Uninstall or remove SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview
Applies to: SQL Server Azure SQL Database Azure SQL Managed Instance Azure Synapse Analytics
This article walks you through uninstalling SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview.
Tip
If you're having trouble with your instance of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), try the repair option.
To change the location for some of your SSMS files, it's possible to do so without uninstalling your current instance as described in Select the installation locations.
Uninstall by using Visual Studio Installer
You can use the Visual Studio Installer can uninstall versions of SSMS.
Find the Visual Studio Installer on your computer.
In the Windows Start menu, you can search for installer.
Note
You can also find the Visual Studio Installer in the following location:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\Installer\setup.exe
You might have to update the installer before you continue. If so, follow the prompts.
In the installer, look for the version of SSMS that you installed. Next, choose More, and then choose Uninstall.
Select OK to confirm your choice.
If you change your mind later and want to reinstall SSMS, start the Visual Studio Installer again, choose the Available tab, choose SQL Server Management Studio, and then select Install.
Uninstall SSMS
To remove all installations of SSMS, and the Visual Studio Installer from your machine, uninstall it from Installed apps.
- In Windows 10 and later versions, type Add or remove programs in the Windows search box.
- Find SQL Server Management Studio.
- Choose Uninstall.
- Repeat these steps for all versions of SSMS installed on the machine.
- Then, find Microsoft Visual Studio Installer.
- Choose Uninstall.
Remove all with InstallCleanup.exe
If you experience a catastrophic error and can't repair or uninstall SSMS, you can run the InstallCleanup.exe
tool to remove installation files and product information for all installed instances of SSMS and Visual Studio.
Warning
Use the InstallCleanup tool only as a last resort if repair or uninstall fail. This tool might uninstall features from other Visual Studio installations or other products, which you then might need to repair or reinstall.
Here's how to run the InstallCleanup.exe
tool:
Close the Visual Studio Installer.
Open an administrator command prompt. To open an administrator command prompt, follow these steps:
- Type
cmd
in the Windows search box. - Right-click Command Prompt, and then choose Run as administrator.
- Type
Enter the full path of the
InstallCleanup.exe
tool and add the command-line parameters that you prefer. By default, the path of the tool is as follows. The double quotes enclose a command that contains spaces:"C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\Installer\InstallCleanup.exe"
Note
The Visual Studio Installer directory is always located at
%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Visual Studio
. If you can't findInstallCleanup.exe
there, follow the instructions to install SSMS. Then, when the workload selection screen is displayed, close the window and follow the steps in this section again.These options are available:
Parameter Behavior -i [version]
If you don't specify a value, uses the default version. Removes only the main installation directory and product information. Use this parameter if you intend to reinstall the same version of SSMS. If you specify a [version]
value, the tool removes only products with a version that start with this string value. For example, use the value-i 21
with to remove all products of version 21.-f
Removes the main installation directory, product information, and most other features installed outside the installation directory that might also be shared with other Visual Studio installations or other products. Use this parameter if you intend to remove SSMS and Visual Studio without reinstalling it later.
Support or troubleshooting
Sometimes, things can go wrong. If your SSMS installation fails, see Troubleshoot installation and upgrade issues for SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview for step-by-step guidance.
You can reference SQL user feedback for other known issues (filter on Tooling under Groups) and to provide feedback to the product team.