How to uninstall PhpStorm on Windows
This record covers PhpStorm 2026.2.2, registered version 262.10315.130, installed through winget JetBrains.PhpStorm with machine scope. Back up the folders below when retaining data.
Close the app
Close the window and tray entry, then check phpstorm64.exe in Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc). Match the executable path before quitting a process.
Data and settings
| Location | Action |
|---|---|
%LOCALAPPDATA%\JetBrains\Daemon |
Shared JetBrains program component; handled only for the last installed product |
%LOCALAPPDATA%\JetBrains\PhpStorm2026.2 |
Inspect and back up settings or data; retain content shared with other apps |
%APPDATA%\JetBrains\PhpStorm2026.2 |
Inspect and back up settings or data; retain content shared with other apps |
Remove with the vendor uninstaller
Find the app in Settings › Apps › Installed apps and uninstall it. Keep the vendor’s data-retention option when saving data; use the uninstaller rather than deleting the program folder.
For the measured winget installation, you can also run this command.
winget uninstall --id JetBrains.PhpStorm --exact
Check the result
Get-Process -Name 'phpstorm64' -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
winget list --id JetBrains.PhpStorm --exact
Test-Path "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\JetBrains\Daemon"
Test-Path "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\JetBrains\PhpStorm2026.2"
No process output means no matching process was observed. A completed installation query with no match means the measured registration is absent; a query error does not prove removal. Test-Path returns True if the folder remains and False if absent. True is expected when retaining data.
What Mole lists
%LOCALAPPDATA%\JetBrains\Daemon selected by default; %LOCALAPPDATA%\JetBrains\PhpStorm2026.2 listed but unchecked; %APPDATA%\JetBrains\PhpStorm2026.2 listed but unchecked; HKCU\SOFTWARE\Classes\jetbrains selected by default. The program folder and measured shortcuts are handled with the app. Registrations are backed up before removal; files go to the Recycle Bin. Items already removed by the vendor read Missing. Both versioned Local and Roaming directories are personal data, unchecked by default and excluded from bulk selection. Removing either requires selecting its row individually; Local History and scratch files do not regenerate with caches. Another installed copy of the same IDE version keeps both directories.
What this test covered
Recorded in Windows 11 ARM64 source tests on 2026-10-03, uninstall type Nsis. The released download, account sign-in, subscriptions, synced content and other installation channels were not verified.
The October 4, 2026 review added a product-specific positive test for both personal-data directories, another installed copy and bulk-selection exclusion. Real history and scratch-file retention was retested in IntelliJ IDEA; this product was not separately retested with real history. Earlier explicitly selected data-removal runs do not prove data retention. The released download was not verified.