Uninstall option no longer available for the new version of Microsoft Edge

[lexluthermiester]

I think Edge only preloads now if you have Edge set as your default browser and once you change the default browser Edge stops preloading by default. At least that seems to be the behavior I've experienced.

I'm going to have to tinker with that a bit.

 

[windwhirl]

Same here. Edge (either old EdgeHTML or the Chromium based one) doesn't run in the background by default at startup. I do have set Firefox as default, though.

Yes, it does. In it's default configuration Edge starts automatically with Windows and drops to a suspended state. It comes in and out of that state as needed by the system until terminated or it's configuration is changed.

That's right.

Old edge, Microsoft Store, Calculator, Your Phone, Search and Settings are always running in the background (in the suspended state).
New chromium edge don't run in the background anymore, and I have nothing against Search, Settings and Store. However annoying Your Phone is always there and can't be uninstalled.
I never ever need Your Phone app and I can't even uninstall it, meh.

Why can't I uninstall the Your Phone app? - Microsoft Support

An explanation as to why the Your Phone app can't be uninstalled from Windows 10.

support.microsoft.com

However, some quick testing shows me that after running Calculator and old Edge and closing them, they remain in the background for a while at least.

In Calculator's case, what remains is the Runtime Broker, which is part of the system and controls trust and permissions for universal apps. After a minute at most the RT broker closes too.

In Edge's case, what remains is:
1 - MicrosoftEdge.exe. The browser main process, manages all the other Edge processes.
2 - MicrosoftEdgeCP.exe. Usually one for each open tab and a couple more that run as "user interface service", three if you open the menus. After closing the browser there should be only one.
3 - MicrosoftEdgeSH.exe (the JIT compiler)
4 - Runtime Broker (trust and permissions)
5 - Browser Broker (no idea what this one does exactly).

Your Phone... that one should only run if you actually used it. Leaves behind one process running after you close the app.

I'm thinking that whatever processes remain in the background after you close the apps is somewhat dictated by whether the app had permission to run in the background...

 

[Bill_Bright]

I think this mentality is frankly the wrong way to approach the problem, but then, I would. I know computers.

I hear you and I agree. Too many people are careless and therefore "choose" to be clueless about their computing devices - even though they know there are significant security risks. But they just don't care. Look at all the very personal information people willfully provide Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and other social media apps. Especially those using their smart phones where their cell phone carriers can link it all (including their contacts, who they have talked to and texted, where they have been and the direction they are going) to their current exact physical locations, real names, billing addresses and billing information - information Microsoft and Windows don't have and don't even attempt to collect. It baffles me.

 

[John Naylor]

No doubt a rash of whiny complaints will soon follow this news.
Which leads to my point. Windows makes it easy to use alternative browsers for those who don't want to use Edge.

1. The complaints are more then well deserved.
2. It's an invalid point with no reasonable or logical support.

How many other software vendor whose products you use who force you to waste valuable storage space and potential conflicts with unwanted bloated applications your PC ?

While MS lost this argument in court already 25 years ago, no significantly punitive action was taken ... Wont be long before someone figures out how to strip it out this time either

 

[Drone]

Your Phone... that one should only run if you actually used it. Leaves behind one process running after you close the app.

I'm thinking that whatever processes remain in the background after you close the apps is somewhat dictated by whether the app had permission to run in the background...

I never ran Your Phone, not even once. Yet it always there (suspended and connected to Runtime Broker process). This entire "mobile", "power saving" and "link your phone" approach in W10 is kinda annoying, as a desktop user I don't need all that stuff. W10 could've been better but it has tons of pros, so it's okay.

 

[Bill_Bright]

How many other software vendor whose products you use who force you to waste valuable storage space and potential conflicts with unwanted bloated applications your PC ?

Huh? Now that makes no sense. It is none that I use. Because I don't use Avast, Kaspersky, Avira or other unnecessary security programs or other alternative browsers that, out of necessity, would have be downloaded then installed on my systems - taking up even more space than the native solutions.

And are you seriously going to pretend Edge takes up significantly more disk space than any other browser? Come on! That's ridiculous. Not to mention it is really more about how one uses their browser.

Potential conflicts? Yeah right - because there is a universe of examples of Microsoft products interfering and causing conflicts with other Microsoft products.

While MS lost this argument in court already 25 years ago, no significantly punitive action was taken ...

Whoa! Do your homework dude! No punitive action was taken because Microsoft totally capitulated!

Congress and the EU demanded and got the following from Microsoft.

1. They totally removed the AV components in XP.
2. They developed a totally IE free version sold in the EU.
3. They stopped forcing Dell, HP, etc. to install MS Office on their factory systems (instead of WordPerfect, etc.) if they wanted the deep discounts on Windows volume licensing.

And what would have happened had MS not agreed to those terms set by Congress and the EU? They would have been broken up Ma Bell style into little parts.

1. The complaints are more then well deserved.

No they aren't. Microsoft has done plenty deserving of complaints - no doubt about that. But they do not deserve getting bashed for everything under the sun any time anybody mentions Microsoft. For example, Windows Update was, once again, bashed in this thread when WU has nothing to do with the subject.

Bash MS when due and I will defend and likely join you. But bash when not due and I will defend them with equal vigor - whether that be Microsoft, Intel, OEM coolers, Pizza Hut, or Ford 150s - blue F150s with matching blue Leer toppers, specifically.

Wasted storage space? Gee whiz. There are modern games taking up 150 Gigabytes of disk space and you are "whining" about a browser that takes up ~100 Megabytes! This is exactly the type of whining I was talking about in my first post. See what I mean jayseearr?

Its sad the length some will go to just so illustrate their biases against Microsoft.

No more wasting my time here. I'm off to the bike trails . Have a good day folks!

 

[AltCapwn]

Hi,
That I remember the uninstall option was not a live link, just a dead text so sort of useless like some other ms apps that can't be removed without kungfu skills.

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers | where-object {$_.name –notlike '*store*'} | Remove-AppxPackage

This was close, but it uninstalls ALL Microsoft UWP programs for ALL users. If you really want to clean up your Windows 10.

Good point. No doubt there will be some who will figure out and publish how to remove it.

Well here it is!
Run Powershell as an administrator.


To uninstall edge :
1. Get the edge package name

Get-appxpackage *edge*

2.1 Uninstall for the current user

Remove-appxpackage *name of the  package*

2.2 Uninstall for all users

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers *name of the package*| Remove-AppxPackage

 

[Caring1]

I know computers. I know they can't and will never be a toaster.

Never say never.

 

[windwhirl]

Never say never.
View attachment 165127

Put the bread on the CPU for a slow toast, or choose the GPU for max toasting power? Decisions, decisions...

 

[moproblems99]

Wasted storage space? Gee whiz. There are modern games taking up 150 Gigabytes of disk space and you are "whining" about a browser that takes up ~100 Megabytes! This is exactly the type of whining I was talking about in my first post. See what I mean jayseearr?

So it's not wasted because it is only 100mb? Send me $100. It's only $100. Modern salaries are like $150,000.

For example, Windows Update was, once again, bashed in this thread when WU has nothing to do with the subject.

Not our fault they don't care about their users.

 

[R-T-B]

Never say never.
View attachment 165127

It has a parralell port... there is no chance that things toasts. Poor toaster.

?

I was implying more just educate the user. I know, I'm an optimist.

 

[lexluthermiester]

This was close, but it uninstalls ALL Microsoft UWP programs for ALL users. If you really want to clean up your Windows 10.



Well here it is!
Run Powershell as an administrator.


To uninstall edge :
1. Get the edge package name

Get-appxpackage *edge*

2.1 Uninstall for the current user

Remove-appxpackage *name of the  package*

2.2 Uninstall for all users

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers *name of the package*| Remove-AppxPackage

That doesn't work for Cortana, Edge and a few built in apps. You have to get into the " C:\Windows\SystemApps\ " folder and rename/delete the offending folders themselves. To do that you need to disable UAC then use "Take Ownership" commands to take ownership of the folder you wish to remove. Once removed, you need to reboot the system.

 

[Deleted member 193596]

not too bad.. it replaced firefox and chrome for me.

 

[ThrashZone]

That doesn't work for Cortana, Edge and a few built in apps. You have to get into the " C:\Windows\SystemApps\ " folder and rename/delete the offending folders themselves. To do that you need to disable UAC then use "Take Ownership" commands to take ownership of the folder you wish to remove. Once removed, you need to reboot the system.

Hi,
Problem going further is you just break 10.
Best I've found is an accumulation of reg files to adjust registry.

 

[Assimilator]

Microsoft "forcing" a default browser on users is for a very good reason:

They don't want to have to deal with support calls from people who have managed to uninstall every browser on their system and can no longer access the Internet.

Yes, these people exist.
Yes, they are a larger percentage of the population than people who have a problem with Edge not being uninstallable.

Microsoft is merely optimising for ordinary users, not power users.

It's a real shame too - the world could desperately have used something besides chrom-e/-ium (and Firefox); monocultures are always bad.

Besides that, I am of the opinion that Updates should be forbidden (short of catastrophic security flaws, maybe). The reason is, precisely because Updating is possible and now easy & convenient too, people will ship unuseable garbage as you have described. We'll just patch it to be functional later on Undecimber the 32nd!

You can thank Satya Nadella for that. In his time as head of MS he's gutted their testing and application dev teams in favour of Azure. It's paid off in terms of share price etc., but Microsoft's actual apps (and OS) are far worse in terms of quality than a decade ago. Steve Ballmer's Microsoft would never have allowed Edge to be released in such a broken state, for example.

 

[windwhirl]

They don't want to have to deal with support calls from people who have managed to uninstall every browser on their system and can no longer access the Internet.

I didn't think about it, but now you mentioned it and I can't stop thinking about how many people would actually make that mistake.

 

[Bill_Bright]

I didn't think about it, but now you mentioned it and I can't stop thinking about how many people would actually make that mistake.

I worked tech support, in one form or another, for over 40 years. It is my experience that the vast majority of trouble-calls are for problems that are self-induced. That is exactly why most tech support centers have different levels or tiers of support and Tier 1 are their most junior techs who follow simple checklists that, in effect, start with (1) Is it plugged in? (2) Is it turned on?

We used to provide support for a very sensitive government facility that was surrounded by two electric fences, parameter, heat and motion sensors, and armed, patrolling security forces. The CSC (central security control) Chief called us at 3AM stating all his CCTV security monitors for the exterior cameras were displaying nothing but black. He insisted someone come out immediately to fix them.

As our tech approached the building he saw the problem. So as soon as he got signed in, he walked over to the light switches on the wall next to where that Chief was standing, flipped the big switch labeled "Exterior Security Lights" to "On", then walked out. And surprise surprise! All the security monitors were no longer displaying black. True story.

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
I never had to use a windows browser to install a different one lol

 

[Bill_Bright]

I never had to use a windows browser to install a different one lol

That's not what he was saying. He was talking about users uninstalling all their browsers, then suddenly being unable to browse the Internet at all. Why? Because they had no browser at all.

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
I never had to use a windows browser to install a different one lol

That's not what he was saying. He was talking about users uninstalling all their browsers, then suddenly being unable to browse the Internet at all. Why? Because they had no browser at all.

Hi,
Seems you didn't understand what I said.
Maybe read it slower.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Okay. Then how did you go out and find, then download the different one?

 

[ThrashZone]

Okay. Then how did you go out and find, then download the different one?

Hi,
I have all installers on usb.

 

[Tatty_Two]

I uninstalled Edge through CCleaner, even took me to the MS Edge website so I could feedback why? Might come back on the next update....... dunno.

 

[Bill_Bright]

I have all installers on usb.

And you had to, at one point in time, go out and get those installers to put them on that USB device, right? No matter. Its not pertinent to this discussion.

 

[ThrashZone]

And you had to, at one point in time, go out and get those installers to put them on that USB device, right? No matter. Its not pertinent to this discussion.

Hi,
No big secrete how to save an installer to usb device either so it may not be pertinent to you but if no browser exist it would be