How to uninstall SQL Server Management Studio on Windows
Save SQL scripts, finish or cancel running queries and export server registrations before removing SQL Server Management Studio. In View › Registered Servers, right-click the group and choose Tasks › Export. Microsoft documents the .regsrvr export; do not assume it preserves every saved password. Export wanted environment settings through Tools › Import and Export Settings, following Microsoft's settings guide. This guide covers the standalone SSMS 20 installation, not SSMS 22's Visual Studio Installer flow.
Close and uninstall SSMS 20
Close SSMS and check Task Manager for Ssms.exe. Go to Settings › Apps › Installed apps › Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio 20 › Uninstall, or run:
winget uninstall --id Microsoft.SQLServerManagementStudio --exact
Select the matching version if more than one is installed. The tested entry used a Burn uninstaller; let it finish before touching the program folder. Removing this management client does not uninstall a SQL Server database engine.
Keep connections and shared libraries
These paths were observed in the test.
| Location | What to do |
|---|---|
%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio 20 |
Let the vendor uninstaller remove the SSMS 20 program |
%APPDATA%\Microsoft\SQL Server Management Studio |
Keep server registrations and settings; the tested root contained RegSrvr17.xml and multiple version folders |
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\SQL Server Management Studio |
Review retained settings and indexes together; not disposable cache as a whole |
HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\SQL Server Management Studio |
Keep versioned user settings unless you deliberately reset them |
SQL Client SDK libraries, Visual Studio state and installer caches can be shared. Do not use a broad Visual Studio cleanup to remove SSMS 20; Microsoft warns that InstallCleanup can affect other products.
Check the result
Get-Process Ssms -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
winget list --id Microsoft.SQLServerManagementStudio --exact
Test-Path "${env:ProgramFiles(x86)}\Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio 20"
Test-Path "$env:APPDATA\Microsoft\SQL Server Management Studio"
Test-Path "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Microsoft\SQL Server Management Studio"
No process output means that executable name is not running. A remaining winget match may be another SSMS version; check its version before interpreting it. True means the specific directory remains and False means it does not. Retained connection settings are expected and do not mean the program remains installed. An error leaves the check unresolved.
What Mole lists
The behavior below describes the October 3, 2026 test build. The corresponding fixes are still being tested; this does not establish that the current download includes them. The manual uninstall steps above still apply.
The SSMS 20 program directory, its matching shortcuts and usage records are selected by default. The Local and Roaming user settings folders, IsoShell settings keys, SQL client libraries and shared Visual Studio state are not offered as SSMS-only removal targets. Keep exported settings and database files separately.
What this test covered
Retested on October 3, 2026 with SSMS 20.2.1, machine-wide winget installation on an ARM64 VM. Its installation record displayed 20.2.37.0. The Burn uninstall completed, and the program directory and matching shortcuts disappeared; user settings from the earlier test remained. Real server connections, credential recovery, database operations and a separate vendor-only removal were not verified.