Uninstallation
Before starting VAC uninstallation, make sure VAC driver is not used by any application. Cable device usage is shown by its Control Panel application. If you attempt to uninstall the driver while it is in use, the uninstaller will fail to properly remove the driver from the system and to delete its files and folders. So it is recommended to close all audio applications (including those hidden in the tray) before uninstalling the VAC.
Since uninstallation requires privileged actions, you must explicitly log to the Administrator account if UAC is not enabled in your system.
Before you start uninstallation, open the Audio Properties applet. If a Virtual Cable device is selected as a default device for the recording and/or playback, select any other devices instead. Then close the properties page.
To start removing VAC software from the system, open the Virtual Audio Cable folder in the Start Menu and select the Uninstall item. If UAC is enabled in your system, you will be prompted to elevate your privileges to run the uninstaller.
If you have accidentally deleted your VAC Start Menu folder, you can start the uninstaller manually. Click Start - Run to open the Run Application dialog, click Browse, locate a directory where VAC is installed (by default, it installs to "C:\Program Files\Virtual Audio Cable"), and double-click setup item; a path to the uninstaller application will be inserted in the command line. Then append a space character and "-u" option to the command line (outside of the quotes, if any). Resulting command line should look like this:
"C:\Program Files\Virtual Audio Cable\setup.exe" -u
Then click OK, the uninstaller should start.
After successful uninstallation, you will receive a confirmation message.
If some driver files, services and other objects are currently in use by the system or by , they cannot be deleted immediately. In such case, the uninstaller creates a "delayed delete requests" for them and prompts you to restart Windows. If you don't want to restart immediately, you must not try to reinstall VAC in this Windows session otherwise severe errors may occur.
Uninstallation troubleshooting
If the uninstaller fails to properly remove software components from the system, try advanced setup mode that allows you to over-install the software. In some cases, after successful over-installation you will be able to successfully uninstall the software. As a last chance, you can try to remove the driver manually:
- Log in with the Administrator account.
- Open Device Manager.
- Expand the "Sound..." device category by clicking on the "+" sign.
- Right-click the Virtual Audio Cable device and choose Uninstall.
- In Windows 6.x, check the Delete the driver software item.
This sequence deletes only VAC driver and its devices but driver service may not be automatically deleted. To manually delete the kernel-mode service, unzip VAC distribution package into any empty folder. Using My Computer or Windows Explorer navigation, locate this folder and select the RemoveService file. Right-click this file, and select Install in the context menu. Service will be deleted immediately if it is stopped, or marked for deletion and deleted at next system startup.
After removing system references, you can delete driver file vrtaucbl.sys located in the system32\drivers subdirectory of the Windows installation directory.
VAC directory and its Start Menu folder can be deleted using any Windows file management utility (i.e., Explorer).
Please report all problems not covered by this manual, to the author.