Install or Shortcut Fails or Opens Wrong Program

There are several possible causes for installation problems. Sometimes the registry in Windows gets corrupted so that installing or running a new program (such as CTI Navigator) triggers Windows to attempt to setup, install or run another program (such as Microsoft Office or one of its components). The usual fix for this problem is to uninstall the corrupted program (to remove it from the Windows registry) before attempting to install the new program. See instructions to resolve this problem below.

You can click on a topic in the list below to go directly to the appropriate instructions on this webpage:

• Uninstall Corrupted Program
• Delete Temporary Files
  • Manually Delete Temporary Files 
    • Windows Multi-select Commands
  • Windows Cleanup Tool 
• Fix Shortcut Icon 
• Fix Windows Installer Service Errors 
• Related Articles and Internet Links

Uninstall Corrupted Program

The usual way to uninstall programs is from the Windows Control Panel (using "Add/Remove Programs" in Windows XP, or "Programs and Features" in Windows Vista/7/8). If the troublesome program cannot be uninstalled from the Control Panel in Windows XP/Vista/7, go to Start, select "All Programs", click on the program to be removed, and, if available, select Uninstall specifically for that program. 

To remove a program in Windows 8, you can either open the Control Panel (use the Settings Charm), select the program in the list of installed programs, and click Uninstall; or you can search for (use the Search Charm) and right-click on the app, and then select Uninstall in the bottom pop-up taskbar.

Microsoft provides a "Fix it" utility to automatically repair program installations when installing or removing a program fails because of corrupted registry keys or blocked installation. Select "Fix problems with programs that can't be installed or uninstalled" in the related articles below to use this utility. 

For Microsoft Office suites, Microsoft provides a specific "Fix It wizard" to automatically uninstall Office suites that cannot be removed from the Windows Control Pane. To use this utility, select the "Uninstall Corrupted Installation of Microsoft Office..." in the related articles below.

Delete Temporary Files

Programs typically write temporary files to a Temp folder during installation, or when the program updates or runs. Normally Windows automatically removes temp files each time you close the program or re-start Windows. If temp files are left over after installation, running or un-installation of other programs, these old temp files may interfere with creating new temp files. To prevent old temp files from possibly interfering with new temp files, close all programs (including background programs such as antivirus), and then delete all temp files.

Manually Delete Temporary Files

To delete temp files you can manually open Windows Explorer, browse to the Temp folder associated with your User account, and delete all files in that Temp folder - especially all files that begin with tilde symbol (~) and end with .tmp. 

• In Windows XP, your Temp folder is typically under C:\Documents and Settings\[YourName]\Local Settings\Temp. 
• In Windows Vista and Windows 7, your Temp folder typically is in C:\Users\[YourName}\App Data\Local\Temp. 
• Note: there also is a Temp folder in the system root (such as C:\Temp) and under Windows (C:\Windows\temp) which usually does not need to be emptied.

To have Windows find your Temp folder for you:

• click Start
• in Windows XP select Run; or in Windows Vista/7 click in the "Start Search" box
• type %temp% and press the Enter key.

Delete files one at a time in the Temp folder, or use the standard Windows select commands to select multiple files before clicking delete:

• while holding down the Ctrl key, selectively click on files
• while holding down the Shift key, click on the first file and then click on the last file in a continuous block of files to be deleted
• while holding down the Ctrl key, click the "A" key on your keyboard to select all files in the folder.

Use Windows Disk Cleanup Tool to Delete Temporary and Unnecessary Files

Windows includes a Disk Cleanup Utility that can be run to remove both temporary files and many other unnecessary files from your hard drive. In addition to cleaning out potentially conflicting temporary files, running this utility can recover storage space and potentially improve Windows' performance. To run this utility go to Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Cleanup; or from Start you can Run the command cleanmgr.

After you specify the drive to clean-up, the Disk Cleanup utility will calculate and then display how much space can be recovered by deleting files of various categories (such as Downloaded Program Files, Temporary Internet Files, Recycle Bin, Temporary Files, and others). Check "Temporary Files" and any other categories you would like to cleanup. Uncheck categories to be skipped when cleanup runs. Then click the OK button. The greater the number of files and categories being cleaned, the longer this utility will run. 

Warning. Files deleted by the Windows Disk Cleanup Utility are permanently deleted. They are not recoverable from the Recycle Bin.  

Note: Sometimes the corruption has been caused by malware or spyware. You may want to run a spyware cleaner program to remove any potential spyware on the computer. (See "Security Cleanup Links" under related articles below.)

Fix Shortcut

If clicking on a program shortcut icon starts the wrong program or generates an error, but the program opens correctly when selected from "All Programs", delete the corrupted shortcut icon and then re-create a new one. To delete a shortcut, just right-click on the shortcut icon on the Windows Desktop and select delete. 

To create a shortcut on the Windows Desktop for a program:

1. Click on Start > click on All Programs
2. Left-click on to select the folder that contains the desired program
3. Right-click on the desired program with its icon (such as CTI Navigator)
4. Select "Send to -- Desktop (create shortcut)".

Fix Install Errors 

Related articles or Internet links: