Can't Install LabVIEW (messed up uninstallation of previous version)

[JonD239]

Hey everyone,

I can't install LabVIEW 2014. The first time I tried, it placed all the files into the file system but LabVIEW wouldn't start. Now, when I run the installer, it doesn't even try to install, instead leaving me with an "Installation Complete" message on the main window and a new window that says that it couldn't complete the licensing step.

This is entirely my own fault, and I freely admit this. I screwed up downgrading from LabVIEW 2016 by deleting files from the filesystem directly rather than running the uninstaller (which I couldn't find until *after* I deleted files from the filesystem). In a poor attempt to get back to a clean state, I deleted National Instruments entries from the registry. This didn't help. I have no backups. Truly, I am my own worst enemy here.

Is there any way I can repair my system without reinstalling the operating system? I'd rather not have to reinstall all of my other software just because I was an idiot with this software.

[udka]

Couple of things to try:

-Try uninstalling and/or repair using steps in this: http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/AC6ED75D3D93375686256E8E00245F0D?OpenDocument

-Try Force reinstall using steps in this : http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/ADD22E807D5A12AD862579EC00760F79

- Try to fix registry key etc from steps in this link : http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/8703592D07C91AD586256B44000248C6

[JonD239]

---

@udka wrote:

Couple of things to try:

-Try uninstalling and/or repair using steps in this: http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/AC6ED75D3D93375686256E8E00245F0D?OpenDocument

-Try Force reinstall using steps in this : http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/ADD22E807D5A12AD862579EC00760F79

- Try to fix registry key etc from steps in this link : http://digital.ni.com/public.nsf/allkb/8703592D07C91AD586256B44000248C6

---

Thank you! That was very helpful. I've given you kudos.

The first method didn't work because the uninstaller was deleted along with the rest of the files. The second one seems like it worked -- it installed files to the appropriate locations and I can start up LabVIEW 2014. I haven't tried anything beyond starting it up, though, so I'm going to hold off on accepting your answer as the solution for a little while until I verify that things are fixed.

I should also point out that the second method you listed does *not* work on the LabVIEW 2016 bundle I tried (EDIT: Specifically, the LabVIEW MyRIO Bundle 2016) -- /reinstall is an invalid flag for that installer. I'm not sure if that's relevant for pure LabVIEW 2016 or not.

I'll post another update in the next couple of days letting you know how things have gone. Thanks again for your help!

[JonD239 · Accepted solution]

Alright, I've finally figured it out. My solution was a little convoluted, but here it is:

Using the troubleshooting tool in udka's third link, I "uninstalled" the "NI Uninstaller". Then, using the trick in udka's second link, I forced a reinstallation of LabVIEW 2016; this reinstalled the NI Uninstaller, which I couldn't find a direct download for.

Now that I had the NI Uninstaller, I followed the directions on this NI Support page to tell the NI Uninstaller to uninstall everything. This took about an hour, and it failed on a few 2016 tools. Specifically, the command I used was:

uninst.exe /qb /x all

Now that everything was properly uninstalled, I was able to reinstall LabVIEW 2014 and several other modules without trouble. The only problem I've had so far was with the VI Package Manager from JKI. I was easily able to uninstall and then reinstall it using JKI's installer.

I'm sorry it took me so long to respond! I was initially trying to clean things up using just the troubleshooting tool in udka's third link. Unfortunately, the tool only lets you clean up one program at a time, and there were hundreds of listings for National Instruments. Each one takes a couple of minutes, and so I had given up for a while. Now things seem to be back on track.

Again, thank you udka for your help! I don't think I could have done it without you. I'd give you more kudos if I could.