Ashampoo UnInstaller 12 12.00.12

Overview

Ashampoo is a strong competitor in the software industry, and a program like UnInstaller couldn’t be missing from its product catalog. Ashampoo UnInstaller is an easy to use tool that will efficiently remove any unwanted programs and delete every single trace they left during the time they were used. The program can easily achieve this, since it monitors all installed programs and the changes they make to the system and registry. It also scans for orphaned files that have been left due to incomplete or faulty previous uninstallations. Let’s take a closer look at this piece of software.

Installation

If you have installed any Ashampoo product before, then you are familiar with the installation process and won’t have a hard time with it at all. Ashampoo first timers shouldn’t be intimidated either, since the setup instructions are very clear and simple. After launching the installer, you can visit the system requirements page by clicking on the “Show System Requirements” button at the bottom left corner. A few steps afterwards you will be asked if you want to perform Express or Custom Installation. Express Installation includes everything: Desktop shortcuts, Program updates, as well as the MyAshampoo Toolbar. It will also set MyAshampoo web search as the homepage and default search. In Custom Installation you can choose yourself which of these you want to include or not in the installation.

Supported operating systems are Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8 and 10 (32 & 64-bit editions supported).

Interface

The first thing you’ll see when you run the program is a window that will let you pick a theme for the program. After doing so, the main program will appear. It is filled with nice graphics and fonts, maintaining simplicity and organization in the interface.

The main window is split into 5 tabs, with different features in each one. The first tab, Overview, has a summary of the program’s most basic functions: Uninstall, Install, Snapshots and Monitoring. Clicking any of those will take you to the appropriate section of the program. The last one icon, Monitoring, can be activated or deactivated. In the same tab you can also import log files or see a list of all the recent installations that took place. The second tab is Installations, where you can uninstall programs from a list with all the software installed. You can also browse for executables and install them using Ashampoo UnInstaller, which will then monitor all changes made by that program. The third tab is where the log files are kept, allowing you to check them any time you want. The fourth tab, Snapshots, allows you to create and compare system snapshots. The last tab contains extra tools used to maintain your computer in good health, such as a drive and registry cleaner, as well as other miscellaneous tools like a file wiper and a duplicate finder tool.

Pros

Normally, when you uninstall a program, only the core files are deleted and many unneeded files are left in your drive. UnInstaller’s monitoring feature keeps track of any changes made by installed software so that when they are uninstalled, all the files and information associated with them will be gone too. If you don’t want to have this feature activated all the time, you can keep it deactivated. If you want to monitor individual programs, just right click on the setup file of the program you want to install and choose “Install with Ashampoo UnInstaller”, which will monitor the changes made only by this program.

Ashampoo UnInstaller can uninstall multiple programs in a row, even nested setups and web-based installations.

You can also scan your hard drive for leftovers from previous installations and let the program automatically delete them.

There are many additional tools included that you can use to clean and maintain your computer, such as drive cleaner, registry optimizer, defragmentation tool, undeleter, file wiper, duplicate finder and others.

Cons

While installing a program, UnInstaller has to take a snapshot of the whole drive before and after installation in order to monitor the changes made while using that particular software. The disadvantage here is that this lengthens the installation process by a little bit.

Alternatives

There are many software for managing and removing installed programs, with the most popular ones being Revo Uninstaller (Free, Pro), IOBit Uninstaller (free), GeekUninstaller (free) and Uninstall Tool (paid). They are not as thorough as Ashampoo UnInstaller and lack many of its features.

Conclusion

It is a splendid program and with it you can rest assure that your drive stays clean from any unwanted files and data that is left after the removal of applications. It is a five star program that deserves a spot in your list of permanently installed programs.