Eliminating the last trace of Outlook Express.

[Cameronian]

Some years ago I switched to Thunderbird but didn't get round to uninstalling Outlook Express for quite a while later. I can't be sure but I expect that I did the uninstall via Control Panel. Up until very recently I have seen neither hide nor hair of Outlook Express on my computer and had completely forgotten about it.

However, only recently, every time I boot my computer I have started getting a message box asking my permission for Outlook Express to compact files to reduce space (rather annoyingly at about the same time Thunderbird started to do the same thing whenever I first touch anything after loading it).

It seems that there is not enough of OE left for me to get to it to remove it. I don't know how to get Revo Uninstaller to get hold of it either as, unsurprisingly, OE doesn't come up on its list of installed programs, even though there clearly is at least some of it left behind. I am toying with the idea of reinstalling OE from somewhere so that Revo Uninstaller can get a handle on it in the hope that it will then be able to remove the last traces of the old installation at the same time....

I don't know if that's a good idea, just in case the newer version has a changed file structure which won't lead Revo to the old bits. In any event I haven't found OE anywhere to download yet though I haven't looked at MS in case I catch something!

Can any wise PPRuNer advise, please?

[mixture]

For software that Microsoft provide with Windows, you generally need to look in "add/remove features" (within the add/remove programs control panel).

However, if you used some third party tool (Revo ?) to uninstall a core element of Windows whose uninstall is not supported (not saying this is the case with OE, have not checked yet), then you're on your own. Because the Windows Update process won't be properly setup to look if something exists when it's looking for it to be there given that it's uninstall was not permitted in the first place.

So, I think the first thing to establish is whether removal of OE was permitted in the version of Windows you are running. And if so, to rack your brains as to whether you did it the supported way, or just threw your third-party uninstaller at it and hoped for the best.

Have you also tried creating a new user profile and seeing if you can replicate the problem there. You may have just messed up your usual profile and got Windows all confused.

Hope this makes sense ?

[Cameronian]

Hi again mixture! I uninstalled OE years and years ago, long before having Revo at my disposal. Revo would have got it all first time. I say that I can't remember but I'm pretty sure that it was using Control Panel because I would have had no other choice in those days.

Its removal has caused me absolutely no problems whatsoever over several years so I'm confident that I did nothing that I shouldn't have. It's just that uninstalling via CP (and I believe that CrapCleaner would have used the same tool) wasn't complete whereas Revo would have been.

It's only very recently (a month?) that this little compacting message has begun to appear (the same, unfortunately, with Thunderbird's similar-ish message) and it's only this which has made me aware that there must be a tiny wee bit left somewhere.

What do you think about my idea of reinstalling OE in the hope that Revo will be able to get hold of the program to follow through and eliminate the whole shooting match, including the historical leftover bit?

[vulcanised]

I was given to understand that OE is an integral part of windows and should not be removed (just ignored!).

That applied to XP so don't know if it still stands.

[Saab Dastard]

See the Technet article here: Outlook Express 6 (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb457174.aspx#ECAA)

OE can be "removed / uninstalled" from XP via add/remove programs. But AFAIK, it didn't remove OE, it only removed "entry points" to OE.

It is inextricably intertwined with IE, so if you are not using IE either, you may want to "remove" that also - if you can!

What do you think about my idea of reinstalling OE in the hope that Revo will be able to get hold of the program to follow through and eliminate the whole shooting match, including the historical leftover bit?

I don't see any harm in using add/remove windows components to see if you can restore / repair OE. If you can, use the same mechanism to remove it, rather than using Revo.

SD

[Cameronian]

Hi vulcanised, I am indeed using XP and up until now I appeared to have got rid of OE effectively but there's often that fly in the ointment....

Hi again, Saab Dastard. I only keep an absolutely skeletal copy of IE on one account because there are some things which need it because to do those things with FF requires jumping through too many hoops and other things which I don't like. If that were not so then I'd break my neck in the rush to uninstall that too.

If the official add/remove programmes didn't get rid of that last little bit of OE then why would I expect it to do a better job next time, once I had reinstalled OE for a couple of minutes? Perhaps I don't understand you correctly. My experience of Revo Uninstaller is that it works a treat and appears to leave no trace. I understand that it uses totally different uninstalling tools from Control Panel and CrapCleaner.

[BOAC]

I sounds to me that you/Revo 'left' the OE mail folders in place with their contents when you 'uninstalled' and some vestigial ancestral memory has awoken to tell you the folders need tidying. I would suggest allowing OE to 'compact', and then forget about it, would be the easiest option. I would hesitate to go as far as 'removing' OE registry entries since as said above, IE and OE are intrinsically bound up as part of the 95/2000/XP OS.

You could have a 'peep' at the OE folders contents if you are curious - Google will guide you. The long-winded 'final solution' would be to put OE back onto your system (reinstall IE), import the 'existing' emails into the 'new' OE, then delete all those emails from OE. That should keep the baby quiet.

[PowerDragTrim]

vulcanised is correct. You cannot remove IE and Outlook Express from XP.
However, if you really INSIST on having XP without these items, then this is a workaround.
Download nLite - Deployment Tool for the bootable Unattended Windows installation (http://www.nliteos.com/) and then create your own installation disk without IE and OE. Use your own installation disk, slipstream in SP3 if it is not on that disk, insert all your own drivers and add all hotfixes to date - RyanVM's Windows XP Post-SP3 Update Pack (http://www.ryanvm.net/msfn/updatepack-sp3.html -)
Then burn the ISO image, back up all your data and reinstall your own personalised XP.
Sounds a lot of work, but with this new disk it is a piece of cake to do.
Good luck!

[mixture]

Hi Cameronian,

Looks like I've perhaps missed the boat in my belated return to the forums given the number of replies that have been already.

What do you think about my idea of reinstalling OE in the hope that Revo will be able to get hold of the program to follow through and eliminate the whole shooting match, including the historical leftover bit?

I would second Saab here.... well worth a go at trying a repair/reinstall through the usual windows processes.

If you feel like some manual removal hunting, you can also wait until the popups reappear and then try to track down their source via TaskManager. But that's a bit extreme (and risks breaking more than you'll fix !).

So I'd say give the repair/reinstall a go and then we'll go from there.

RyanVM's Windows XP Post-SP3 Update Pack

Eeewwww.....:yuk:

I would HEAVILY caution against using any Microsoft patches from non-Microsoft sources. They have not been vetted or QA'd by Microsoft. Download from the Microsoft Website, or through the Windows Update processes..... but don't download from anywhere else. It's just asking for trouble.

[Cameronian]

OOerrr! I've been out playing golf and am now behind the curve!

Hi BOAC. I didn't use Revo because I didn't have it - indeed, I'm not sure that it even existed. I'm pretty sure that I used add/remove programs in Control Panel. Had I used Revo then I'm pretty sure that the vestiges of OE wouldn't be there to raise their ugly head. I'm a little perplexed that so many are telling me that one can't remove OE because I did and it completely disappeared for several years. Indeed a big part of the problem is that I have used several tools but still can find absolutely no trace of it because if I could find it I'd let loose the dogs of Revo on it. There are no e-mails left in whatever remains of OE on my computer. I cleared everything out and shipped it to Thunderbird. All would have remained completely well if some bl***y unwanted update (probably) hadn't started it offering to compact the non-existing e-mails every time I boot my computer. Remember that this only started very recently and very strangely coincided with Mozilla sending the same useless message. I'm perfectly capable of deciding when I want to click on the "compact folders" button in Thunderbird whenever I choose without being nannied!

I have tried the option of clicking to let OE compact the empty or non-existing folders, in the hope that it would keep quiet about it for at least a month or two but it doesn't work. Every time I boot the system it comes up again.

Hi PowerDragTrim. I did effectively remove it from my XP. It was, and still is, impossible to find with any tool I am aware of and caused no issues for years. Thank you for the idea but it is outside my comfort (capability?) zone. I'd prefer to find a way of letting Revo get a grip of it first so that it will (should?) eliminate every last trace. I suspect that MS has sent an unwanted update to tell it to wave a "compact me!" flag so perhaps I could eliminate that update if I could identify it as a single issue item. Then I could just leave the thing alone again to stew.

Hi mixture. The repair/reinstall OE option, followed by tearing it out again was one idea which I asked about in the original post. There's no point in repeating the use of the original uninstall tool because it obviously left some tiny traces the first time and would do so again. I'd need to use something more radical and I've always found Revo Uninstall has fitted the bill, but it needs to find a trace of OE to start to work on its elimination and that's the problem - there appears to be absolutely no trace!

[Feline]

Hi Cameronian!
Had the same thing happen to me a couple of years ago - blerry irritating I agree! I rather think it started happening after the installation of SP2 or SP3. Problem is -- I can't remember just how I sorted out the problem!
Reloading Outlook Express might present a few problems - like where would you get it in the first place? As far as I know - it was an integral part of Win XP and was automatically installed when you (or the original OEM) installed the operating system. Secondly, (again afaik) when Outlook Express (and Outlook itself too) are installed, they assign a gobbledegook "User ID String" when installed - not normally seen by the user - and you effectively would be installing a second Outlook Express account.
But fear not! You are not alone! :( Try Googling: stop microsoft outlook express asking to compress files - this will bring up about 686 000 hits - and I'm sure that at least one of the responses might be of some help! :ok:
Hope that helps!
PS Just checking one of my XP machines - It still has a folder for Outlook Express in the Program Files folder - so it doesn't actually go away too easily!

[Cameronian]

I've been holding my breath and trying not to put the evil eye on it but, having done absolutely nothing to fix it because I wanted to wait until I got a consensus among you all, it stopped doing it three days ago - shortly after my last post here. SSHHHH!!!

Mozilla still pops up the same message every time I make my first change to Thunderbird after opening the program so I've still got that to put up with but OE has gone back to sleep. Yippeeee!

Thank you all for you efforts. Let's hope that I don't have to raise the subject ever again.....