How to Remove Adobe Reader Uninstaller
Adobe Reader lets you open and view PDF documents, but there may come a time when you need to remove the software as a troubleshooting step or to save room on your hard drive. Adobe includes an uninstaller that automatically deletes the Reader software. While using the uninstaller will delete most of the Reader's files, it won't actually remove all traces of the software. After running the uninstaller you also need to remove a few files and registry entries that remain on your computer.
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Instructions
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Access the "Start" menu and navigate to the Control Panel entry. Choose "Control Panel Home" and click the "Uninstall a Program" link.
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Scroll down to the entry labeled Adobe Reader. If you installed the Reader software through the Creative Suite software, you will instead need to locate the Creative Suite entry.
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Click the entry and select "Uninstall." Click "Remove Reader Activation" if you want to completely remove the Reader and its activation data. Select "Keep Activation" instead if you think you may reinstall the Reader software at a later date.
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Click "Next" and "Finish" to have the uninstaller remove Adobe Reader. Return to the "Start" menu and click "Computer." Navigate to the folder where Adobe Reader was installed.
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Check to see if the "Adobe" folder is still listed. Right-click and delete the folder if it is present. Navigate back to the "Start" menu and type "nppdf32.dll" in the "Search" box. Delete the file if it appears in the search results.
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Type "Regedit" in the "Search" field and hit "Enter." Click the Windows registry editor icon.
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Click the "HKEY_CURRENT_USER" folder and open the "Software" sub-folder. Click the "Adobe" folder. Right-click and delete the "Adobe Reader" sub-folder.
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Navigate to the registry folder path "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Installer\UserData\S-1-5-18\Products." Delete the folder labeled "68AB67CA7DA73301B7448A0000000020."
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Navigate to the "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall" folder path. Delete the "AC76BA86-7AD7-1033-7B44-A80000000002" folder.
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Access the "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Low Rights\ElevationPolicy" folder path. Delete the folders named "358E6F10-DE8A-4602-8424-179CA217F8EE" and "9C6A861C-B233-4994-AFB1-C158EE4FC578."
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Close the registry editor. Empty your computer's recycle bin and restart your operating system.
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Tips & Warnings
The "Uninstall a Program" link will instead be labeled "Add or Remove Programs" in Windows XP.
To access the registry editor in XP, click "Run" in the "Start" menu and type "Regedit."
Modifying the registry can corrupt your operating system if you delete the wrong folder or value. Backup the data from your computer's hard drive to an external location before making any registry changes.
