How To Fix A Screwed Up Uninstall?

So I tried this software on the recommendation of a friend.
https://cdburnerxp.se/

The burner worked exactly as needed. But a piece of software slipped by me, and I installed it by mistake.

It was Sergurazo Antivirus lite. I tried to uninstall it several times, but it wouldn't go away. With or without reboot, I deleted the entire cd burner software folder in the programs folder in frustration. I'm thinking I messed up big time, so how do I get it off of the software list in the control panel?

Iran an Avast boot time virus scan after, nothing was found.

 

Wise Program Uninstaller has a forced uninstall option that will scan for and remove fragments/files/folders leftover from failed uninstalls. Uninstallers often leave crap behind so it's a good tool that I use it as my go-to uninstaller.

 

Another option is to use a system restore point (I think that's the term) to bring the computer back to the point before the install. But, I believe that will also revert your files (my documents, for example) to what they were at that time.

 

No, system restore does not touch personal files and only partially restores system files. To revert a computer back to an earlier state you use a system imaging program. Worth trying though.

 

I definitely need to learn more about recovery. I think I got it, I found where the problem program was in the program files (x86), I deleted it and used the Wise program to clean up the registry. I don't think it was malware per se, they didn't spend any effort to make it easy to remove.

 

The system restore takes a long time. So, if you need your computer, do it overnight.

 

The only truly effective recovery method is by imaging your system, ideally every time system changes are about to be implemented, or at least on a regular basis, such as monthly. When you restore a system image your Windows system is reverted, in every respect, to it's state at the time the image was created. As well as allowing users to back out of system, app, or self inflicted problems, this is also the ultimate AV. There are several free imaging systems available.

 

There must be a counter somewhere that shows how many times somebody's life and limb have been saved by being able to restore a system image. Something like those a-v counters in the avs that count off the malware blocks is what I would like to see . I have my share of restores in the count, and I am still trying to get over the stress of operating a PC before imaging was a thing...

 

Yet there is I believe, a downside to imaging - that feeling that your system, your data, even you are completely bombproof. Over the years I have definitely become a lot less rigorous in preparing to implement system changes, with the predictable consequence that the change sometimes fails, or at least does not deliver the expected results, and results in me needing to restore an image before having to have a rethink and another go. On my computers that doesn't really matter that much because it is easily rectified, but I suspect it has also undermined the disciplined approach to real life problem solving I always had to adopt during my career.

 

Well, I have resolved this dilemma by picking up the pace adopting poor practices other than backup. So, in the end, my backups are worthless . I still have to hope and pray and find reasons to be disciplined. JK o/c, but problem is I truly am still hooked on trying software at Bitsdujour and other giveaway sites, leaving me with that awkward, "I wonder if I have installed 100 malware programs over the last 3 days" feeling.

And then there is the other side of the coin. This condition unfortunately can appear in the form of 3 cleaners too. That one has me now, and I can't explain why I feel the need to run them 3 or 4 times a day each these days. Maybe it's a compensation device for not running one enough along the way. I even have a registry app now, and I actually like this one. Comes bundled with some nice tools, like recording installations and ability to uninstall and then also record and compare registry states. Also does standard cleaning. Best feature is about 50 or so registry settings that are really very nice to have at the fingertips...kind of like the old TweakUI from MS.

Seriously, I have alot of security on the system, and it's layered nicely, so I don't think I have any malware. The security is what really keeps me on my toes, because I do take a little bit of a risk here and there with the software . Maybe the extra challenge is the reason I never left W7.

Still, the old days with a 10 GB drive with its guts falling out, no backup, and no money to have the data transferred or to buy a new one. Oh, that sound the drives used to make when they were losing their grip so to speak . There were some tense times for me with computers along the way. Definitely solutions were on a much deeper level in back then (nineties)...

 

Boredom plays a part too. I take risks with my systems always feeling I can recover whatever. Probably be a good thing if a recovery failed one of these days and caused me real problems. But it won't of course ....