I recently wanted to uninstall and reinstall Norton Systemworks 2002 (NSW) as I was getting error messages on reboot that certain files were missing from it. Of course I went to add/remove programs to uninstall. It goes through the procedure and after reboot the desktop icon is gone and it is also gone from add/remove programs.

The problem comes when I go to reinstall it, I get a message that it has detected versions of NSW and to remove them first. Sure enough, when I use explorer, there is the NSW file folder in all its 30 meg glory, STILL THERE. How do I uninstall this beast?

I know I could just select the folder in explorer and delete but will that properly remove the registry entries?

Thanks in advance.

Maybe this can help you. Interceptor should be along shortly for more assistance if needed.

Holy smokes! 9 pages of instructions with 30 or more registry deletions. But I guess if there's no other way?!

I VERY carefully did all the registry and other deletions called for but now on reboot I get error messages like:

"...cannot find a device file that may be needed .....windows registry or SYSTEM INI file refers to this device......"

and then it lists the missing files which were obviously deleted as instructed by Symantec.

Is there somewhere in the SYSTEM INI file that I can go to stop it from looking for these files?

Egad......look at this:

"Norton SystemWorks obviously hasn't been thoroughly tested with Win 9.x. For Windows NT-kernel based OS like 2000, XP, it works fine. But you can't never cleanly uninstall the program the right way - it seems Symantec doesn't want you to ever live without their software. Uninstalling it doesn't clean out all the program files and registry entries. Worst, it could leave your system crippled. For example, on Windows 2000, I used the anti-virus software included in SystemWorks, after installing it I found my DHCP Client service out of order. Why? Because SystemWorks' installer didn't remove the registry key that associated itself to the DHCP Client Service (SYMTDI is the dependency). Thus, the DHCP Client service was referring to a non-existent file. (DHCP is used to obtain a dynamic IP address and look up the proxy information, without it, my computer can't connect to the Internet). So I had to manually edit the registry and remove the dependency from DHCP Client service entry. On Windows 9x platform, the uninstalling process is even worse that SystemWorks was unable to fully uninstall Antivirus program and I had to boot into safe mode bypassing the VxD driver to manually edit the registry and delete the program.

All this not to mention how much system resource SystemWorks hogs. Symantec's software used to be great, but they are not anymore. If you need a Firewall, get ZoneAlarm. Windows comes
with scan disk and defrag. If you want a better defrag utility, check out Diskkeeper. For anti-virus, use TrendMicro's PC-Clinin, or Central Command's AVP, both are simple and use little system resources. None of these software will cripple your system like Norton's.

I have used Norton Utilities for many years, and have always been satisfied with the performance and reliability. That's why I am dismayed at having to write this review which is so critical of them.

My live-update subscription had expired, so I decided to buy the latest full version and install it. After all, the price seemed reasonable enough.

Oh how I wish I had never done so. I was instructed to remove the older version first before installing the new, which I did using the Symantec uninstall routine. I restarted my computer, and began what I thought would be a quick and trouble free installation of Systemworks 2002 Pro.

I was stopped dead in my tracks because the new version informed me that I was still running an older version. Once again, I went into the uninstall routine, and again restarted the computer.

Nothing I did would allow me to install the new version. Eventually, I learned from the Symantec web site that there were separate uninstall routines (including a 1 hour registry editing session) that would be necessary before I could install the new version. (Note to Symantec... I had to use McAfee Uninstaller to get rid of the leftover Symantec files.)

Live support does not exist. The only available means of contact from Symantec was an e-mailed form letter giving me information that I already had, and it took two days for the response to get to me. I am not a novice user. If I were, I would have had to bring the system to someone else because Symantec really blew it on this one. After nearly six hours of working on the system, I finally got the product to work as it should.

The product does everything it purports to do. The virus protection is still one of the most comprehensive in the industry. The utilities are helpful, and I still think that Norton Systemworks should be mandatory on all computers because once you get it working, there is nothing better.

If you are doing a new installation on a computer that does not already have Systemworks, by all means, buy the product and install it. It's problem free, and the product will work well.

If upgrading, remember this is not easy for a novice or casual user. If you already have an earlier version of Systemworks on your computer, DO NOT UPGRADE to Systemworks 2002 under any circumstances. Pay the online fee to keep your virus protection, and keep what you have. If you are proficient in working with the Windows Registry and have about three or four spare hours (for frustration), go ahead and upgrade but don't say you weren't warned.


This guy is not a newbie by any means and is very experienced with Symantec products. Looks like what we need to find is an uninstaller. On my systems I don't have the patience for this crap....I'd wipe and reinstall...get it the hell out of there.

Hi tinylittle - try running Symantec's SymClean utility. Hopefully it will clean up your PC for you.