How To Uninstall Riot Vanguard

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Ready to Reclaim Your PC? A Comprehensive Guide to Uninstalling Riot Vanguard

Are you ready to say goodbye to Riot Vanguard and free up some resources on your PC? Maybe you're not playing Valorant or League of Legends anymore, or perhaps you're experiencing system issues and want to rule out the anti-cheat as the cause. Whatever your reason, this guide will walk you through the process, from a simple uninstall to a deep, clean sweep. Let's get started and make your PC feel a little lighter!

Step 1: Prepare for a Smooth Uninstallation

Before you dive into the uninstallation process, it's crucial to make sure Riot Vanguard and any related games are not actively running. If you try to uninstall while the anti-cheat is still running in the background, you'll likely encounter errors and roadblocks.

First things first, let's close Vanguard.

Look for the Riot Vanguard icon in your system tray, which is the area in the bottom-right corner of your taskbar, near the clock. It looks like a small, orange shield.

Right-click on the Riot Vanguard icon.
A menu will pop up. Select "Exit Vanguard".
A confirmation window will appear asking if you want to continue. Click "Yes".

This action will temporarily stop the Vanguard anti-cheat service from running on your device. Now, let's proceed with the uninstallation.

Step 2: The Standard Uninstallation Method

This is the most straightforward way to uninstall Riot Vanguard and should work for most users.

Using Windows Settings (The Modern Approach)

This method is recommended for Windows 10 and 11 users.

Press the Windows key + I on your keyboard to open the Settings app.
Navigate to Apps, and then click on Installed apps (or Apps & features, depending on your Windows version).
Scroll down the list of installed programs until you find Riot Vanguard. You can also use the search bar at the top to find it quickly.
Once you've located it, click on it. You will see an "Uninstall" button.
Click Uninstall and follow the on-screen prompts. A pop-up might ask for confirmation; click Uninstall again.
The uninstallation wizard will guide you through the rest of the process.

Using the Control Panel (The Classic Way)

If you prefer the traditional Control Panel, you can use this method.

Press the Windows key + R to open the Run dialog box.
Type Control Panel and press Enter.
In the Control Panel, under "Programs," click on "Uninstall a program".
Find Riot Vanguard in the list of programs.
Right-click on it and select "Uninstall".
Follow the prompts to complete the uninstallation.

Important Note: After using either of these methods, you should restart your computer. This is a crucial step to ensure that all services related to Vanguard are properly shut down and removed from memory.

Step 3: Performing a Deeper Clean (Manual Removal)

Sometimes, the standard uninstallation might not remove all traces of Riot Vanguard, especially its system-level components. If you want to ensure a complete and thorough removal, or if the standard methods failed, this step is for you.

Sub-step 3.1: Use Command Prompt to Delete Services

This is a powerful method that directly interacts with Windows services. You'll need to run Command Prompt as an administrator.

Click on the Start Menu and type CMD.
When "Command Prompt" appears in the search results, right-click on it and select "Run as administrator". This is essential for these commands to work.
In the Command Prompt window, type the following commands one by one and press Enter after each one:
- sc delete vgc
- sc delete vgk
These commands tell Windows to delete the vgc and vgk services, which are the core components of Riot Vanguard. You should see a success message after each command.
Now, restart your computer immediately.

Sub-step 3.2: Manually Delete Leftover Files

Even after uninstalling and deleting the services, some leftover files and folders might still exist. Let's get rid of them.

Open File Explorer (press Windows key + E).
Navigate to the following locations and delete any folders named "Riot Vanguard" or "Riot Games" that you find.
- C:\Program Files\
- C:\Riot Games\
Now, let's check some hidden application data folders.
- Press Windows key + R to open the Run dialog.
- Type %appdata% and press Enter. In the folder that opens, look for a folder named "Riot Games" and delete it.
- Repeat the process by typing %localappdata% and pressing Enter. Again, delete any "Riot Games" folder you find.
- Repeat one more time by typing %programdata% and pressing Enter. Delete the "Riot Games" folder if it exists.

Sub-step 3.3: (Optional) Clean Up the Registry

This step is for advanced users. Editing the registry incorrectly can cause system instability, so proceed with caution. If you're not comfortable, you can skip this step or use a trusted registry cleaner tool like CCleaner.

Press Windows key + R to open the Run dialog.
Type regedit and press Enter to open the Registry Editor.
In the Registry Editor, go to File > Export and save a backup of your registry. This is your safety net in case something goes wrong.
Use the search function (Ctrl + F) to search for "Riot Vanguard" and "vanguard".
Carefully examine the search results. If you find any keys or entries related to Riot Vanguard, delete them. Be extremely careful not to delete any unrelated keys.

Step 4: The Final Check

After completing all the steps, it's a good idea to check your system to ensure that Riot Vanguard is truly gone.

Check your system tray again for the Riot Vanguard icon. It should be gone.
Go to Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and check the "Processes" and "Startup" tabs. You should not see any processes or entries related to Riot Vanguard or its services (vgc.exe, vgtray.exe, etc.).
Check the "Services" tab in Task Manager or open the Services app by typing services.msc in the Run dialog. The vgc and vgk services should no longer be listed.

Congratulations! You have successfully uninstalled Riot Vanguard from your system.

10 Related FAQs:

How to uninstall Riot Vanguard if it's not showing in the Apps list?

If Riot Vanguard is not listed in your Windows Apps & Features or Control Panel, it's likely a remnant that needs to be removed manually. Use the Command Prompt method (sc delete vgc and sc delete vgk) followed by manually deleting the leftover files and folders from C:\Program Files, C:\Riot Games, and the AppData folders.

How to remove Riot Vanguard from startup?

You can stop Riot Vanguard from running on startup by either exiting the service from the system tray icon (right-click and select "Exit Vanguard") or, for a more permanent solution, by using the Command Prompt to delete its core services. After a reboot, it will not run automatically unless you reinstall it.

How to uninstall Valorant and Riot Vanguard at the same time?

It's generally recommended to uninstall Riot Vanguard first, and then uninstall Valorant. Vanguard is a kernel-level anti-cheat that can interfere with the uninstallation of the game client. Once Vanguard is removed, uninstalling Valorant is a much simpler process through the standard Windows Apps menu.

How to fix "Riot Vanguard prevents uninstallation" error?

This error often occurs when the Vanguard service is still running. The primary fix is to ensure you've properly exited Vanguard from the system tray before attempting the uninstall. If that doesn't work, using the Command Prompt to delete the services is a reliable solution.

How to uninstall Riot Vanguard using Command Prompt?

To uninstall Riot Vanguard using Command Prompt, you need to run CMD as an administrator and execute two commands: sc delete vgc and sc delete vgk. This will delete the core Vanguard services. Remember to restart your PC afterward.

How to delete Riot Vanguard folder manually?

After stopping the Vanguard service, you can manually delete its folder by navigating to C:\Program Files\Riot Vanguard and deleting the entire folder. You should also check for a Riot Games folder in C:\ and delete any Vanguard-related files there.

How to uninstall Riot Vanguard in Safe Mode?

If you are having trouble uninstalling Vanguard in normal Windows mode, you can try uninstalling in Safe Mode. To do this, restart your PC and enter the advanced startup options. Choose "Troubleshoot" > "Advanced options" > "Startup Settings" > "Restart" and then select "Enable Safe Mode". Once in Safe Mode, you can try the standard uninstall method.

How to completely remove all Riot Games files?

For a complete clean sweep, you must uninstall both Valorant and Riot Vanguard, use the Command Prompt to delete the Vanguard services, and then manually delete all Riot Games folders from C:\Program Files, C:\, %appdata%, %localappdata%, and %programdata%.

How to reinstall Riot Vanguard after uninstalling it?

To reinstall Riot Vanguard, you simply need to launch the Riot Client for a game like Valorant or League of Legends. The client will detect that Vanguard is missing and prompt you to download and install it again. A system restart will be required to complete the installation.

How to check if Riot Vanguard is running on my PC?

You can check if Riot Vanguard is running by looking for its icon (an orange shield) in the system tray in the bottom-right corner of your taskbar. You can also open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and look for vgtray.exe and vgc.exe in the "Processes" tab.

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