Perform A Clean Uninstall Of Autodesk Product

When the installation of an Autodesk product fails, you may need to perform a clean uninstall before you can install successfully. A clean uninstall removes residual files from any previous installations and, if necessary, resets some Windows registry keys. A clean uninstall may be necessary if:

• You’re trying to upgrade to a new version and keep getting errors.
• You tried to install a product for the first time and installation stopped midway.
• You thought you installed successfully, but the product won’t start.

After Perform a clean uninstall of Autodesk Product, you can try installing your product again.

Important: Use this procedure only if you run into problems. For normal uninstalls, use the Uninstall control panel in Windows or the Remove tool in macOS.

Go to the Windows TEMP folder by entering %TEMP% in the Windows Run box and delete all the files in that folder. To display the Run box, click START in Windows XP or 7; right-click START in Windows 8 or 10.

1. Uninstall the previous version of your Autodesk software.
   • For Windows products, go to the application list in the Uninstall control panel. Uninstall peripheral programs (from smallest to largest) that were installed with the product before you uninstall the product.
   • For Mac applications, use the Remove tool from Finder > Applications > Product Name. If there is no Remove tool for your product, move the application file to the trash and then remove any residual files (see step 4 below).
2. Check for corrupt Windows registry keys and other internal problems. For Windows products, download, install, and run the Microsoft Program Install and Uninstall Troubleshooter (formerly known as Microsoft Fix It). It checks for corrupt registry keys and other issues that can prevent installation.
3. Remove licensing storage files only if you are having licensing problems. Skip this step if you don’t have licensing issues. Here are the most common symptoms of licensing problems:
   Remove the following licensing (trusted storage) files (they are in different locations, depending on your operating system).
   • When you try to start the product, it hangs at either the “Checking License” or “Loading” step.
   • When you try to start the product, you see this error message: “Unable to initialize adlm: Internal Error Message: Error Code: <-104>”Important: if you have a standalone perpetual license, deleting the adskflex_###_tsf.data file can cause your software to stop working. First check whether your older version of Autodesk standalone licensed software is listed in Transport Layer Security (TLS): Updates Required to Maintain Software Access. If it is, install the update. You can then safely delete adskflex files. If your software isn’t listed, you can’t re-license after you delete adskflex files, and your software will stop working.
      Vista or Windows 7/8/10
   • C:ProgramDataFLEXnetadskflex_########_tsf.data
   • C:ProgramDataFLEXnetadskflex_########_tsf.data.backupWindows XP
   • C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication DataFLEXnetadskflex_########_tsf.data
   • C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication DataFLEXnetadskflex_########_tsf.data.backupmacOS
   • /Library/Preferences/Flexnet Publisher/FLEXnet/adskflex_########_event.log
   • /Library/Preferences/Flexnet Publisher/FLEXnet/adskflex_########_tsf.data
   • /Library/Preferences/Flexnet Publisher/FLEXnet/adskflex_########_backupNote: If you do not have Adobe products on your computer, also delete the following folder:  /Library/Application Support/Flexnet Publisher
4. Remove any remaining residual files. Don’t empty the folders. Remove only those files related to the product you’re uninstalling.
    Windows Products
   • C:Program FilesAutodesk
   • C:ProgramDataAutodesk
   • C:UsersYourUseridAppDataLocalAutodesk
   • C:UsersYourUseridAppDataRoamingAutodesk
   • C:UsersYourUseridAppDataRoamingAutodeskADUT (if applicable)Mac Products
   • LibraryApplication SupportAutodesk
   • LibraryApplication SupportPreferences
5. Clear Windows TEMP files.
6. From the Installer, try installing your Autodesk product again.
7. If installation still fails, you may need to remove files relating to all Autodesk products and supporting software (such as add-ins).
   • For complete details of this process for Windows, see Remove Autodesk Software (Windows).
   • For Mac products, use Spotlight to search for all Autodesk software and support files and move them to the trash.

Delete remaining Autodesk product entries from the Windows registry

Warning: Improperly editing the Windows registry could render your operating system unusable. Use the Microsoft® Registry Editor at your own risk and only after backing up the registry. Microsoft provides critical information about the registry in the Microsoft Knowledge Base at http://support.microsoft.com/support.

See: How to back up and restore the registry in Windows

To edit the registry

1. Log on to the workstation as a member of the local Administrators group.
2. Launch the Run dialog:
   • Windows 7, Vista, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10: Windows key + R
   • Windows XP: Start > Run
3. In the Run dialog, enter REGEDIT in the Open edit field and click OK.
4. In the Registry Editor, locate and delete the following subkeys:– HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareAutodesk
   – HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESoftwareAutodesk
5. Close the Registry Editor.
6. Restart the computer.

Return to Top

Before reinstalling any Autodesk products

At this point, each of the previously installed Autodesk products—along with residual files, folders, and registry settings—should be gone from the system. Before you begin installing or reinstalling products, we recommend you perform the following tasks to help ensure a successful installation:

1. Reboot your computer.
2. In Windows Explorer, delete the contents of your Windows Temp folder.
   Do not delete the Windows Temp folder itself.
   You can locate the Temp folder by entering %TEMP%& in the Address bar of Windows Explorer.
3. Close all running applications.
4. Disable any virus-checking software running on your system.
   Virus-checking applications may block certain common activities detected as suspicious, such as accessing the registry or adding, removing, or updating DLL files. Not only can it slow down the installation process, but it can actually introduce corruption. So make sure that your virus checking software is turned off before you install, and make sure to turn it back on afterwards.Several anti-virus programs can be disabled by right-clicking the system tray icon and selecting Disable from the shortcut menu. (For more information about disabling your anti-virus software, refer to the vendor of that software). In some cases, you may need to use the task manager to end the process for the anti-virus software that is still running.

To verify that an anti-virus program is not still running in the background

1. Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete.
2. Click Task Manager.
3. On the Processes tab of the Task Manager, select the process for the anti-virus program and then click “End Process”.

You are now ready to install your Autodesk products on your computer.