Minimal Script Version for GPO/Scripted Removal of MS Edge

[DashingMrDasher]

Hi! My company wanted a way to remove MS Edge from our RDS farm servers, so I stripped down the OG script (amazing work, he3als!), to make it extra simple/small, and is only for removing MS Edge MSI or App Store.

Why I modified the script at all: The primary issue with the OG script that I encountered in my use case, is that the script seemed to still be producing some sort of output that was tripping up Task Scheduler, even when using the NonInteractive switch. After trying a few variations of my Scheduled Task, I decided to slim down the script to accommodate a completely headless run, specifically targeted to just find and remove MS Edge MSI or AppX.

I placed the modified .ps1 into the NETLOGON DFS share in our domain(s) and created a Group Policy which grabs a copy of the script and places it on the server(s) in a local folder, and creates a Scheduled Task which runs at Startup, before user login, and removes MS Edge. I've tested this with Server 2016, 2019, and 2022, without issue or nuance between the three. The reason I used this method is the expectation that a future Microsoft update will reinstall Edge, at some point, so this removal task checks for the existence of the MSI (or App) and removes if found. It runs once at each startup. Not the most eloquent solution, so if anyone else has a more efficient way to accomplish this, or wants to improve on the script variation, please feel free; the vast majority of the script is just derivation from the original.

I take no credit (or blame) for the scripting, but figured I'd include the variation here, just in case someone else has a similar need. Ideally, they'll be able to quickly configure a tested method for what I assume is a relatively common desire (to remove Edge and salt the earth) Godspeed! :)

#Requires -RunAsAdministrator
#Requires -Version 5.0

$ProgressPreference = 'SilentlyContinue'
$sys32 = [Environment]::GetFolderPath('System')
$windir = [Environment]::GetFolderPath('Windows')
$env:path = "$windir;$sys32;$sys32\Wbem;$sys32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0;" + $env:path
$baseKey = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE' + $(if ([Environment]::Is64BitOperatingSystem) { '\WOW6432Node' }) + '\Microsoft'
$msedgeExe = "$([Environment]::GetFolderPath('ProgramFilesX86'))\Microsoft\Edge\Application\msedge.exe"
$edgeUWP = "$windir\SystemApps\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe"
$logPath = "C:\Scripts\RemoveEdge.log"

# Ensure log/script directory exists
if (!(Test-Path "C:\Scripts")) {
    New-Item -Path "C:\Scripts" -ItemType Directory | Out-Null
}

function Log {
    param([string]$Message)
    Add-Content -Path $logPath -Value "$(Get-Date -Format 'yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss') - $Message"
}

function EdgeInstalled {
    Test-Path $msedgeExe
}

function KillEdgeProcesses {
    $ErrorActionPreference = 'SilentlyContinue'
    Get-Process | Where-Object {
        ($_.Path -like "*Microsoft\Edge*") -or ($_.Name -like "*msedge*")
    } | ForEach-Object {
        Stop-Process -Id $_.Id -Force
    }
    $ErrorActionPreference = 'Continue'
    Log "Terminated Edge processes."
}

function RemoveEdgeAppX {
    $SID = (New-Object System.Security.Principal.NTAccount([Environment]::UserName)).Translate([Security.Principal.SecurityIdentifier]).Value
    $appxStore = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Appx\AppxAllUserStore'
    $pattern = "$appxStore\InboxApplications\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_*_neutral__8wekyb3d8bbwe"

    if (Test-Path $pattern) {
        reg delete "$pattern" /f | Out-Null
        Log "Deleted AppX registry key: $pattern"
    }

    New-Item -Path "$appxStore\EndOfLife\$SID\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe" -Force | Out-Null
    Get-AppxPackage -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Remove-AppxPackage | Out-Null
    Remove-Item -Path "$appxStore\EndOfLife\$SID\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe" -Force | Out-Null
    Log "Removed Edge AppX package."
}

function RemoveEdgeChromium {
    Log "Attempting to uninstall Microsoft Edge..."

    $uninstallKey = "$baseKey\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\Microsoft Edge"
    $uninstallString = (Get-ItemProperty -Path $uninstallKey -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue).UninstallString

    if ($uninstallString) {
        $parts = $uninstallString -split '"', 3 | Where-Object { $_ }
        $exe = $parts[0]
        $args = $parts[1..($parts.Length - 1)] -join '"'

        if (Test-Path $exe) {
            Start-Process -FilePath $exe -ArgumentList "$args --force-uninstall" -Wait -WindowStyle Hidden
            Log "Executed Edge uninstaller from registry."
        }
    }

    if (EdgeInstalled) {
        Log "Edge still appears to be installed. Attempting fallback removal..."
        $folders = @(
            [Environment]::GetFolderPath('LocalApplicationData'),
            [Environment]::GetFolderPath('ProgramFilesX86'),
            [Environment]::GetFolderPath('ProgramFiles')
        )

        foreach ($folder in $folders) {
            $setupPaths = Get-ChildItem "$folder\Microsoft\Edge*\setup.exe" -Recurse -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue |
                Where-Object { $_.FullName -like '*Edge\Application*' -or $_.FullName -like '*SxS\Application*' }

            foreach ($setup in $setupPaths) {
                $level = if ($setup.FullName -like '*AppData\Local\*') { '--user-level' } else { '--system-level' }
                Start-Process -FilePath $setup.FullName -ArgumentList "--uninstall --msedge $level --channel=stable --force-uninstall" -Wait
                Log "Executed fallback uninstaller: $($setup.FullName)"
            }
        }
    }

    if (-not (EdgeInstalled)) {
        Log "Microsoft Edge successfully uninstalled."
    } else {
        Log "Microsoft Edge could not be fully removed."
    }
}

# MAIN EXECUTION
if (-not ([Security.Principal.WindowsPrincipal] [Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity]::GetCurrent()).IsInRole([Security.Principal.WindowsBuiltinRole]::Administrator)) {
    Log "Script must be run as Administrator."
    throw "This script must be run as Administrator."
}

KillEdgeProcesses
RemoveEdgeChromium

if (Get-AppxPackage -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue) {
    Log "Removing Edge AppX package..."
    RemoveEdgeAppX
}

Log "Edge removal process complete."