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Remove Internet Explorer

Posted August 2002 by Steve Sinchak

This tweak allows for the removal of Internet Explorer from Windows XP.  In order to do so you will need a system with a second operating system installed (i.e. Windows 98, Linux, etc).  My system is dual-booted with Windows 98 Second Edition and Windows XP Home Edition.  Note: Both partitions must be formated with FAT32 for this tweak to work.

Steps:

  1. In order to remove Internet Explorer from Windows XP without the Windows File Protection kicking in and restoring the files I am trying to delete, I booted into Windows 98 by selecting Windows 98 from the boot menu.
  2. Once Windows 98 was booted I used windows explorer to browse to the drive where I installed Windows XP.  In my case I double click the E: drive in Windows explorer, then Program Files, then Internet Explorer.
  3. Select all the files in the directory Internet Explorer and delete them.
  4. Reboot the computer into Windows XP.
  5. Internet Explorer will be gone.

This tweak could also be performed using Linux or DOS.  But not the version of DOS that comes with Windows XP.  Do not remove Internet Explorer if any of the applications you use require it to run.  Furthermore, you will no longer be able to use the Windows Update feature, but you can download the patches individually.

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