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Under certain conditions, you might have to remove the McAfee Agent manually. Possible reasons include:
A failed upgrade leaves mismatched files and stops the /Forceuninstall from removing the agent.
Issues with the Prevent McAfee services from being stopped option in VirusScan Enterprise (VSE).
Corruption of files in previously installed versions of McAfee Agent.
Third-party software conflicts.
Solution
Before you try to remove McAfee Agent manually, try to remove McAfee Agent using frminst.exe and the/forceuninstall switch:
IMPORTANT: If you incur errors when you perform the uninstall using the forceuninstall switch, follow the steps in the "Manual removal steps" section.
Disable McAfee services protection in VSE. NOTE: This step is only needed if VSE is installed.
VSE includes an Access Protection feature that prevents McAfee services from being stopped. To successfully remove McAfee Agent, you must disable this setting either locally or using ePolicy Orchestrator (ePO). Do either of the following:
On the affected computer, click Start, Programs, McAfee, VirusScan Console.
Right-click Access Protection and select Properties.
Deselect Prevent McAfee services from being stopped.
Click Apply.
Close the VirusScan console.
Continue to step 2.
On the ePO server, open the ePolicy Orchestrator Console.
Select the directory or computer level where you need to change the VSE policy.
In the right pane, expand the VirusScan Enterprise policy.
Click Edit beside Access Protection Policies.
Click the Access Protection tab and deselect Prevent McAfee services from being stopped.
Click Apply.
Send an agent wake-up call to apply the changes, or wait for the next policy enforcement for the changes to take effect.
Close the ePO console and continue to step 2.
Run the frminst.exe /forceuninstallcommand:
On the affected computer, click Start, Run, and type one of the following commands:
IMPORTANT: The path varies depending on the version of McAfee Agent you installed, and whether you installed as an upgrade or clean installation. Use Windows Explorer to determine the correct path.
To remove McAfee Agent processes from memory and complete the deletion of files, restart the computer.
If this procedure fails, continue to the manual removal steps.
IMPORTANT: Your company group policies might block your attempts to edit the registry. If you receive an error "Access Denied" during the edit registry sequences below, you must contact your IT department.
IMPORTANT:Before you continue, make sure that the McAfee services are stopped. This action is described in step 1 of the instructions above. This step describes how to remove McAfee Agent with the use of frminst.exeand the/forceuninstall switch.
CAUTION: This article contains information about opening or modifying the registry.
The following information is intended for System Administrators. Registry modifications are irreversible and could cause system failure if done incorrectly.
Search through the list of alphanumeric codes in the Products key. Reviewing the ProductName String Value on the right, and locate the McAfee Agent key.
Right-click the appropriate McAfee Agent subkey and click Delete.
Close the registry editor and restart your computer.
Related Information
If you are unable to remove manually McAfee Agent 5.x, contact Support.