This group of programs has two sub classes: Windows uninstaller replacements and application uninstallers.
The Windows Add/Remove Programs applet in the control panel constantly annoys users with its limitations. MyUninstaller [1] is a free program that works just like the Windows Add or Remove Programs applet but is a more capable product than the Windows version. It gives you much more information about each installed program including product name, company, version, uninstall string, installation folder and Windows Registry details. It also allows you to delete orphaned and obsolete entries from the list as well as the ability to save a list of all installed applications into a text file or HTML. My favorite feature though is the ability to sort programs by the date installed which is great for quickly uninstalling programs you are just trying out. As no installation is required, it can be run from a CD or USB drive which makes it an excellent addition to your diagnostic toolkit.
An alternative to MyUninstaller that offers similar functionality is Safarp [2], a free Open Source program. It's great strength is its speed - it loads in a flash. Safarp can be be run as a stand alone program or installed and integrated into the Control Panel.
Windows Installer CleanUp Utility [3] is a free program from Microsoft that supplements rather than replaces the Windows Add/Remove Programs applet. It cleans up dead entries in the Windows Add/Remove programs panel and tidies up the corresponding Windows uninstaller registry entries.
None of these programs can of course, remove leftover registry entries, DLLs and files that belong to defunct programs. To do this you need an application uninstaller i.e. a program that monitors the original install so that it can work out exactly what changes are made during installation.
Your top selection in this group is ZSoft Uninstaller [4]. Like all programs in this class, you need to tell ZSoft Uninstaller to monitor an installation before you do the install otherwise the uninstaller doesn't know what has changed. ZSoft Uninstaller does this by taking a file and registry snapshot both before and after the install and then does a comparison to find what's changed.
A good second choice is Total Uninstall 2, the last free version of the commercial product Total Uninstall 2 which is still available from some download sites [5]. It doesn't offer the impressive features of the latest commercial version but is quite capable if a little slow compared to ZSoft.
A third possibility is Revo [6], an uninstaller that works rather differently. It can uninstall a program without the need to monitor its installation. Well, sort of. It works by automatically doing what an experienced user would do manually. It removes all the program's files, autostart entries and removes all obvious registry entries.
This process can never be better than an inspired guess, but it's sure better than nothing at all.
If you ran some tests by getting Revo to uninstall a product whose installation you had monitored using ZSoft Uninstaller, a before and after uninstaller.
By and large Revo did a fine job, though not quite as good as a skilled user would do manually. There were still some remains left over, notably files stored in the user/local settings folder.
That said, the leftover files did no harm other than take up disk space, and they certainly would not interfere with the normal operation of the PC.
Note that when you ask Revo to uninstall a program, it first looks for the product's uninstall program and will run that program if it is found. Only if the search fails will it try to remove files and registry entries itself.
Note, too, that Revo can also act as a before and after uninstaller, but frankly this is not its forte. The freeware utility ZSoft Uninstaller [4] is a better choice for this particular application.
Overall you'll be very impressed by Revo. It is the only freeware product you know of that will make a decent job of cleaning up a failed install. It's not perfect in its un-installation, but it does a fine job in the circumstances and offers a lifeline to average users. Next time you encounter a failed uninstall, remember Revo. You will be glad you did.
Note that the before and after approach used by these products is not foolproof as other files may change in your system during the install which are unrelated to the installation. If you then uninstall these changes will also be reversed with possible harmful consequences.
It's not likely but possible. That's why I recommend using this kind of uninstaller only when the uninstaller provided with the program fails. There's no point risking problems when you don't have to.
[1] MyUninstaller
Website: http://www.edmond-hakmeh.com
Download link: http://www.edmond-hakmeh.com/hack tools\utilities and hacking tools/myuninst.zip
Author: Nir_Soft
Current version: 1.37
Version date: December 21, 2007
License: Freeware
Download File size: 44KB
Operating Systems Supported: 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003 Server/Vista
Additional Software Required: None
No Portable Version Available:
Non-English languages supported: Most all languages available
Other relevant information: None
[2] Safarp
Website: http://wistinga.online.fr/safarp/
Download link: http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/wistinga/safarp-0.5.exe?download
Author: Wistinga Projects (http://wistinga.online.fr/safarp/)
Current version: .5
Version date: August 8 2005
License: Freeware
Download File size: 132KB
Operating Systems Supported: Windows 2000 and later versions (Windows XP, Windows Server 2003)
Additional Software Required: None
64 Bit Capable: No
Portable Version Available: No
Additional Software Required: None
Non-English languages supported: None
Other relevant information: None
[3] Windows Installer CleanUp Utility
Website: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=290301
Download link: http://download.microsoft.com/download/e/9/d/e9d80355-7ab4-45b8-80e8-983a48d5e1bd/msicuu2.exe
Author: Microsoft
Current version: 5.6
Version date: May 7 2007
License: Freeware
Download File size: 352KB
Operating Systems Supported: 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003 Server/Vista (32 and 64 bit)
Additional Software Required: None
64 Bit Capable: Yes
Portable Version Available: No
Additional Software Required: None
Non-English languages supported: None
Other relevant information: None
[4] ZSoft Uninstaller
Website: http://www.zsoft.dk/index/software_details/4
Download link: http://www.zsoft.dk/download.php?appid=4
Author: ZSoft
Current version: 2.4.1
Version date: Oct 6 2007
License: Freeware
Download File size: 897KB
Operating Systems Supported: I have only tested it on Windows XP, but I have had reports on it working in Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000 and Windows Vista as well.
Additional Software Required: None
64 Bit Capable: No
Portable Version Available: No
Additional Software Required: None
Non-English languages supported: Danish, Dutch, English, French, Portuguese, German, Hungarian, Italian, Russian, Spanish & Valencian.
Other relevant information: None
[5] Total Uninstall 2
Website: http://www.freewarearena.com/html/Downloads/details/id=1867.html
Download link: http://www.freewarearena.com/html/Downloads/get=1867/mirror=4397.html
Author: Gavrila Martau
Current version: 2.35
Version date: Mar 26, 2006
License: Freeware
Download File size: 685KB
Operating Systems Supported: Win 98/NT/ME/2000/XP/2003
Additional Software Required: None
64 Bit Capable: No
Portable Version Available: No
Additional Software Required: None
Non-English languages supported: English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch, Greek, Polish, Norwegian, Japanese, Russian, Czech, Hungarian, Romanian, Korean, Serbian, Croatian, Slovak.
Other relevant information: None
[6] Revo Uninstaller
Website: http://www.revouninstaller.com/
Download link: http://www.revouninstaller.com/revosetup.exe
Author: VS Revo Group
Current version: 1.42
Version date: May 7 2007
License: Freeware
Download File size: 1.45 MB
Operating Systems Supported: /2000/XP/2003 Server/Vista (32 bit only)
Additional Software Required: None
64 Bit Capable: No
Portable Version Available: Yes
Additional Software Required: None
Non-English languages supported: Albanian, Arabic, Portuguese, Bulgarian, Chinese, Chuvash, Croatian, Czech, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Persian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese
Other relevant information: None