I have W10 10 Home 64-bit. CPU = Intel Core i7 2600K @ 3.40GHz with 8 Gb RAM.
About a month ago my computer crashed and the backup did not work so I restored W10. I had been using an old version of MS Office but could not find the licence key. So, I downloaded WPS Office. This was OK but they kept contacting me to upgrade, which was annoying.
Then I found my MS Office licence key and restored it. However, WPS kept taking over from MS Office Word and Excel when I loaded files.
I decided to uninstall WPS and used IOBIT Uninstaller. However, although I cannot find WPS on my machine, it is still there and still takes over from MS Office. There are lots of threads about problems uninstalling this software and I am not sure if I should post my query under Malware.
Your help will be much appreciated and I apologise in advance if I have posted in the wrong place.
Thank you.
Tech Support Guy System Info Utility version 1.0.0.9
OS Version: Microsoft Windows 10 Home, 64 bit, Build 18363, Installed 20200529152157.000000+060
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-2600K CPU @ 3.40GHz, Intel64 Family 6 Model 42 Stepping 7, CPU Count: 8
Total Physical RAM: 8 GB
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti, 1024 MB
Hard Drives: C: 222 GB (172 GB Free); D: 0 GB (0 GB Free); E: 931 GB (870 GB Free); I: 931 GB (919 GB Free); J: 0 GB (0 GB Free);
Motherboard: ASUSTeK Computer INC. P8Z68-V LE, ver Rev X.0x, s/n MT7017K26203478
System: American Megatrends Inc., ver ALASKA - 1072009, s/n System Serial Number
Antivirus: Windows Defender, Disabled
Right-click any MS office file and try " Open with " option. I think there is a box for you to set this as the default action. Also, keep in mind that you can use Libre office for MS office files. It is free and open source and won't nag you with upgrade banners.
Right-click the file you wish to use Word as the default program for.
[*]Select Open With from the options, then click Choose Another App.
[*]Remember to select the box beside 'Always use this app to open this file type.'
[*]Choose Word if you can see it in the available options. If you do not see it, click More Apps. Click OK as the default program for the file type you chose.
Thank you very much. JKLE
This is the solution.
However, it does not get rid of WPS from my machine.
Thanks also to bassfisher6522
who makes a valid point about IOBIT. I have always used Revo in the past. I should not have changed after the crash of my pc.
Now I will revert to Revo but can I bother you for advice about removing WPS altogether, since I cannot see it on my machine - how will Revo identify it? IOBIT does not identify it any longer.
I decided to uninstall WPS and used IOBIT Uninstaller. However, although I cannot find WPS on my machine, it is still there and still takes over from MS Office
IOBit is known to be malware itself. I would use Revo Uninstaller instead....it's free. Then run Malwarebytes just to rule out any malware or suspicious/malicious background nasty's.
I had replaced Iobit with Revo etc., as advised and this is the log you asked me to post. Thanks!
====================
I got "The submitted message is too long to be processed. Please shorten it" so I saved the file as 'Systemlook123'. I don't know if it will travel.
I agree with bassfisher6522. There are way too many registry entries, files and folders that still exist so I would recommend as well that it would be best to reinstall the same version of the software and then uninstall it using Revo.
If necessary, I can create a registry fix to remove anything left over after that but it would be very tedious to go through the current report and do that. There are however some folders that can be deleted but it's best to reinstall and uninstall first.
Once you've done that please reboot the computer and run SystemLook again with the same script as last time.
There are many with only wps and those wouldn't come up if we narrowed the search. Some won't really be necessary to delete. We can start with a basic regfix that will remove many of the entries and then see what's left.
I'm attaching a RegFix.zip file. Please unzip it (extract the contents) and double-click the RegFix.reg file to run it. Allow it through UAC if prompted and allow it to merge with the registry.
The narrowing down is actually just finding more things that didn't turn up with just wps so it's getting worse. There are far too many entries to to through manually.
@digga
im not going to give advice on how to get rid of all them entries as my way of doing it is extreme,but will wipe ALL traces of said software.I will let Cookiegal and bassfisher deal with that as they must use a different program to do so.In my honest opinion though,by looking at the last 2 systemlook scans you uploaded i would remove them all,reboot and see what happens.I will just monitor the thread for now.
I don't think it's wise to remove all of those entries either unless you know what you're doing. In some cases it's only the value data that needs to be removed and not the key itself so you could run into trouble if you start deleting everything.
I don't think it's wise to remove all of those entries either unless you know what you're doing. In some cases it's on the value data that needs to be removed and not the key itself so you could run into trouble if you start deleting everything.
Although i disagree with your prognosis,i can safely say with the utmost certainty that it is safe to delete them keys whether being value data,dwords,regdwords,binary values....etc..However,as you say "As long as you know what your doing".
By narrowing the search,you are getting the "exact results" your looking for.
In his scan for "Kingsoft",the only results that came up were for wps office.
Same with the scan for wps office.
I would delete the results,and reboot .Atleast your not taking the risk of deleting the wrong key.You know you only deleting the software related keys.
If it works,great,if not,then do a rescan of just "wps".
I find that just scan for a partial name could bring up anything and to me makes things more difficult.
I will not argue your point though cookiegal,but as this only my opinion as we all may have a different way of doing things.
I apologize if it sounds like im questioning your tech skills.I guess im just seeing it differently,or would just go about it differently,or i am misinterpreting you.
There is a simple way to fix it. If possible system restore to a point before the installation of WPS ( after taking a proper backup). WPS was nice software. I had no idea they changed to what I am hearing about it in this topic.
Right. So there is an Excel representation. Why it is not showing up on your list when Word does ? Can you post a full-screen screenshot when you cannot find Excel to open with ? I guess that option there but not visible easily considering Excel shows up instantly on search box and Start menu.
Sorry for delay. I had to learn about screenshots!! There's probably an easier way than the one I used! I hope this is OK. It did not show all options because you have to scroll down through them. But I'm certain Excel is not there and MS Office, as you will see, is the default option for opening my spreadsheets.
Ok. Are you planning to install WPS again and then remove it ? If yes, that might get you out of this. Do you have many programs installed which cannot be touched ? If not, use the Windows DVD/USB and reset Windows. Your files will be safe but Windows will become a fresh copy. You can then install required programs and get rid of the current issue.
As always, the thumb rule is to take backups before attempting this. All restore points will be gone.
Ok. Are you planning to install WPS again and then remove it ? If yes, that might get you out of this. Do you have many programs installed which cannot be touched ? If not, use the Windows DVD/USB and reset Windows. Your files will be safe but Windows will become a fresh copy. You can then install required programs and get rid of the current issue.
As always, the thumb rule is to take backups before attempting this. All restore points will be gone.
I have already reinstalled WPS and removed it. I was thinking there may be some merit in reinstalling WPS again - but with Iobit Uninstaller. Iobit has a download monitor meant to make uninstalling easier and more thorough. I know it did not work properly, thus causing my main problem, but I noticed at the time that it did not do its customary scan after uninstalling (as Revo does) and, although I thought nothing of it, at the time, maybe that is the root cause. Alternatively, WPS with a differerent uninstaller - Geek, Ccleaner etc. However, I do not want to do anything without Cookiegal's knowledge, after all the hard work and tons of patience shown towards me.
Also, this all started after my pc crashed and the backup failed. I'd rather not go through reinstalling W10 - I had to start with a very old version and go through all the updates, which took days, often failing on an update and starting again etc. etc. Thank you.
Save the installer file to your desktop and then double-click the file to install it.
Once installed open Malwarebytes then click on the gear in the upper right corner to go to Settings. Then click on the Security tab and under scan options make sure these are selected:
Scan for rootkits
Scan within archives
Use artificial intelligence……
Then under potentially unwanted items make sure both PUPs and PUMs are set to Always (Recommended).
Click on the word Free in the upper left corner to return to the Dashboard (the main interface)then click on the blue "Scan Now" button to start the scan.
Quarantine all items found.
Click on View Report.
Double-click to open the report then click on Export and select "copy to clipboard" then paste the report here please.
A forum community dedicated to tech experts and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about articles, computer security, Mac, Microsoft, Linux, hardware, networking, gaming, reviews, accessories, and more!