uninstalling old version error

Why I am seeing these message when uninstalling R2021b version?

" C:\Program Files\MATLAB\R2021b\help\simulink\helpsearch\segments_1c (The system cannot find the file specified) "

The problem started when I tried to update the R2021b version but a problem occured and the update is corrupted and then i couldn't run matlab anymore so I downloaded the R2022b version it is working but i nedd to uninstall the older version.

Answer 1

[James]

Manually delete the folder “R2021b” inside of “C:\Program Files\MATLAB\”. If you want to re-install afterwards, you should be able to with the folder removed.

[Jan]

The existing folder does not prevent a new installation. I've tried this in a comparable case. You only get a question dialog, if you want to use an existing folder.

[James]

If they’re selecting the same folder for installation, then it will prevent a reinstallation in some cases, depending on what content is in that folder/how compromised it is.

[Jan]

If you install with admin privileges and have restarted the computer to close all open files securely, there cannot be a blocking file in the installation folder - except file which need system privileges to be deleted. But then "delete the folder" is not trivial also, e.g. in the Windows Explorer.

[James]

If that's the case, then how do the installers check to see what products are installed? My understanding was that they viewed the contents of the folder you selected as the destination. If there are products that are installed correctly, it'll uncheck those for future installs.

If the files don't match what the installer expects to see either due to corruption in the current installation or mismatching archives files in the installer folder (seemingly from different updates, but on the same release), then you'll get 1 of these 2 error messages:

[Jan]

Thanks for this revealing experiment. This was not the case in the version I had to re-install. "Select an empty folder" clarifies clearly, that your suggestion is important for solving the problem.

[James]

Not a problem. I admittedly didn’t look at the installer’s log files, but I imagine they give more insight as to what file(s) specifically prevent the usage of the folder for installation and why the installer doesn’t like what is present.

Answer 2

[Jan]

If the installation is corrupted, the uninstallation can fail. Then install this version again overwriting the existing installation folder and uninstall it afterwards.

[EDITED] Consider Jestzer's suggestion to delete the installation folder in modern Matlab versions.

[ali seif el din]

how can I overwrite the existing installation?

[Jan]

Simply run the installer again. Did you use the default folder to install in, then do this again. But if you have chosen a specific folder to install in, choose this folder again. Afterwards the installtion is complete and the uninstalling will run successfully.