Member Avatar for lolitsadam

Hey, could anyone tell me if there's a simple way of doing, say - UNinstalling Windows Installer, then reinstalling it, and taking me step-by-step?

I tried following Microsoft's advice, but it didn't do a SINGLE thing to help, I think it only made it worse.

And Windows 7/64-bit.

  • 3 Contributors
  • 2 Replies
  • 459 Views
  • 3 Weeks Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by JorgeM

Dani AI

Generated

Short answer for : Windows Installer is part of the Windows 7 OS (Windows Installer 5.0) and cannot be cleanly "uninstalled" like a normal program. On Windows 7 the usual redistributable/upgrader approach (the MSI 4.5 package) applies to older systems; the correct path is to re-register/repair the installer engine or repair corrupted system files rather than trying to remove and reinstall the service. (learn.microsoft.com)

Quick, safe diagnostic / repair steps (run from an elevated Command Prompt or via Services where noted):

msiexec /unregister
msiexec /regserver

sc query msiserver
sc config msiserver start= demand
net start msiserver

Those commands re-register the MSI engine, verify/set the Windows Installer service (msiserver) to Manual (demand) and attempt to start it. Also confirm Startup type in services.msc is not Disabled. These are the standard first-line fixes documented by Microsoft. (support.microsoft.com)

Collect more data before resorting to repair: check Applications events in Event Viewer for MsiInstaller errors and enable verbose MSI logging for a failing package (example: msiexec path\package.msi /L*v C:\msilog.txt) to capture the installer failure details. The Microsoft troubleshooting guidance explains how to enable and read MSI logs. (support.microsoft.com)

If the engine won’t start or SFC finds unrepairable system files, run the System File Checker (sfc /scannow) and follow its guidance; if corruption persists the supported next step is a Windows repair (in-place upgrade / repair install) which restores OS binaries without removing installed applications. Make a full backup and create a restore point before doing a repair install. (support.microsoft.com)

Malware often breaks installer components (as noted by ). Run an up-to-date offline scanner such as the Microsoft Safety Scanner (MSERT) or a current AV/anti‑malware tool before making system repairs. If comfortable with advanced fixes (backup registry first), resetting the MSIServer ImagePath registry entry can help in some cases—only after backing up and documenting exact edits. (support.microsoft.com)

If these steps fail, an in-place repair of Windows 7 is the supported method to restore the installer engine.

Recommended Answers

All 2 Replies

Member Avatar for dee101g

Have you checked your machine, very well, for malware? That is probably the most common reason for installer not working.

If you are sure your machine is clean, have you tried repairing your OS? You need the installer to install and uninstall anything that uses the MS installer.

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.