Completely Removing the Pulse Secure Desktop Client

Owned by Bill DelGrego
Last updated: Dec 06, 2022 by Ashley Mattingly
3 min read

This article provides instructions for completely removing all aspects of the Pulse Secure Desktop client from Windows and Mac systems.

The Advanced Removal instructions should only be followed by someone with a strong understanding of their operating system, the command line, and registry tools. If a mistake is made while following this guide, repairing the system may be very difficult. Please reach out to techsupport@uconn.edu if you are not confident in your ability to safely follow this guide.

Based on Operating System

Simple Removal

  1. Right-click on the Windows Start menu icon in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen to open the context menu. Choose Apps and Features.

    1. Alternatively, click on the Windows Start menu icon in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen to open the Start Menu. Once open, type in "program." Open Add or Remove Programs.

  2. Click on Pulse Secure and click Uninstall. Do this for all the Pulse items.

    1. If you are prompted to restart your computer, you may dismiss this popup if you are uninstalling multiple programs.

  3. Reboot the computer once you are done.

Advanced Removal

  1. Click on the Windows Start menu icon in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen to open the Start Menu. Once open, type in "control." Open Control Panel.

  2. Click Uninstall a program. This link is within the Program section.

  3. Remove all the Juniper and Pulse Secure items from the list by clicking on the list item and clicking Uninstall above the list.

    1. If you are prompted to restart your computer, you may dismiss this pop-up if you are uninstalling multiple programs.

  4. Reboot the computer once you are done.

Removing Associated Files

  1. Open File Explorer by clicking on the folder icon in the taskbar at the bottom of your screen.

  2. Choose This PC from the list in the left section of the window. Then, choose your C:\ drive.

  3. Navigate to Program Files (x86) and remove the Juniper Networks and/or Pulse Secure folders.

    1. If you do not see these folders, check the Program Files folder.

  4. Next, you will need to be able to view Hidden Items. In the top ribbon of your File Explorer Window, click on View. In the Show/hide section, check the box for Hidden items.

  5. Delete the following folders. If you do not see a folder, simply continue to the next step.

    1. C:\ProgramData and delete Pule Secure folder.

    2. C:\Program Files\Common Files and remove Juniper Networks and/or Pulse Secure folder(s).

    3. C:\Users\CurrentUser\AppData\Roaming and remove Juniper Networks and/or Pulse Secure folder(s).

    4. C:\Users\CurrentUser\AppData\Local and remove Juniper Networks and/or Pulse Secure folder(s).

    5. C:\Users\CurrentUser\AppData\Local\Temp and remove all the temp files.

    6. C:\Users\Public and remove Juniper Networks/Pulse Secure folder.

Removing a Device

  1. Check if a Juniper Networks or Pulse Secure adapter is present on the machine. If there is one present, we will remove it manually.

  2. Right-click on the Windows Start menu icon in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen to open the context menu. Choose Device Manager.

    1. Alternatively, click on the Windows Start menu icon in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen to open the Start Menu.

    2. Type in "control."

    3. Open Control Panel.

    4. Click Hardware and Sound, and choose Device Manager.

  3. Expand Network adapters and look for a Juniper virtual adapter. Then, right-click on the list item and choose Uninstall device.

  1. Click on the Windows Start menu icon in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen to open the Start Menu. Once open, type in "regedit." Open Registry Editor.

  2. Follow the file paths listed below to delete the following folders:

64-Bit System

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\ Find the Juniper Networks folder and delete it.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\ Find the Pulse Secure folder and delete it.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ Find the Juniper Networks folder and delete it.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ Find the Pulse Secure folder and delete it.

32-Bit System

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ Find the Juniper Networks folder and delete it.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ Find the Pulse Secure folder and delete it.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ Find the Juniper Networks folder and delete it.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ Find the Pulse Secure folder and delete it.

 

Simple Removal

  1. Click on the Pulse Secure icon located on the top-right screen and select Exit.

  2. Open Finder, and then browse to the Applications Folder.

  3. Click and drag the Pulse Secure icon to the Trash can icon in the taskbar. Enter your username and password if prompted.

  4. Lastly, Pulse Secure will prompt to save Configuration Click No.

Advanced Removal

  1. Open Terminal.

  2. Execute the following commands from the Terminal window to make hidden files visible:

    defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles true  killall Finder

  3. Next, execute the following steps again from Terminal:

    sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/Juniper\ Networks/SetupClient   sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/Juniper\ Networks/HostChecker.app   sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/Pulse\ Secure/SetupClient   sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Support/Pulse\ Secure/HostChecker.app   rm -rf ~/Library/Logs/Juniper\ Networks   rm -rf ~/Library/Logs/Pulse\ Secure   sudo rm -rf /Applications/Network\ Connect.app   sudo rm -rf /Applications/Pulse\ Secure.app   sudo /usr/local/juniper/nc/install/uninstall_nc.sh

    Note: The last command may fail if the file is not found. This is okay.

  4. Open Finder and navigate to each of the following locations. Drag the Juniper and Pulse Secure folders to the Trash.

    1. From the User profile:

      1.  ~/Library/Application Support/ Find the Juniper Networks folder and delete it.

      2. ~/Library/Application Support/ Find the Pulse Secure folder and delete it.

    2. The same location from the root (i.e., Macintosh HD):

      1. /Library/Application Support/ Find the Juniper Networks folder and delete it.

      2. /Library/Application Support/ Find the Pulse Secure folder and delete it. 

  5. This step is required if there are any related files in /Library/LaunchDaemons or /Library/Launch Agents folder. Remove the following:

    1. /Library/LaunchDaemons/net.juniper.UninstallPulse.plist.org

    2. /Library/LaunchDaemons/net.pulse.UninstallPulse.plist.org

    3. /Library/LaunchAgents/net.juniper.UninstallPulse.plist.org

    4. /Library/LaunchAgents/net.pulse.UninstallPulse.plist.org

  6. Execute the following commands from the terminal window to return hidden files to their invisible state:

    defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles FALSE killall Finder