Office Click-To-Run Uninstaller

What the Office Click-to-Run Uninstaller does

This Automox Worklet™ removes Click-to-Run (C2R) installations of Microsoft Office 2013, 2016, and Office 365 from Windows endpoints. The Worklet detects Click-to-Run installations by querying the registry key HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\Configuration on both 32-bit and 64-bit systems.

The Worklet uses the Microsoft Office Deployment Tool (ODT) with a dynamically generated XML configuration file to execute the uninstallation. You can configure the uninstallation behavior with two parameters: visibility level and application closure settings.

When user interaction is required, the Worklet copies the ODT executable and configuration file to %windir%\temp and creates a scheduled task that runs in the USERS context. This allows the uninstallation to proceed outside the Worklet execution window.

Why remove Click-to-Run Office installations

Click-to-Run and traditional MSI-based Office installations cannot coexist on the same endpoint. You need to remove existing Click-to-Run versions before deploying MSI-based Office installations or different Click-to-Run configurations.

Organizations standardizing on specific Office versions or licensing models must remove inconsistent installations across their environment. Manual uninstallation across multiple endpoints consumes significant IT resources and introduces timing delays.

Automated removal through Automox reduces the time required to complete Office migrations from days to hours. You maintain control over whether users see prompts or whether the uninstallation happens silently, allowing you to balance user experience with operational needs.

How Click-to-Run Office removal works

1. Evaluation phase: The Worklet queries the registry to detect Click-to-Run Office installations at HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\Configuration. If this key exists, the evaluation returns exit code 1 to trigger remediation. If no Click-to-Run installation is found, the Worklet exits with code 0 and takes no action.

2. Remediation phase: The Worklet creates an XML configuration file with the Remove All="TRUE" attribute and your specified display level and force application shutdown settings. It then creates a scheduled task that executes setup.exe /configure update.xml using the Office Deployment Tool. The Worklet monitors the scheduled task status and verifies successful uninstallation by checking whether the registry key still exists. If the key remains after uninstallation completes, the Worklet reports an error and directs you to log files in %windir%\temp.

Click-to-Run uninstallation requirements

• Windows 8.1 or later (supports both workstation and server endpoints)

• PowerShell 3.0 or later

• Microsoft Office Deployment Tool (setup.exe) uploaded as a file attachment when creating the Worklet policy

• Click-to-Run version of Office installed (Office 2013, 2016, or Office 365)

• Configure the $appClosure variable to TRUE or FALSE (TRUE forces open Office applications to close automatically, FALSE prompts users to close applications)

• Configure the $visibility variable to Full or None (Full displays user prompts, None runs silently)

Expected outcome after Office removal

After successful remediation, the registry key HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\ClickToRun\Configuration will no longer exist on the endpoint. All Click-to-Run Office applications including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and supporting components will be removed from the system.

The endpoint will be ready for a new Office installation using either Click-to-Run or MSI deployment methods. Users will no longer be able to launch any Office applications that were previously installed. The Worklet output will confirm successful uninstallation or provide an error message with log file location if the removal fails.

If you configured the visibility setting to Full, users will have seen prompts asking for confirmation before the uninstallation proceeded. If you set $appClosure to FALSE, the Worklet will have waited for users to close open Office applications before completing the removal.

How to validate office click-to-run uninstaller changes

1. Run this Worklet on a pilot Windows endpoint and review evaluation output for office click-to-run uninstaller.

2. Confirm Automox activity logs show successful completion and exit code 0.

3. Verify endpoint state using checks aligned to evaluation script logic, such as Click-To, Office-IT, Pro-Deployment.

4. Validate remediation effects from script operations such as Click-To, Office-IT, Pro-Deployment, then rerun evaluation for compliance.