Any way to delete the bloatware, etc. without a clean install?

I have recently been reading about the clean installs of Vista, etc.

Was just curious if there was anyway to delete and remove the bloatware, etc. without a clean install.

I will be purchasing a T400 with Business-64 in about 2 weeks (when Windows 7 Eligible Upgrade is available) and just curious before I get my laptop in hand. I would like it to run at top performance, I guess I could do a clean install but do not have a 64-bit upgrade disk and have a feeling I would somehow mess up downloading the drivers or something.

 

Uninstalling all the bloatware is about as close as you can get, but it won't be as "clean" as a clean install.

 

I've used Revo Uninstaller to clear away bloatware, with good results.

 

I just go to the control panel and uninstall the applications I did not want. I don't use much of the TV software (just Power Manager, Active Protection, and Fingerprint Reader) so I uninstalled most of that. My T400 runs top notch to boot.

 

MidnightSun's suggestion of Revo Uninstaller is a good one. Another possible option is PC DeCrapifier.

Some programs are fully uninstallable as well through Add/Remove programs.

 

I was going to do a clean install until I found out we can't because we don't get a Vista license. The Restore disks force you to reinstall the bloat.
I uninstalled almost all of the Thinkadvantage stuff and a bunch of other applications.
The big downside of not doing a clean install is that there will still be Services and Msconfig startup programs/items running that normally wouldn't be running if you did a clean install. You will need to spend some time figuring out which Services and running/start-up applications to stop.
It took me 3 factory Recovery reinstalls because things were getting messed up as I was tweakng my system. One quirk was the ATI Catalyst Control center got corrupted and would not work after I installed an upgrade from the ATI website.

 

Use Revo Uninstaller, not the control panel.

 

Thank you for the tips guys, seems just less of a hassle compared to a clean install. Will definitely look into it.

 

Just tried Revo uninstaller. Gave me this Event Viewer error 8194 during an uninstall.

Volume Shadow Copy Service error: Unexpected error querying for the IVssWriterCallback interface. hr = 0x80070005. This is often caused by incorrect security settings in either the writer or requestor process.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc734235.aspx

 

What program was that? What level of uninstall did you choose? Avoid uninstalling that one for now, and if you really don't need it, disable it through msconfig.

 

I did a full recovery then choose the programs that I want to install, such as thinkpad utilities, i would untick for example the nor*** antivirus etc. I have a X61 dunno if its any different with yours.

Then for programs such as thinkpad security etc, i have disabled them through control panel > start ups ..

 

If you can locate a Vista upgrade disc (eBay, Amazon, etc.), you can easily do a clean install following this guide.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=120228

 

The program was Excel to Pdf Converter.
http://www.soft82.com/download/windows/excel-to-pdf-convertor/

I used Level 4, the highest to uninstall.

The program was uninstalled correctly as far as I can tell.
The error didn't seem to effect or stop Revo Uninstaller from working.

I don't need the Excel to Pdf program. I just downloaded yesterday as a trial.

 

That's fine, I sometimes get random errors as well, that level 4 cleans the windows files which is probably the cause. You're good to go though

 

Just use Revo Uninstaller, the Thinkpads don't come with that much bloatware. I uninstalled the MS Office Trial and I think that was about it. Maybe one or two other things. It's not a huge deal.

 

If the services aren't even running but there are still all these extra programs on your computer. Will that slow it down?

 

No. As long as the application and/or service is not running, or able to run/start on it's own without your control, then there is no resource issue.

No need to uninstall anything except to free up disk space.

But leaving unwanted/unneeded programs installed can create a cluttered/messy feeling. Like living in a house with junk/boxes scattered all over the house.