Uninstall a WebSphere Application Server product from a
Windows system by running the uninstaller program and performing some
manual steps to remove log files and registry entries. Such registry
entries can prevent you from reinstalling the product into the original
directory. If you are not planning to reinstall, you do not have to
uninstall manually.
Before you begin
The
uninstaller program removes all profiles by default, including all
of the configuration data and applications in each profile. Before
you start the uninstall procedure, back up the config folder,
the installableApps folder, and the installedApps folder
of each profile, if necessary, or use the -OPT removeProfilesOnUninstall="false"
parameter on the uninstall command.The uninstaller program leaves
all profiles, including all of the configuration data, applications,
and other user data in each profile. Use the -OPT removeProfilesOnUninstall="true"
parameter on the uninstall command to delete all
of the data, or delete it manually at a later time, if you decide
the data is unnecessary.See Using command line tools for a description of
managing configuration files. Back up all applications that are not
stored in another location.
Determine the
installation root directory for the product so that you remove the
correct product and produce a clean system.
About this task
Reinstalling
the product into a new directory when files remain from a previous
installation can create a coexistence scenario. However, you can delete
all files and registry entries to completely remove a WebSphere® Application Server product. A
clean system lets you reinstall the product into the original directory
without coexistence.
Default directories are
shown in the following planning table:
Table 1. Major directory locations
Identifier |
Default location |
Actual location |
app_server_root |
C:\Program Files\IBM\WebSphere\AppServer |
|
profile_root |
C:\Program Files\IBM\WebSphere\AppServer\profiles |
|
plugins_root |
C:\Program Files\IBM\WebSphere\Plugins |
|
If you move either installation
root directory, move them to a shorter path name. Some Windows systems
have a length restriction of 258 characters for a command. A problem
can occur that prevents the successful creation of a profile when
either path is too long. The maximum length for the installation root
directory is 60 characters. The maximum length for the profiles installation
root directory is 80 characters.
The Installation wizard and
the Profile Management tool let you
specify your own locations for installation root directories.
Use
the installRegistryUtils command
to examine the installation locations for all installed WebSphere Application Server products.
Perform the following procedure to produce a clean system.
Procedure
- Log on with the same user
ID that you used to install the product.
- Run the uninstaller program for the Web server
plug-ins for WebSphere Application
Server.
If a Web server is configured to run with the
application server, uninstall the plug-ins to remove the configuration
from the Web server. See Uninstalling the Web server plug-ins for WebSphere Application Server.
- Stop any browsers and any Java processes related to WebSphere
Application Server products, as described in Uninstalling the product.
- Issue the uninstall command.
If you have already run the uninstaller
program, skip the rest of this entire procedure. If you cannot run
the uninstaller program, go to the next step.
See the description of the uninstall command for more information.
The
Uninstaller wizard begins and displays the Welcome panel.
- Verify that you have an Emergency Recovery Disk. Instructions
for creating this disk are in the Windows help documentation.
This step is a safeguard. This procedure does not require
the recovery disk.
- Use the regback.exe program from the
Windows Resource Kit to back up the registry.
This step
is a safeguard. This procedure does not require the backup copy of
the registry.
- Remove the application server service from the operating
system.
Stop the IBM
WebSphere Application Server V6.x - nodename service
using the Windows Services panel, or run the WASService -stop command
located in the app_server_root/bin directory.
Then run the WASService -remove command to remove
the WebSphere service from the operating system.
- Delete product registry entries for the WebSphere Application
Server product that you are uninstalling.
Edit the Windows
system registry by invoking the regedit.exe command
from a command prompt.
Handle the Registry with care
Note: You can easily make a mistake while using the registry
editor to view and edit registry contents. The editor does not warn
you of editing errors, which can be extremely dangerous. A corrupt
registry can disrupt your system to the point where your only option
is to reinstall the Windows operating system.
- Press Ctrl-F to search for all
instances of WebSphere to determine whether
you should delete each entry. You might not be able to remove all
of the entries related to WebSphere Application Server, which is not
a problem.
- Expand and select keys related to WebSphere Application
Server products.
- Click Edit > Delete from the
menu bar for each related key.
- Click Yes when asked to confirm
deletion of the key.
- Click Registry > Exit from the
menu bar when you are finished.
- Delete the installation root directory for the product
that you are uninstalling.
- Locate all of the profile directories and delete the directories
if they were located outside of the app_server_root directory
and were not deleted in the previous step.
- Open a Windows Explorer window and browse to the C:\Documents
and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\IBM WebSphere directory.
Avoid trouble: If
you are running Windows 2008, then browse to the
C:\Users\<user_name>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start
Menu\Programs\WebSphere directory.
gotcha
If you have
one installation of a WebSphere Application Server product, delete
the following folder:
Application Server Network Deployment v6.x
- Edit the vpd.properties file.
The file is located in the installation directory of the
operating system, such as the C:\WINNT directory
or the C:\windows directory.
Do not delete
or rename the vpd.properties file because the
InstallShield MultiPlatform (ISMP) program uses it for other products
that it installs. If the WebSphere Application Server product that
you are uninstalling is the only product with entries in the vpd.properties file,
you can delete this file.
- Use the installRegistryUtils command
to examine the installation locations for all installed WebSphere Application Server products and
remove the desired products from the install registry.
- Restart your machine if a prompt displays that directs
you to restart.
Results
This procedure results in having
a clean system. You can reinstall into the same directories now. A
clean system has no trace of a previously deleted installation.