1. Make sure that the SQL Server Setup Support Files component is installed.

   In Add or Remove Programs, make sure that Microsoft SQL Server Setup Support Files appears in the list of installed programs. If Microsoft SQL Server Setup Support Files appears in the list, go to step 2.

   If Microsoft SQL Server Setup Support Files does not appear in the list, install this component before you continue. To do this, from the SQL Server 2005 installation media, double-click the Servers\setup\sqlsupport.msi file. In step 5 of this procedure, you will uninstall the Microsoft SQL Server Setup Support Files component.

2. At the command prompt, run the following command to uninstall the SQL Server components:

   	Copy Code
   %ProgramFiles%\Microsoft SQL Server\90\Setup Bootstrap\ARPWrapper.exe /Remove

   Uninstall the SQL Server components one at a time until all the SQL Server components are uninstalled.

   Note:
   Add or Remove Programs also runs the ARPWrapper.exe program by using the /Remove option. However, the reference to the ARPWrapper.exe program might have been deleted.

   If you receive any of the following error messages, see the "If you experience problems" section that follows:Registry Enumeration Failed

   If you have an instance of SQL Server that has more than one server component, such as the Database Engine and Analysis Services installed, setup will fail, and you receive the following error message:

   The setup has encountered an unexpected error in datastore. The action is RestoreSetupParams.

   This error is expected because of refcounting. A refcount is used to track how many programs use the same .dll file or the same .msi file. When a program is uninstalled, the program decrements the refcount for an .msi file by one. When the last program is uninstalled, the .msi file is deleted. In this case, the .msi file is the SQL Server Setup Support Files component (SqlSupport.msi). If you receive this error message, use one of the following methods to resolve the error:

   • Reinstall the SQL Server Setup Support Files component (SqlSupport.msi) before you uninstall each component in the instance.
     
   • Temporarily refcount the SqlSupport.msi file to itself. To do this, follow these steps:
     
   1. Obtain the GUID for the Microsoft SQL Server Setup Support Files component. To obtain the GUID, follow steps 1 and 2 from the "If you experience problems" section.
      
   2. Use Registry Editor to create or to modify the following registry key with these values:
      Key Name: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft SQL Server\90\Bootstrap\MSIRefCount
      Value: Uninstall
      Type: REG_SZ
      Data: {11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111},{GUID}
      Note   GUID is a placeholder for the GUID of the SQL Server support files. For example, the GUID of the English x86 SQL Server support files is as follows:
      Data: {11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111},{53F5C3EE-05ED-4830-994B-50B2F0D50FCE}
      

   If you experience problems

   If you experience problems when you try to uninstall the SQL Server components, follow these steps:

   • Start Registry Editor, and then locate the following registry key:
     HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall
     
   • In the left pane, click each GUID. For each GUID that you click, look for a display name in the right pane that includes "Microsoft SQL Server 2005." For example, look for the following names:
     
   • Microsoft SQL Server 2005
     
   • Microsoft SQL Server 2005Analysis Services
     
   • Microsoft SQL Server 2005Reporting Services
     
   • Microsoft SQL Server 2005Notification Services
     
   • Microsoft SQL Server 2005Integration Services
     
   • Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Tools
     
   • Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Books Online
     When you see a display name that includes "Microsoft SQL Server 2005," note the GUID that you clicked in the left pane.
     
   • For each GUID that you noted in the previous step, run the following command at the command prompt:
     

     	Copy Code
     start /wait msiexec /x {GUID} /l*v c:\sql_uninstall.log

   Notes:

   • In this command, replace GUID with the GUID that you noted in the previous step.
     
   • If you receive the following error message, contact product support.
     The setup has encountered an unexpected error in datastore. Please contact a Customer Support representative.
     

   For a complete list of product support telephone numbers and for information about support costs, see the support contact information Microsoft Web site.

   • Open the file at C:\Sql_uninstall.log. Approximately 15 lines from the bottom of the file, locate a line that resembles the following:
     MSI (s) (EC:F8) [12:52:18:007]: Product: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Tools -- Removal completed successfully.
     

   If the uninstallation failed, note the component name and the GUID, and then save the Sql_uninstall.log file.

3. Use Add or Remove Programs to uninstall the support components in the following order:

   • MSXML 6.0 Parser
     
   • SQLXML4
     
   • SQL Server VSS Writer
     
   • SQL Server 2005 Backward Compatibility
     
   • Anything else that is related to SQL Server 2005, except for the SQL Server Native Client component and for the SQL Server Setup Support Files component.
     

   If the uninstallation fails for any one of the support components, you might receive the following error message:

   Setup failed due to missing prerequisites

   If you receive this error message, follow these steps:

   • Start Registry Editor, and then locate the following registry key:
     HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall
     
   • In the left pane, click each GUID. For each GUID that you click, look for a display name in the right pane that matches the name of the redistributable file. When you see a display name that matches the name of the redistributable file, note the GUID that you clicked in the left pane.
     
   • For each GUID that you noted in the previous step, run the following command at a command prompt:
     

     	Copy Code
     start /wait msiexec /x {GUID} SKIPREDISTPREREQS=1 /l*v c:\sqlredist_uninstall.log

     In this command, replace GUID with the GUID that you noted in the previous step.
     
   • Open the file at C:\Sqlredist_uninstall.log. At the bottom of the file, locate a line that resembles the following line:
     MSI (s) (EC:F8) [12:52:18:007]: Product: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Backward compatibility -- Removal completed successfully.
     If the uninstallation failed, note the component name and the GUID, and then save the Sqlredist_uninstall.log file.
     

4. If all the other steps were successful, uninstall the SQL Server Native Client component by using Add or Remove Programs.

   Do not uninstall the SQL Server Native Client component if you have SQL Server components installed.

5. If all the other steps were successful, uninstall the SQL Server Setup Support Files component by using Add or Remove Programs.

   If these steps did not uninstall all the components and all the files that are related to the instance of SQL Server, contact product support. For a complete list of product support telephone numbers, see the Microsoft Help and Support Web site.

Tasks

Concepts