Challenges
The biggest issue administrators face while uninstalling an application is when the uninstallation fails because a process initiated by the application to be uninstalled is running.
Resolution
Here is a scenario that shows you how all this issue can be resolved using pre/post deployment activities
John's boss has asked him to uninstall Notepad++ from all the computers that have it installed. He creates the package for uninstalling Notepad++ using Desktop Central's template. Here is how he modifies the created package to ensure that the uninstallation is carried out efficiently:
- John first creates a package and gives the uninstallation switches as follows:
- John needs to make sure that the Notepad++ isn't running at the time the uninstallation is attempted. Hence, he selects the pre deployment configuration "Manage on-going processes" as shown below:
- This is how he sets up the configuration to kill the process if it's running:
- This is the view John gets when he clicks on "Summary" for "Pre-Deployment Activities". The activities will be carried out in the order in which they are listed here:
After configuring these activities, he saves the package and deploys it to the desired target. Notepad++ gets uninstalled on all the computers.