11 Deinstalling Oracle Database XE

If you want to save your data files but remove the Oracle Database XE software and database, then first export the data before you deinstall.

Caution:

When you deinstall Oracle Database XE, all components, including data files, the database, and the software, are removed.

Because the deinstallation process removes all files from the directory in which Oracle Database XE is installed, back up any files from the directory (if needed) before you deinstall. The database will no longer be operational after deinstallation.

You can deinstall Oracle Database XE using one of the following methods:

• Deinstalling Using User Interface
• Deinstalling Using Silent Mode

Note:

It is strongly recommended to follow the deinstall procedure described in deinstall section. If you have deinstalled the Express edition using ORACLE_HOME\deinstall\deinstall.bat utility, run following command to remove Express Edition completely: msiexec /qn /x {C220B7FD-3095-47FC-A0C0-AE49DE6E320A}

11.1 Deinstalling Using User Interface

Use Add or Remove Programs to deinstall Oracle Database XE:

1. In the Windows Control Panel, select Add or Remove Programs.

2. Select Oracle Database 21c Express Edition.

3. Click Uninstall.

4. Follow the prompts to deinstall Oracle Database 21c Express Edition. After few minutes, the window will close and the deinstallation will be complete.

Alternatively, you can use following msiexec command to perform the deinstall:

msiexec /x {C220B7FD-3095-47FC-A0C0-AE49DE6E320A}

11.2 Deinstalling Using Silent Mode

If the downloaded software is available, you can use setup.exe to deinstall Oracle Database XE.

For example, if you downloaded and extracted the files to a directory called xe_temp, enter the following command to deinstall Oracle Database XE:

c:\xe_temp> setup.exe /s /x /v"/qn /Lv c:\test1.log"

If you do not have the downloaded software (setup.exe) you can deinstall using:

msiexec /qn /x {C220B7FD-3095-47FC-A0C0-AE49DE6E320A}

You can replace /qn with /qb to display the progress bar.

Note:

• Silent deinstall runs asynchronously; you can check the log file for the completion status.

• After the deinstall is successfully completed, the following message is available in the log file: MSI (s) (8C:C4) [Timestamp]: Windows Installer removed the product. Product Name: Oracle Database 21c Express Edition. Product Version: 21.1.0.0.0. Product Language: [Current Language ID]. Manufacturer: Oracle Corporation. Removal success or error status: 0.