How to Manually Uninstall Internet Explorer 4.0 for Windows NT

ID: Q224412

The information in this article applies to:
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For information about how to do this, view the "Restoring the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or the "Restoring a Registry Key" Help topic in Regedt32.exe.

SUMMARY

This article describes how to manually uninstall Internet Explorer for Windows NT 4.0 when you are unable to uninstall Internet Explorer using the Add/Remove Programs tool in Control Panel.


MORE INFORMATION

NOTE: Do not follow the steps in this article if you have not tried to uninstall Internet Explorer by using the steps described in the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q174265 How to Uninstall Internet Explorer 4.0
Q166314 Removing Internet Explorer for Windows NT 4.0 Using Ieremove.exe
Before you proceed with the steps in this article, you need to have a current Emergency Repair Disk (ERD) and the Windows NT Setup floppy disks. To create an updated ERD, run the Rdisk.exe tool, and then click Update Repair Info.

Before you attempt to manually uninstall Internet Explorer, install the Standard download of the Microsoft Windows NT Service Pack 4 (SP4) that includes Internet Explorer 4.01, and then attempt to uninstall Internet Explorer using the Add/Remove Programs tool in Control Panel. You can obtain the Standard download of Windows NT SP4 from the following Microsoft Web site:
http://support.microsoft.com/support/ntserver/content/servicepacks/Default.asp
If you are unable to uninstall Internet Explorer after you install Windows NT SP4, continue to follow the steps in this article.

NOTE: Make sure you have the latest version of the Internet Explorer 4.01 Setup program before you begin these steps. You can obtain the latest version of the Internet Explorer 4.01 Setup program from the following Microsoft Web site:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/download/windows.htm
To manually uninstall Internet Explorer, follow these steps:
  1. Click Start, point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double-click Add/Remove Programs.


  2. On the Install/Uninstall tab, click one of the Internet Explorer add-ons that you installed, and then click Add/Remove. Click Yes, if you are prompted to confirm the removal of the add-on. Repeat this step for each Internet Explorer add-on, such as Microsoft ActiveMovie, Microsoft NetMeeting, and Microsoft Outlook Express.


  3. Restart your computer.


  4. Delete any of the following folders that exist in the <Drive>:\<Winnt> folder


    where <Drive> is the drive letter to which you installed Windows NT, and <Winnt> is the folder in which Windows NT is installed.

    NOTE: After you delete the folders in this step, do not restart your computer until you have reinstalled Internet Explorer.

    NOTE: If you create custom Java applets, you may want to backup the Java folder.


  5. Press CTRL+ALT+Delete, click Task Manager, click New Task, type Cmd.exe in the Open box, click OK, and then rename the following files located in the <Drive>:\<Winnt>\System32 folder, to use a .old file extension


    where <Drive> is the drive letter to which you installed Windows NT, and <Winnt> is the folder in which Windows NT is installed.

    NOTE: Use a different file extension if you receive the following error message:
    Duplicate file or file in use.
    For information about renaming files, click Start, click Help, click the Index tab, type renaming, and then double-click the Files topic.


  6. WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

    For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys and Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it. If you are running Windows NT, you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

    In Registry Editor, delete the following registry keys:


    7. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Active Setup

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\ Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings

    HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url

    HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut
  7. Quit Registry Editor.


  8. Install the latest version of Internet Explorer 4.01 and if you are prompted to replace the existing components, do so.


  9. Restart your computer.


Additional query words: 


Keywords          : kbenv kburl msient 
Version           : WINDOWS:4.0,4.01
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbhowto

Last Reviewed: August 2, 1999