Classic Shell: Forum

When I try to uninstall using Windows uninstaller says "This installation package could not be opened. Contact the application vendor to verify that this is a valid Windows Installer package."

So I tried using the classic shell installer to update and then uninstall. Doesn't work either, it says "The older version of classic shell cannot be removed. Contact your technical support group"

I made sure that classic shell wasn't actually running before trying this (ending task in task manager).

I did a bit of browsing on the forums, but the problem most people seem to have with uninstalling is a missing msi file, which is not the case here. It just says that it's an invalid windows installer package.

What can I do to uninstall?

You need to run the installer for the version you currently have. Then choose the "Remove" option.

You can find the installer for older versions of Classic Shell 3 here:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/classicshell/files/

And for Classic Shell 4 here:
http://www.classicshell.net/downloads/

Download the installer for the exact version you have installed.

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I am a Windows enthusiast and helped a little with Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

So I've got 3.6.8 installed. Just downloaded the installer for it, tried running it and I still get the error message saying that it couldn't be opened and to check with the vendor to see whether it was a valid windows installer package.

What is the exact message that you get? A screenshot would be helpful.

When I try to open the installer (the 3.6.8 version), it says "This installation package could not be opened. Contact the application vendor to verify that this is a valid Windows Installer package." So I can't even open the 3.6.8 installer.




I can open the 4.0.2 but I can't get past the bit where it says unable to remove the old version of classic shell.





edit: Also not sure if relevant, but since updating to the 3.6.8 version a while back, my start menu looks like this:

I think your 3.6.8 download may be corrupt because Sourceforge's servers suck and truncate the download halfway through. Try choosing a different download mirror from Sourceforge and download 3.6.8's installer again. That should allow you to remove 3.6.8. The $Menu issue happens when the INI file, C:\Program Files\Classic Shell\StartMenuL10N.ini, which stores language strings is damaged. Removing 3.6.8 and updating to the latest 4.x release should fix all problems.

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I am a Windows enthusiast and helped a little with Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

Ok, so it turns out I was downloading the wrong file apparently? (idk I was downloading the 3.6.8, this time I tried the 3.6.8-ru. Not sure what the difference is). And when I try installing it, it gives me a different error message. I did try different mirrors with the 3.6.8 installer though, I still get that invalid installer message.

This is what it says trying to open the 3.6.8-ru installer;



But, this just goes back to the problem of trying to uninstall through windows add/remove programs;






edit: I just tried copying the same installer over onto my pc, and running it (i'm having problems on my laptop, not my pc) and it's working fine, I don't get that invalid installer error. Could it be an issue with Windows 8.1?

3.6.8-ru is the Russian installer. Btw, have you been using any cleanup tool such as CCleaner or any automatic maintenance software to clean files on your PC? It may have deleted the Classic Shell installer MSI from C:\Windows\Installer.

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Links to some general topics:

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I am a Windows enthusiast and helped a little with Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

hmmm.. that's odd. I'm not Russian, nor do I speak Russian, so I'm pretty sure I didn't choose the Russian installer when I first installed classic shell. Any reason as to why it's saying that?

No I don't have any cleanup tools installed, and I don't think I ever have. It doesn't give me any error messages about missing files though, just the ones I posted before.

Thanks for bearing with the installer errors so far. I hope to help you get this issue resolved if possible. The English 3.6.8 installer is here: http://garr.dl.sourceforge.net/project/ ... _3_6_8.exe

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Links to some general topics:

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I am a Windows enthusiast and helped a little with Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

yeah, I've tried both the Russian and the english installer.

The english installer gives me that invalid package error, whilst the Russian one Windows seems to recognise as being installed already, though I can't run either one.

Can it be that your anti-virus is blocking the installer? The installer supports extracting the MSI file from it which you can run directly. Depending on whether you Windows version is 32-bit or 64-bit, you can try this at the Run dialog (be sure to write the full path to the EXE installer, followed by the correct extract argument):

...\ClassicShellSetup_3_6_8.exe extract32 or ..\ClassicShellSetup_3_6_8.exe extract64

The MSI file will be extracted to the same folder as the installer after you run the installer with the extract32 or 64 argument. Then right click the MSI and choose "Uninstall".

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Links to some general topics:

● Compare Start Menus

● Read the Search box usage guide.

I am a Windows enthusiast and helped a little with Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

Only anti-virus i've got installed is Windows defender - doesn't show up in the history for quarantined items.
Just tried the uninstall using Run, still get the invalid package error

The Mediafire link for versions 3.9.0 and newer does not contain any files and I need version 4.0.0

@jxl0928: Are you saying this link doesn't work for you? https://classicshell.mediafire.com/fold ... 92/Archive
If so, try a direct link to 4.0.0: http://classicshell.mediafire.com/downl ... _4_0_0.exe

@cantuninstallhelp11: Looks like something is serious screwy with your installation of version 3.6.8. If extracting the MSI and then running it doesn't help, I think the only possible solution is to manually wipe out the installation from the registry and install again. Are you using a 32-bit or 64-bit Windows?

Ok, how would I go about doing that?
I'm using 64bit Windows

OK, let's try this.
1) Rename the folder in "C:\Program Files\Classic Shell" to "_Classic Shell" and reboot.
2) Open regedit and locate the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Installer\Products\B0951AEFA045CF149AC56644398CA212. Rename it to _B0951AEFA045CF149AC56644398CA212.
3) Run the installer for version 3.6.8 again. It should install successfully.
4) Run the installer again, and choose Remove.
5) Reboot, then delete the "_Classic Shell" folder.
6) Install the new version

If at step #3 the installer fails to run, find the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{FEA1590B-540A-41FC-A95C-664493C82A21} and rename it to _{FEA1590B-540A-41FC-A95C-664493C82A21}, then try the installer again

Thankyou!! It worked no problems