Disable, Remove and Uninstall U3 Launchpad
U3 platform is a technology created for Microsoft Windows operating systems that allows applications to be executed directly from a specially formatted USB flash drive according to U3 specifications, which also U3 smart drives, so that data and programs can be shared on multiple PCs. Some examples of U3 smart drives are Kingston U3 DataTraveler, SanDisk Cruzer Micro, SanDisk Cruzer Titanium, Verbatim Store ‘n’ Go U3 Smart Drive, Ativa U3 USB 2.0 Flash Drive, Geek Squad USB 2.0 Flash Drive, Intuix Smart Drive M300 U3, Intuix Smart Drive S300 U3, busbi USB Flash Drive, disgo classic, disgo diva, disgo dude, disgo lite, Disk2go SMART II, Extrememory U3 smart USB Drive, Hama U3 FlashPen Mini USB 2.0, Memorex Mini TravelDrive U, PQI Cool Drive U320 Smart Drive, TwinMos U3 Mobile Disk, Elecom MF-UU2 and i-o data EasyDisk U3 smart drive.
U3 smart drives come preinstalled with the U3 Launchpad which emulates the Windows OS start menu, and controls program installation and hence facilitate the portability of software. However, if you would like to use the USB flash drive or memory key as a pure normal USB mass storage device, or you don’t use operating system that U3 supports (i.e Windows XP and Windows 2000 operating systems), or you simply feel that U3 Launchpad and applications have bugs such as unable to eject due to locked files in use, consent on privacy and automatic installation of U3 software and pop-up etc, you can uninstall and remove the U3 Launchpad from the USB storage device.
To remove and delete the U3 Launchpad, you need to download U3 Launchpad uninstallers or U3 Launchpad Removal Tool that remove the U3 Launchpad and re-configure the USB drive to be a single mass storage USB drive. Currently, U3 Launchpad uninstallers are only available for and must be run on Windows XP or Windows 2000 machine. When uninstalling, the U3 smart drives USB device has to be plugged in with U3 Launchpad running.
U3 Launchpad Removal Tool for SanDisk USB U3 devices can be downloaded here, while all other U3 smart drives can used universal U3 Launchpad Removel Uninstaller downloadable from U3.
WARNING: U3 Launchpad removal is irreversible. You won’t be able to install U3 again. Beside, backup your data before begin uninstallation process as ALL data will be erased.
UPDATE: It’s impossible to reinstall U3 LaunchPad.
Related Articles
- Disable Auto-Run and Auto-Play of U3 Smart Drives Launchpad
- Reinstall or Restore U3 LaunchPad Software into USB Flash Smart Drive
- How to Disable (Remove and Uninstall) Windows Defender in Vista
- How to Remove and Disable IE8 (Uninstall Internet Explorer 8) from Windows 7
- Remove and Uninstall or Disable ModSecurity (mod_security)
- Workaround to Disable and Remove OGA Office Not Genuine Notifications (Uninstall KB949810)
- How to Disable (Uninstall and Remove) Windows Media Center in Vista
- Disable, Uninstall and Remove Skype Add-On Call This Phone Number on Web Page and Toolbar Plugin Menu in IE
- Workaround to Manually Uninstall, Remove or Delete Firefox Addon With Add-Ons Uninstall Button Disabled
- Uninstall and Remove Norton Products Completely with Norton Removal Tool
Entries (RSS)
November 6th, 2009 12:47
I was using a 2gb sandisk flash drive
i had customised my Drive using U3 customizer to the fullest satisfaction.
unfortunately i lost it
so i bought a 4 GB U3 flash drive now
By using the U3 customizer, I am unable to customize the flash drive.
Message ” You need to free 11mb on the flash drive to customize the flash drive”
kindly help me
September 1st, 2009 18:15
I want to first of all say if you do uninstall the u3 software it is NOT forever gone. You CAN get the u3 software from sandisk’s site and install it back on your u3 compatible flash drive [Sandisk] at: http://drivers1.sandisk.com/DriverDownload/assets/USB%20Flash%20Drives/LPInstaller.zip …I should know ‘cuz I’ve taken it off and installed it again more times than I should. The only reason I like u3 is for the password protection, otherwise it’s a piece of crap and it takes too much system resources to run it on my old laptop. Otherwise the flash drive is great. Anotherway of uninstalling it -MAYBE- is formatting it through CMD and to do that open up CMD and type [ format/x ?: ] and “?” being the drive letter of the u3 flashdrive but if this works, it’ll erase everything on the flashdrive!! Hope this helped…
August 21st, 2009 00:53
The link to the software is now dead. You can get it here:
http://hk-ie.sandisk.com/Retail/Default.aspx?CatID=1415
it’s actually sandisk’s own removal tool for the software so this guy here just nicked it and claimed credit… and doesn’t maintain his links… and doesn’t afraid of anything.
you’re welcome.
August 4th, 2009 03:19
Both links for the U3 removal are dead, page not found. Any other suggestions on getting rid of this obnoxious software?
July 3rd, 2009 13:50
thank you! very straight forward.
July 3rd, 2009 02:32
First of all thanks for the tip.
To SanDisk: I didn’t buy the memory stick to get software, I bought the memory stick so I could store data on it. That I have to jump through hoops and remove software in order to use the memory stick as a simple USB drive is simply NOT what I wanted. Smarten up.
I’ll not be buying any Sandisk products in the future. One customer lost forever.
July 3rd, 2009 01:06
God bless you, you saint! A remember a few years ago I had searched for some way to rid my drive of this nonsense, but ran around in circles. What a difference a little time makes! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
June 30th, 2009 05:19
Hi, anybody here did notice about persistence of Launchpad H3 .
There is some ‘buil in’ or it installed on Vista that even formating the USB to use it
H3 can be seen as a new letter drive and ’shared folders’ icon.
Did a full format to get an USB boot of Linux for kids which is called SoaS (Sugar on a Stick , Linux for kids from SugarLabs.org).
I got formatted and got a Linux bootable USB, but still see Launchpad ‘from the air’ with Launchpad.exe on a ‘extra virtual CD drive’ with Launchpad so it can be re-installed agian.
Invasive eh ?
Any hint will be appreaciated.
David
Happened even after had to re-formatted at low speed (quick format didn’t work),
June 5th, 2009 04:57
thank you very much for this tip and link. i’ve been trying to find a way to avoid this autorun.inf u3 foolishness for at least a month. much appreciation.
May 30th, 2009 04:35
when i download the uninstaller and double click it nothing happens, i see 2 launchpad removals in my processes but it doesnt do anything
May 10th, 2009 08:23
Your wrong! You can re-install the U3 software
May 4th, 2009 21:39
So this means that if same U3 flash drive has been installed on two PCs, U3 can be removed from only one of them because the flash drive will no longer have U3 on it. Therefore it cannot be used to remove U3 from 2nd PC.
How to remove remaining U3 stuff from 2nd PC without purchasing a new U3 flash drive for doing this?
May 2nd, 2009 13:06
i have a 16 gb sandisk crusier flashdrive i been realy looking forward to get rid of u3… thanks to this website now i can plug it into my xbox360 and play music off of it ……. since U3 it’s useless and did not work with my 360
if anyone has any cool apps for my pendrive like portable OS please post it !!!!
April 24th, 2009 04:20
[...] todas formas si por un casual hay que desinstalar U3, aqui tienes la aplicación.Mira en esta página si tu pendrive esta entre los que funciona. sino a [...]
April 22nd, 2009 01:51
It’s perfectly easy to reinstall U3 Launchpad…Look for a program called U3 Customizer or look for a U3 Reinstaller…They say it’s impossible to make money out of you.
Legality or the aforementioned programs not guaranteed.
April 6th, 2009 01:36
haha, got rid of this useless s**t
April 6th, 2009 01:17
thank you very much for your help; you rescued me. i had a probleme in my PYN U3 usb and the only choice it was to formate my flash drive and i have found the solution HERE that it is the U3 Launchpad Removal Tool and it work fine now.
thanks again for your help.
March 30th, 2009 01:03
I used the u3_uninstaller.exe on my 16 Gig Sandisk drive and it did indeed remove the U3 partition, but in doing so, reduced the size of my drive to 3.3 Gig! Now their website is inaccessible.
February 26th, 2009 08:30
Thank You!
Thank You!
Thank You!
February 26th, 2009 05:58
THANks so much i never leave comments but i cant express how much i hate u3. it slows down everything and is for pussy cunt bitches who cannot work a computer.. THANK YOU
February 10th, 2009 08:03
THANK YOU! I Fucking hated U3, never used it and just lived with it for the past 3 years. THANKS!
January 5th, 2009 19:34
A thousand thank yous. I was given a work usb with the damn U3 on it. It was constantly jamming up my work profile. Advice from our IT was of no help, as whenever deleted it would magically reappear. At the end of my rope I simply googled and here is where I ended up…..see its easy when you know how.
December 13th, 2008 05:19
I have a major problem.
I tried to uninstall the u3 launchpad,but I deleted the iso for the autorun,and my password for the drive, for some reason, is still on the drive. I cannot access any of the files on the drive, beause until you enter your password, the computer will not see the data. I tried to find a copy of the iso for the launcher, but I couldn’t install those. Does anyone know how to do this??? I am lost.
December 12th, 2008 13:33
Thank you for this tip. Don’t you just hate take over programs that don’t tell you how to get rid of them! Forceware it should be known as. You are forced to use it and put up with it unless someone kind like you tells us how to get rid of it. I just needed a thumb drive not all the junk that came with it. No wonder it was cheap!! Thanks again, I now have a proper thumb drive.
December 10th, 2008 00:37
Any program that is as hard to remove as U3 is a virus, and should be illegal as such.
October 11th, 2008 18:49
[...] auch immer, nach unzähligen Stunden der Recherche bin ich dann letztendlich hierauf gestossen(genauer gesagt: Auf den 4. Kommentar mit dem Rapidshare-Link) und, was soll ich sagen? [...]
October 11th, 2008 15:34
Great… that U3 thing was really beginning to Piss me off. After deleting it god knows how many times in Windows explorer, the universal U3 removal tool has done the job on my Toshiba disk.
July 9th, 2008 05:02
THIS PAGE HELPED ME ALOT. THANX
June 29th, 2008 01:08
A workaround:
Get to Device Manager. Under CD-ROM drives, right click the Kingston U3 listing, Disable, Yes.
March 24th, 2008 23:56
i have a problem. the thing is i uninstalled the u3 software and the stupid thing said it will backup and restore the data for me but it didnt….so is there a way to find the data if it actually did copy it over to the pc i was using at the time?
March 3rd, 2008 01:02
To still run Windows programs using U3, I did the one-click solution to disable U3 Launchpad security.
February 18th, 2008 09:53
The U3 uninstall tool from U3.com will disable all your card reader ports and some or all of your usb ports. They won’t show to be disabled if you look in the Device Manager, but they will be. You can get them to work again by disabling and then enabling them.
February 15th, 2008 09:51
I found you will need the PRJPROE windows installer package for MS Office Project Professional 2003 and run that first then the U3 uninstall worked flawlessly.
January 14th, 2008 22:49
Thanks for the tip for uninstalling from settings. Bought 3 PNY Attache’s for my users and could not use them on Vista laptops. All I could see was the U3 virtual CD. Plus the U3 virtual CD blocked my mapped G drive when it was plugged in. If I need functionality I use PortableApps. The uninstall worked great but asked if I really wanted to do this about 6 times. I still had to give the device a separate drive letter in Vista disk management before I could see it but now it works like it should have.
January 8th, 2008 15:13
Uninstall Kingston U3 Data Traveveler with rapidshare files works.. thanks for uploading..
December 14th, 2007 23:54
hey the uninstaller for kingston u3 data traveler is doesn;t work, it can’t recognize kingston
November 22nd, 2007 17:51
I had exactly the same problem after buying a Toshiba U3 USB disk. Fortunately the generic U3 uninstaller fixed the problem.
Amusingly, when I called the sales guys at Tandy they had no idea what U3 was or how to uninstall it … guess that’ll teach me not to give up in advance and JFGI
November 9th, 2007 19:39
I just really want to unlock my Busbi U3 stick. Given to me by my sister she cant remember or work out what her password was…. this is a total pain!!! and has rendered an expensive bit of kit useless!!! HELP
October 24th, 2007 18:57
Hi
I use sandisk U3 usb drive to surf the web. I use the firefox and many other programs like openoffice from usb. i use the USB for long hours when I do web surfing. I want to know if using U3 USB for longtime will shorten its life or will it harm my computer or U3 drive ? please share if you have any information. thanks
October 23rd, 2007 06:24
I tried erasing and partitioning the U3 device to 1 partition with Disk Utility and I couldn’t get rid of the U3 volume. Any suggestions?
September 18th, 2007 13:33
Hi. I bought this thing, I just wanted something to save my files in, and I hate the technology it comes with. I have an apple. I accidently dragged that box with a lock on it on my desktop (Launchu3 whatever) and it is stuck on my desktop now. I cant get rid of it. How do I get rid of this thing that just sits there mocking me. I downloaded the unistall thingies, but my computer says applications wont run or something. I hate this thing.
September 10th, 2007 11:21
removed and now computer doesn’t recognise stick.
Please, any ideas, or is it garbage now…
Thanks.
July 11th, 2007 19:54
hey..i was usin u3 and finally lostit may b a virus attack or something like and now my flashdisk does’t even open and i am missing many files.Is there any means to remove it before opening it.I realy need u’r help on this.
May 24th, 2007 14:21
[...] remove and delete U3 LaunchPad that is preinstalled on your U3 smart drive? Or have decided to uninstall U3 Launchpad software from the USB flash drive but now want to restore and install the U3 Launchpad? It’s [...]
May 21st, 2007 18:07
[...] a user with a similar predicament, turns out there are a lot of unhappy users out there. Oh and this page tells me that the U3 LaunchPad is also a feature in other flash drives by Kingston, Intuix and [...]
May 16th, 2007 05:43
“…WARNING: U3 Launchpad removal is irreversible. You won’t be able to install U3 again. Beside, backup your data before begin uninstallation process as ALL data will be erased….”
Actually we can restore the U3 Launchpad, but not the data once we erase it. At least it works for the SanDisk one.
From SanDisk FAQ http://www.sandisk.com/Retail/Default.aspx?CatID=1450
Can I remove U3 technology from my USB drive?
Yes. To remove the U3 technology from the drive, simply go to the U3 Launchpad and, under Settings, select U3 Launchpad settings and click Uninstall. This will completely remove the U3 Launchpad from the drive.
Can I restore U3 technology after removing it?
Yes. SanDisk’s U3 website features a U3 Launchpad Installer utility that you can use to re-install the U3 Launchpad on the Cruzer smart drive. (http://www.sandisk.com/Retail/DriverDownloads.aspx)
March 12th, 2007 01:22
Why bother going through all of this? What I did was to simply control click on the program in question without opening it, and choose “Get Info” from the menu choices. I then clicked on the “Locked” box in order to remove the enclosed check mark there and unlock it. Once this was done, I could simply trash the thing. What’s the big deal? Doesn’t this work for everyone else out there?
January 22nd, 2007 04:47
http://rapidshare.com/files/12750823/u3_uninstall_for_kingston_data_traveller.zip
here you go
aqui tienen
January 21st, 2007 02:43
Hola tengo una kingston datatraveler u3 2GB .
Quisiera saber como quitar todo el sistema u3 ya que en algunas pc que tengo con xp hace que se cuelguen … hay alguna actualizacion del sistema u3 ???
December 7th, 2006 15:06
Anyone got a copy of the removal tool for the Verbatim Key?? The U3 site appears to be down…Hasn’t worked for a while now dagnabbit.
October 30th, 2006 01:19
[...] I purchased a U3 San Cruzar 1 Gig flash drive (with rebates, it’s really cheap: I hope we get the rebates): Technology Expert’s review of the 2 Gig drive raves about the launchpad included with the SanDisk Cruzar. I hate hardware which installs software behind my back! and that’s what these little flash drives do! So I uninstalled the U3 launchpad with the Cruzar’s own uninstall FIRST, before I installed Roboform2Go. You may wish to keep the U3 software; I didn’t keep it because it launched every time I plugged the USB drive into my computer. ugh. [...]