Problem

When trying to upgrade or uninstall Player, you may encounter the errors like:

The feature you are trying to use is on a network resource that is unavailable. Click OK to try again or enter an alternative path to a folder containing the installation package 'Player.msi' in the box below.

The older version of Player cannot be removed. Contact your technical support group.

This version of Player requires ArcGIS version 10.1.x or 10.2.x. Version detected 10.3.4959.


Resolution

The Windows MSI requires the original install package to determine what will be removed from the computer. Occasionally the original install package has a requirement that can no longer be satisfied (the version of ArcGIS is not supported for the installed version of Player).


There are several ways to resolve this and uninstall Player.


Find the original Player.msi (on another computer) or your original install software archive. From the command line run:
msiexec /x "c:\Player.msi" /q


If you can't find the Player.msi, Player can be uninstalled with the Product GUID or product code. As a local administrator, run the command: 
msiexec.exe /x {7FEAA04D-ABA1-4905-BC03-86BE297844E6} /L*V! "C:\temp\msilog.log"

The GUID depends on the specific version of Player.msi that was installed on the computer.
Player Release
Product GUID/code
Player 4.0 (Build 5831)
{92C47DD3-E64A-47E2-B492-9DA0A323E8C5}
Player 4.0 SP1 (Build 6051)
{7FEAA04D-ABA1-4905-BC03-86BE297844E6}
Player 4.1 (Build 6143)
{218D7F4A-7EC5-45BE-A231-9282D98F7851}
Player 4.2 (Build 6460)
{9B579019-F3C8-4898-A6DF-EE053855302E}
Player 4.2 SP1 (Build 6501){FF126735-CA79-47E4-AFAC-D81BCA720C8C}
Player 4.3 SP1 (Build 6702){9792BEB2-385D-48F3-8844-9C67976356A9}
Player 4.4 (Build 6900){73BD52F8-81BA-4925-B7B4-826A9620319D}
Player 4.4 SP1 (Build 6978){7CD7B3C4-9A83-4860-8336-A1BC4245815B}

If you don't know which version of Player is installed, you can use the powershell command:
Type powershell in a command line. Then type the following:
get-wmiobject Win32_Product | Format-Table IdentifyingNumber, Name, LocalPackage

If Player still doesn't uninstall, use the MSIZAP.EXE from MSDN (Microsoft). 

  • In Google, search for msizap.exe. Download the executable from a Microsoft MSDB website.
  • Identify the product code for the relevant version of Player from the table above.
  • From a command line, run:
    msizap.exe TW {product-code}


If you have gotten to this point and Player stubbornly will not uninstall, things are dire. A bug with earlier versions of the Player.msi (pre-4.3) might be preventing the uninstall. The symptom is during uninstall, an error appears: This version of Player requires ArcGIS version 10.1.x or 10.2.x. Version detected 10.3.4959.


Unfortunately earlier versions of Player.MSI tested for a supported ArcGIS version. If a newer ArcGIS version is found, the uninstall fails. In this case, Regedit needs to be used to temporarily change the RealVersion value for ArcGIS. The steps are:

  • Open Regedit as a local administrator. Navigate to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\ESRI\ArcGIS]. The key for RealVersion should look something like: "RealVersion"="10.4.5686".
  • Remember the current value. Change the value to 10.2.3000 (or the required version number in the error message). The format is major.minor.build; for example 10.3.4959. The major and minor numbers are important, the build number can be anything.
  • Run the Player uninstall.
  • Use Regedit to change the RealVersion back to the original value.