

For Photoshop it's to control the installation of the program itself, for iTunes it's to control the usability of the songs you DL.

 

[TGSoldier]

If you don't want to do a clean reinstall of your OS (and every app), and none of the powerful clean-up tools like Revo work, then I can think of only one last option: Get a list of all files and all registry entries for CS4 and remove them one-by-one manually. You could email Adobe and ask for the list, but I doubt Abode will send it to you... they will treat that info like its a state secret.

Windows key + R-- > regedit-- > ctrl f--> "adobe"--> find...

happy deleting...

Or..

+1 for clean install..

Btw.. Did you even run Revo?

Does it show the program in the list?

 

[KnowledgeWorker]

Hi there, thanks for your tips.

Indeed Adobe does treat their registry entries like a secret, the support person on the phone just denied they had such a list at all! And of course the one was the most supportive, in general they won't talk / mail to me anymore because of Windows 7! *grmpfl*
Although the issue is clearly not happening because of Win 7 but because of whatever.

@iTunes: Hmm, it shows the deactivation options (Audible + iTunesStore) but I can't activate it, mainly because I never activated it. Did Windows show this only because I have iTunes installed without checking the actual activation status? I think so...

@TGSoldier: You're joking, of course I searched for Adobe in the registry, but I doubt it is (only) about the registry! Who knows where they put it. At least I deleted almost every related key, yet I left e.g. Flash and Adobe Air stuff there. Still also every Registry Cleaner I now recently tried finds other entries! (Even the same finds different ones when running it multiple times, so they for me don't really seem to work! ) Of course I ran Revo and no, it didn't show up. Funny enough after several operations it was shortly there, I don't know how that can happen if the Adobe installation doesn't even start?! *lol*

I also tried to "misuse" the CleanScript in the way that I tried to put Adobe content on the HDD (a InCopy CS4 Demo) and then remove all Adobe stuff going out from the InCopy Demo. Sadly it didn't work! And as said, I tried to recover old registry backups, import stuff from the other installation. All the stuff doesn't work.

Ok now I just need to find out what is going on with the controller and then I'll try (one time) the repair install again!