How to Uninstall, and When You Can't Uninstall Windows 7 SP1
Getting Windows 7 SP1 (Service Pack 1) is a good idea because it comes with security updates, stability updates, and performance updates. If you got SP1 but now you want to get rid of it, you can easily uninstall the service pack. To uninstall SP1 using Programs and Features you have to follow these steps:
You can also uninstall Service Pack 1 from the Command Prompt. Here’s what you have to do:
There are two situations when you will not be able to uninstall SP1. If your Windows 7 operating system came with SP1 preinstalled, you will not be able to uninstall it. You can uninstall SP1 only if you were the one who installed the service pack; if the OEM you got your PC from preinstalled SP1, you won’t be able to uninstall the service pack.
If you needed some disk space and you did a bit of 'diskkeeping', and in the process you deleted the service pack backup files, you won’t be able to uninstall the service pack either. With the built-in Disk Cleanup tool you can easily free up some hard drive space.
“After installing Windows 7 SP1, you can remove the service pack installation files by running Disk Cleanup and clicking on the "Clean up system files" button and checking “Service Pack Backup Files” to free up space,” explained Brandon LeBlanc, Windows Communications Manager at Microsoft. “We recommend only doing this a few weeks after installing Windows 7 SP1. Please note that once you do this you will be unable to remove Windows 7 SP1 from your PC.”
- Access Programs and Features by clicking the Start button (Windows orb) -> clicking Control Panel -> clicking Programs -> then clicking Programs and Features.
- View all the updates you've intalled so far by clicking View installed updates.
- Select Service Pack for Microsoft Windows and click Uninstall.
You can also uninstall Service Pack 1 from the Command Prompt. Here’s what you have to do:
- Type Command Prompt in the search box after clicking the Start button (Windows orb).
- Right click Command Prompt -> click Run as administrator -> confirm or type in the password if prompted for one.
- Type in wusa.exe /uninstall /kb:976932 and then press Enter.
There are two situations when you will not be able to uninstall SP1. If your Windows 7 operating system came with SP1 preinstalled, you will not be able to uninstall it. You can uninstall SP1 only if you were the one who installed the service pack; if the OEM you got your PC from preinstalled SP1, you won’t be able to uninstall the service pack.
If you needed some disk space and you did a bit of 'diskkeeping', and in the process you deleted the service pack backup files, you won’t be able to uninstall the service pack either. With the built-in Disk Cleanup tool you can easily free up some hard drive space.
“After installing Windows 7 SP1, you can remove the service pack installation files by running Disk Cleanup and clicking on the "Clean up system files" button and checking “Service Pack Backup Files” to free up space,” explained Brandon LeBlanc, Windows Communications Manager at Microsoft. “We recommend only doing this a few weeks after installing Windows 7 SP1. Please note that once you do this you will be unable to remove Windows 7 SP1 from your PC.”
