Manually uninstalling IBM HTTP Server


+
Search Tips   |   Advanced Search

 

Overview

Uninstall IBM HTTP Server by running the operating system's uninstaller program and performing some manual steps to remove log files and registry entries. Such registry entries can prevent we from reinstalling the product into the original directory. If we are not planning to reinstall, we do not have to uninstall manually.

Use the installRegistryUtils command to examine the installation locations for all installed IBM HTTP Server products. Perform the following procedure to produce a clean system.

 

Before we begin

Determine the installation root directory for the product so that we remove the correct product and produce a clean system. Before we start the uninstall procedure, save any files we have modified under...

HTTPServer_root
HTTPServer_root/conf
HTTPServer_root/bin

...including...

httpd.conf
admin.conf
configuration files
script files
password files
web documents

 

Procedure

  1. Log on as the same user ID that installed the product.

  2. Verify that the instances of IBM HTTP Server and IBM HTTP Server
    administration server being removed are stopped.

  3. Issue the uninstall command. If we have already run the uninstaller program or if we cannot run the uninstaller program, skip this step.

    [AIX] [HP-UX] [Linux] [Solaris] 

        HTTPServer_root/uninstall/uninstall

    [Windows] 

        HTTPServer_root/uninstall/uninstall.exe

    The Uninstaller wizard begins and displays the Welcome panel. Continue with the uninstall process until it is finished.

  4. The following steps clean up the registries for the case where an uninstall request fails. If the uninstall process completes successfully we should not need to manually perform these steps.

    [AIX]

    1. List IBM HTTP Server components that are installed. enter the following command to search for related packages: 

          lslpp -l| grep -i IHS

      Package names for IBM HTTP Server are: WSIHS61 and WSIHS61LicensingComponent.

      To remove a package,... 

          geninstall -u packagename

      Do not remove packages for IBM HTTP Server products that we are not uninstalling.

    2. Change directories to the /usr/IBM directory, or the equivalent top directory of our install.

    3. Enter the following command to delete the IBM HTTP Server directory: 

          rm -rf HTTPServer

    4. Use the installRegistryUtils command to examine the installation locations for all installed IBM HTTP Server products and remove the products from the install registry that we want to uninstall.

    5. Edit the vpd.properties file. This file is located in the root directory or in the /usr/lib/objrepos directory. Do not delete or rename the vpd.properties file because the InstallShield MultiPlatform (ISMP) program uses it for other products that it installs. If the IBM HTTP Server product that we are uninstalling is the only product with entries in the vpd.properties file, we can delete this file.

    [HP-UX]

    1. Use HP-UX System Administration Manager (SAM) to remove packages.

      1. Start the SAM utility with the /usr/sbin/sam command

      2. Verify that our DISPLAY and TERM environment variables are set properly

      3. Click Software management

      4. Click View installed software

      5. Search for IBM HTTP Server entries in the SD list

      6. Close the SD list

      7. Click Remove local host software

      8. Click any of the following instances that display in the SD Remove List: - IBM HTTP Server

      9. Click Actions > Mark for remove

      10. Click Actions > Remove

      11. Click OK in the Remove analysis dialog box

      12. Click Logs to display real-time removal of selected packages

      13. Click Done when all packages are removed

      14. Exit SAM

      15. Search for the packages to verify their removal

    2. Enter the following command to display the IBM HTTP Server package: 

          swlist | grep IHS
      The package name for IBM HTTP Server is: WSIHS61.

    3. Enter the following command to remove IBM HTTP Server directories in the HTTPServer_rootdirectory: 

          rm -rf HTTPServer_root

    4. Use the installRegistryUtils command to examine the installation locations for all the installed IBM HTTP Server products and remove the products from the install registry that we want to uninstall.

    [Linux]

    1. Search for IBM HTTP Server related packages. Do not remove packages for IBM HTTP Server products that we are not uninstalling.

      Refer to the "Operating system registry keys" topic in the Information center for more information on the package names.

    2. If there are packages to delete, enter the following command to remove any packages for the product that we are uninstalling. 

          rpm -e packagename

      Alternatively, we can enter the following command that will list all the IBM HTTP Server packages and then verify that everything in the list is something we want to delete: 

          rpm -qa | grep IHS

      If there is a problem with package dependencies, we can use the following command to remove the packages: 

          rpm -e packagename --nodeps --justdb

      The nodeps option skips the dependency check. The justdb option updates only the package database, and not the file system. Using only the nodeps option can cause a failure in package removal if there is any mismatch in the dependent file system (files and directories).

    3. enter the following command to remove IBM HTTP Server directories in the HTTPServer_root directory: 

          rm -rf HTTPServer_root

    4. Edit the vpd.properties file. Do not delete or rename the vpd.properties file because the InstallShield MultiPlatform (ISMP) program uses it for other products that it installs. If the IBM HTTP Server product that we are uninstalling is the only product with entries in the vpd.properties file, we can delete this file.

    5. Use the installRegistryUtils command to examine the installation locations for all installed IBM HTTP Server products and remove the products from the install registry that we want to uninstall.

    [Solaris]

    1. Search for IBM HTTP Server related packages. enter the following command to list all the packages for the IBM HTTP Server products: 

          pkginfo | grep IHS

      If no packages appear when using these commands, skip the next step. The resulting list of packages has the following format:

      • application WSIHS61

      • IBM HTTP Server

    2. Change directories to the directory where package information is registered: 

          cd /var/sadm/pkg

    3. Issue the following command to remove any IBM HTTP Server related packages, for example: 

          pkgrm packagename1 packagename2...

      Do not remove packages for IBM HTTP Server products that we are not uninstalling. Issue the following commands from the /var/sadm/pkg directory to search for and remove any IBM HTTP Server product related packages that are registered in the /var/sadm/pkg directory.

      Change directories to the correct directory for IBM HTTP Server products: 

          cd /var/sadm/pkg
    ls |grep IHS|xargs -i pkgrm -n {}

      The package names for IBM HTTP Server are: WSIHS61 and WSIHS61LI. If there is a problem removing the packages, remove the related package directories in the /var/sadm/pkg directory, including the preremove files. For example, remove the following file before issuing the pkgrm -n WSIHS61 command: 

          /var/sadm/pkg/WSIHS61/install/preremove

    4. To remove IBM HTTP Server directories in the HTTPServer_root directory, enter the following command: 

           rm -rf HTTPServer_root

    5. Use the installRegistryUtils command to examine the installation locations for all installed IBM HTTP Server products and remove the products from the install registry that we want to uninstall.

    [Windows]

    1. Log on with Adminstrator privilege to complete the steps for updating the registry.

    2. Verify that we have an Emergency Recovery Disk. Instructions for creating this disk are in the Windows help documentation. This step is a safeguard. This procedure does not require the recovery disk.

    3. Use the regback.exe program from the Windows Resource Kit to back up the registry. This step is a safeguard. This procedure does not require the backup copy of the registry.

    4. Delete product registry entries for the IBM HTTP Server product that you are uninstalling. Edit the Windows system registry by entering the theregedit.exe command from a command prompt.

      CAUTION:

      Edit the Registry carefully. We can make a mistake while using the registry editor to view and edit registry contents. The editor does not warn we of editing errors, which can be extremely dangerous. A corrupt registry can disrupt our system to the point where our only option is to reinstall the Windows operating system.

      1. Press Ctrl-F to search for all instances of HTTP Server to determine whether we should delete each entry. We might not be able to remove all of the entries related to IBM HTTP Server, which is not a problem.

      2. Expand and select keys related to IBM HTTP Server products and IBM HTTP Server Window Services listed below: 

            HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\IBM \HTTP Server\6.1.0.0
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\IBM HTTPServer6.1
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrrentControlSet\Services\IBM HTTPAdministration6.1
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft \Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\IBM HTTP Server 6.1.0.0

        Depending on how we installed the product, the following registry keys that are previously listed are only optionally included: HKLM\...IBM HTTPServer6.1 and HKLM\...IBM HTTPAdministration6.1

        Refer to the topic "Operating system registry keys" in the Information center for a list of Windows registry keys to search for and delete.

      3. Click Edit > Delete from the menu bar for each related key.

      4. Click Yes when asked to confirm deletion of the key.

      5. Click Registry > Exit from the menu bar when we are finished.

      8.

    5. Delete the installation root directory for the product that we are uninstalling.

    6. Open a Windows Explorer window and browse to the C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs directory. If we have an installation of a IBM HTTP Server product, delete the following directory folder: IBM HTTP Server V6.1.

    7. Delete the %WINDIR%\IsUninst.exe file.

    8. Edit the vpd.properties file. The file is located in the installation directory of the operating system, such as the C:\WINNT directory or the C:\windows directory. Do not delete or rename the vpd.properties file because the InstallShield MultiPlatform (ISMP) program uses it for other products that it installs. If the IBM HTTP Server product that we are uninstalling is the only product with entries in the vpd.properties file, we can delete this file.

    9. Use the installRegistryUtils command to examine the installation locations for all installed IBM HTTP Server products and remove the products from the install registry that we want to uninstall.

    10. Manually remove the GSKit entry. Use the following procedure to verify that no other products are registered in GSKit before running the isuninst command:

      1. Click Start> Run and run the regedit command to edit the registry.

      2. Change directories to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\IBM \GSKx\CurrentVersion\REGAPP, where x is the version of GSKit, such as GSK7.

      3. Look for the IBM HTTP Server registered within GSKit. This will be shown as IHS61_time stamp, where time_stamp indicates the time when the IBM HTTP Server was installed.

      4. If the IBM HTTP Server entry is present, we can delete GSKit by entering the following command to invoke the GSKit Uninstaller program: 

            C:\Windows\gsk7BUI.exe IHS6.1_time_stamp

        ...where time_stamp indicates the time when the IBM HTTP Server was installed.

      5. This command removes GSKit registry only for this instance of IBM HTTP Server, but it will not remove GSKit if other applications are still using this GSKit installation.

    11. Restart our machine.

 

Results

This procedure results in removing IBM HTTP Server from our system. There will be no trace of the previously deleted installation. We can reinstall IBM HTTP Server into the same directories after manually uninstalling the product.

 

Related tasks