You have made the decision to uninstall Microsoft Teams from your Windows 10 computer. Perhaps you have discovered a superior option or you do not use it often. Regardless of the cause, I am here to assist you with completely removing Microsoft Teams from your Windows 10 system.
Before we dive into the steps, it’s important to note that Microsoft Teams is integrated into the Windows 10 operating system and is considered a core application. This means that it cannot be uninstalled using the traditional methods you would use for other applications. But fret not, I’ve got a workaround that will get the job done.
Step 1: Close Microsoft Teams
The first step is to ensure that Microsoft Teams is not running in the background. Right-click on the Teams icon in the system tray, located in the bottom-right corner of your screen, and select “Close” or “Quit”.
Step 2: Uninstall Microsoft Teams
Now that Microsoft Teams is closed, we can proceed with the uninstallation process. Press the Windows key + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialog box, then type “Control Panel” and hit Enter. This will open the Control Panel window.
In the Control Panel, click on “Programs” and then “Programs and Features”. This will display a list of all the installed programs on your computer.
Scroll through the list until you find “Microsoft Teams”, then right-click on it and select “Uninstall”. Follow the on-screen prompts to complete the uninstallation process.
Step 3: Remove Microsoft Teams Files and Registry Entries
Even though you have uninstalled Microsoft Teams, there might still be some leftover files and registry entries on your system. To ensure a clean removal, we need to manually delete these.
First, open a File Explorer window by pressing the Windows key + E on your keyboard. Navigate to the following directory:
C:\Users\{YourUsername}\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Teams
Delete all the files and folders in this directory. If a file or folder cannot be deleted, it is likely in use by another process. In that case, you can skip it and move on to the next one.
Next, press the Windows key + R again to open the Run dialog box. This time, type “regedit” and hit Enter. This will open the Registry Editor.
In the Registry Editor, navigate to the following location:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Teams
Right-click on the “Teams” folder and select “Delete”. Confirm the deletion when prompted.
Finally, navigate to the following location:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\Teams
Again, right-click on the “Teams” folder and select “Delete”. Confirm the deletion when prompted.
Conclusion
Congratulations! You have successfully removed Microsoft Teams from your Windows 10 machine. Remember, this workaround is specific to Microsoft Teams and may not apply to other core applications. Always exercise caution when modifying your system files and registry entries.
Now that you are Microsoft Teams-free, you can explore other collaboration tools or simply enjoy a less cluttered desktop. Happy computing!