Unable to Uninstall Exchange server 2016 in a Windows server 2025

BMcclane 0

We have recently performed an in-place upgrade to the Exchange server (Which was running Windows server 2016) to the Windows server 2025. The upgrade went smoothly. We then tried uninstalling the Exchange server role, considering we are entirely into the M365. However, we encountered a problem where the readiness check threw an error, as shown below.

Error:

The following error was generated when "$error.Clear();

      if (Get-Service MpsSvc* | ?{$_.Name -eq 'MpsSvc'})

      {

        Set-Service MpsSvc -StartupType Automatic

        Start-SetupService -ServiceName MpsSvc

      }

    " was run: "Microsoft.PowerShell.Commands.ServiceCommandException: Service 'Windows Defender Firewall (MpsSvc)' cannot be configured due to the following error: Access is denied ---> System.ComponentModel.Win32Exception: Access is denied

The Windows Defender service is running already, and I'm using an enterprise admin account (in AD), which is also a member of the OrganisManagement Group in AD. We need to remove the Exchange server app from the server, and then we can remove the trace of Exchange in AD.

Joan Hua-MSFT 4,040 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2025-01-24T09:02:22.0133333+00:00

Hi @BMcclane

Just wanted to check if the answer shared below helped. If it helped, then would you please "Accept the answer" as it would be helpful to others in the community as well. Warm thanks！

1 answer

Jenne Li-MSFT 1,235 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2025-01-14T06:06:23.4033333+00:00
Hi @BMcclane ，

Thanks for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.

According to your description, when you uninstall the Exchange server role, the readiness check throws an error. To identify the cause of the issue more accurately, can you provide and try the following information:

Can you confirm that you have logged on to the server using a domain administrator user account and not a local administrator user account? And you need to open the PowerShell console with "Run as Administrator" permissions.

Have you shut down EMS and any other programs that may delay the uninstall process (for example, .NET assemblies, antivirus software, and backup agents)?

You can try to create a brand new Exchange user mailbox, and the user needs to be a member of the Domain Admins, Enterprise Admins, Schema Admins, Organization Admins, and Local Admins groups on the affected workstation, then log on to the workstation and try to uninstall Exchange again.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" because it can help other members of the Microsoft Q&A community who have encountered similar problems and are looking for solutions. Thank you.

Best,

Jeanne
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BMcclane 0 Reputation points

2025-01-14T06:47:34.2566667+00:00

Hello Jeanne,

I appreciate your response. Here are my comments on the queries from you.

I logged in as a built-in administrator who's a member of AD's domain admins, schema admins, enterprise admins, and organization management groups. I wasn't using the PowerShell. Instead, I was trying to uninstall it through the control panel. Do you recommend trying the uninstall process through PowerShell?

There's no backup agent, which is out of the equation here. There is no third-party anti-virus program running. However, the WindowsDefenderr service is running. I tried turning it off (Through the registry), which threw another set of errors. So, I re-enabled it, which resulted in the error mentioned earlier. I believe it must have something to do with Windows Defender. I tried taking ownership of the registry key for Windows Defender, which failed, stating, "Access denied."

There is only one Exchange Server with all the roles in my organization, so I'm trying to uninstall and remove the Exchange organization. For the record, I'm trying to uninstall the Exchange server program from a Windows Server 2025 machine, not the workstation. That server was previously a Windows Server 2016. I did an in-place upgrade(It is an Azure VM), and when I try to uninstall and remove the Exchange, it gives the above-mentioned error.

I hope I've answered all your questions. I would appreciate any help removing the Exchange server program from that server.

Thanks,

Bruce

BMcclane 0 Reputation points

2025-01-14T06:54:10.9466667+00:00

Hello Jeanne,

I appreciate your response. Below are my comments.

I use the built-in administrator in AD to login to the Exchange server and perform the uninstall operation.

I tried disabling the Windows Defender service through the registry, but it didn't help.

As per the suggestion in a different Microsoft forum, I tried taking ownership of a registry key related to Defender, which didn't work.

I wasn't using Powershell to uninstall the program; instead, I used the control panel.

No backup agent of any kind is running on the server.

As a precaution recommended in another forum, I disabled the mailbox database and store, so I won't be able to create a new mailbox at the moment. Yet, I'm trying the procedure with AD's built-in administrator account. I also tried using a different account, which is a member of all the above-mentioned groups, which resulted in the same error.

Any help to resolve the issue would be really great.

Thanks,

Bruce

BMcclane 0 Reputation points

2025-01-14T10:58:05.4266667+00:00

I also tried disabling all Exchange services in the Exchange server and running the uninstall program, but I still received the same error about the MpsSVC service not being able to start/stop by the Windows Defender program. I'm stuck. I need help completely removing the Exchange organization from the premises. I'm now having a broken Exchange server/organization. This Exchange server is the only one with all the necessary roles.

BMcclane 0 Reputation points

2025-01-14T11:08:29.8566667+00:00

I get the same error when I try to run the uninstallation process through PowerShell (as administrator and logged in as the AD's built-in administrator). My entire AD forest is stuck. Please help!

Jenne Li-MSFT 1,235 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2025-01-16T06:48:01.0033333+00:00

Hi @BMcclane ，

Thanks for your reply, you can remove the workstation-based Exchange server from the Exchange configuration via ADSI Edit, located at:

Configuration Container

CN=Configuration, DC=Domain_Name,DC=com

CN=Services

CN=Microsoft Exchange

CN=Your_Organization_Name

CN=Administrative Groups

CN=Your_Administrative_Group_Name

CN=Servers

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" because it can help other members of the Microsoft Q&A community who have encountered similar problems and are looking for solutions. Thank you.

Best,

Jeanne

BMcclane 0 Reputation points

2025-01-16T12:07:22.0733333+00:00

I appreciate the response. Could you confirm if Microsoft Exchange Server 2019 supports Windows Server 2025 OS?

Andy David - MVP 151.6K Reputation points MVP

2025-01-16T12:10:38.8933333+00:00

It does not: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/exchange/plan-and-deploy/supportability-matrix?view=exchserver-2019#supported-operating-systems

Jenne Li-MSFT 1,235 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2025-01-22T01:32:05.7033333+00:00

Hi @BMcclane ，

I just checked the status of this post and am not sure if your issue has been resolved. If you have additional questions, please comment here, I look forward to hearing from you and will be happy to provide additional support. If the above information helps answer this question, you can click "Accept Answer" to help other members of the Microsoft Q&A community who are experiencing similar issues and are looking for solutions. Thank you very much.

Jenne Li-MSFT 1,235 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2025-01-23T08:59:01.7366667+00:00

Hi @BMcclane ，

I just checked the status of this post and found that you haven't responded for a long time. I would like to know if your problem has been solved. If it has been solved, I hope you can click the "Accept Answer" button on the answer to receive a helpful reply. This will help other users in the forum with similar problems to find solutions to their problems under this answer. Thank you very much for your understanding and improvement of the forum environment!
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Unable to Uninstall Exchange server 2016 in a Windows server 2025

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