McAfee Agent local uninstall is blocked in managed mode

Technical Articles ID: KB60556
Last Modified: 8/17/2021

Environment

McAfee Agent (MA) 5.x

For environment information, see KB51573 - Supported platforms for McAfee Agent 5.x.

Problem

You are unable to uninstall MA locally from either of the following:

Windows Programs and Features Control Panel
Command prompt

The following error displays when you try to uninstall MA:

McAfee Agent cannot be removed because other products are still using it

NOTE: This issue can occur when no other McAfee Enterprise products are installed on the client computer.

Cause

This error occurs when MA is in managed mode.

This behavior is by design, to prevent users from removing the agent.

MA operates in two modes:

Managed mode — MA connects and communicates with ePolicy Orchestrator (ePO) to manage McAfee Enterprise product updates.
Unmanaged mode — MA does not connect or communicate with ePO, but pulls updates from McAfee Enterprise HTTP servers.

Solution 1

Use ePO to remove MA and any other McAfee Enterprise products from the managed system. See the product documentation for details.

For product documents, go to the Enterprise Product Documentation portal.

Solution 2

Remove the computer from managed mode, and remove any dependent managed products before you try to uninstall:

Open a command prompt as an administrator:
1. Press the Windows key + R, type cmd, and press Enter.
2. If the User Account Control dialog box appears, confirm that the action it displays is what you want, and then click Continue.
On the client computer, access the frminst file. In the command window, type the following:

CD C:\Program Files\Mcafee\Agent\x86\
Type the following command, and press Enter:

frminst.exe /remove=agent
Close the command prompt.
Remove any McAfee Enterprise managed products from the client computer. Examples:
- Endpoint Security
- VirusScan Enterprise
- Endpoint Encryption
Optional: Remove the McAfee Framework Service from the client computer through Programs and Features.

You can now uninstall MA through Windows Programs and Features or from the command line.

NOTE: See also, KB65863 - How to manually remove McAfee Agent 5.x.

Affected Products

Install/Uninstall
McAfee Agent 5.7.x
McAfee Agent 5.6.x

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Knowledge Center

McAfee Agent local uninstall is blocked in managed mode

Environment

Problem

Cause

Solution 1

Solution 2

Affected Products

Languages:

Glossary of Technical Terms

Title

Title

Knowledge Center

McAfee Agent local uninstall is blocked in managed mode

Environment

Problem

Cause

Solution 1

Solution 2

Affected Products

Languages:

Glossary of Technical Terms

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