Many users of Windows-based computers very often prefer free anti-virus software products that, after installation, are used as the main means of system protection (after installation, the built-in “defender” is deactivated automatically). The notorious Avast package also belongs to this category of security software. But the main problem is that most users simply don’t know how to completely remove Avast from the computer, because standard methods do not lead to anything, and the system believes that this antivirus is still present in the system, and therefore, even after Installing another antivirus may cause conflicts between these two packages.
Why might you need to remove Avast antivirus?
But before addressing the solution to the main issue, let's briefly consider why it may be necessary to remove this package, because, as its official description says, it is free, updates the database daily and is able to detect threats of almost all types. Is it really?
It turns out that no. Most of those who have tried this antivirus in practice, over time, begin to complain that it is because of it that a huge number of problems begin to appear in the system that are not related to viruses in any way. Why? Yes, just because the protective application itself behaves, to put it mildly, completely inadequate, skipping obvious threats and blocking official programs that have absolutely nothing to do with viruses. And that is why many software products are impossible to use.
The system is loaded with anti-virus processes to such an extent that it becomes quite problematic to work. This is where the problem of how to remove Avast from a computer from Windows 7, for example, is acute. We will take this system solely as an example, since in all other modifications the actions performed to delete do not differ from each other.
How to remove "Avast" from the computer using the system tools?
And to begin with, consider the standard tools that are present in any version of Windows. In this case, we are talking about calling the section of programs and components, which is located in the "Control Panel".
In the list of installed applications, you just need to find the desired software product and press the delete button, after which the standard procedure will start, and upon completion, the system will prompt you to restart completely.
If we talk about how to remove Avast from a computer from Windows 10, in addition to the Control Panel, you can also use the options menu, in which the application section is selected, the desired applet is marked, and it is uninstalled.
Search for balances in the registry
Now the subtleties begin. The fact is that you shouldn’t immediately agree to an immediate reboot of the system, because after triggering the built-in Windows uninstaller or the antivirus tool itself, a huge amount of computer debris remains after the process is completed, which is not deleted during restart, and the operating system perceives the supposedly remote antivirus as active.
Here, in the question of how to remove Avast from the computer from Windows 7 or with any other system on board, it should be noted that there are system registry entries in the leftovers, from which, if you do not want the antivirus to look active, and need to get rid.
To do this, call the registry editor (regedit command in the "Run" console) and search for the name of the antivirus (Ctrl + F). All found records will not be shown right away, and you can switch from one result to another by pressing the "Find Next" button or the F3 key. You need to delete everything that will be found until the system reports that the search is over.
At this stage, you can simplify your solution to the problem of how to remove Avast antivirus from a computer by using specialized utilities for scanning and cleaning the registry, which can delete outdated keys or invalid entries. You can use, for example, RegCleaner, or use optimizer programs that have the appropriate modules (CCleaner, Advanced SystemCare, and others).
Delete files and folders
But even after putting the registry in order, it is not worth rebooting the system yet. The next step in how to remove Avast from the computer will be searching for residual files and folders in Explorer or another file manager, which is used by default in the system.
The name of the antivirus is entered in the search field, and everything that is found is deleted in the list of residues. Please note that access to some files may be blocked. In this case, they must be deleted exclusively with administrator rights, and if this proves impossible, use the Unlocker application to restore access.
How to remove Avast from the computer completely? Using uninstallers
However, all of the above actions seem too complicated for many users, and also require time-consuming. The question of how to remove Avast from a computer is much simpler, solved by using special applications called uninstallers.
So, for example, in the iObit Uninstaller program, it is enough to select the antivirus itself from the list (if any, then the accompanying software products), activate standard deletion, set a powerful (in-depth) scan, and then delete all found residues, among which, by the way, will be and registry keys, and directories, and files. It is such applications that are able to remove any software products entirely. At the same time, they completely ignore the moments associated with blocking deleted objects. What can I say? They can even remove the embedded applets of the operating systems themselves.
Special utility to remove antivirus
Finally, the problem of how to remove Avast from the computer can be solved using the highly targeted AvastCleaner utility, which is available for download on the official site of the antivirus developer.
The application is portable and consists of only one executable file, which you need to run, after which the antivirus package will be completely removed.
Last Tips
That’s briefly and everything that concerns the resolution of the problem of how to remove Avast from the computer completely and completely, using various methods for this. It remains to add that sometimes the removal by standard means may not work. To conduct it, you will first need to disable the self-defense mode in the antivirus itself. If this does not work, you can try to remove the package by booting the system in safe mode. However, this usually does not come to this, since both the “native” utility and uninstallers delete the entire package, ignoring any lock. And that is why their use can be called priority and most convenient.