Apps Install or Uninstall VBScript Feature in Windows 11

garlin · Mar 3, 2023

Before you remove it, confirm if you're using WScript functions inside any PowerShell scripts. For example, running a PS wrapper to make it windowless, or using SendKeys.

LesFerch · Apr 24, 2023

Please also note that WinSetView requires VBScript.

Jerry06 · Apr 24, 2023

So I guess Cscript.exe files are out to.

LesFerch · Apr 24, 2023

Jerry06 said:
So I guess Cscript.exe files are out to.

CScript.exe is a console host for running VBScript and JScript scripts. If you uninstall VBScript, you'll still be able to run JScript using CScript.exe or WScript.exe.

Anything you can do with VBScript, you can also do with JScript, so I really see no point in disabling or uninstalling one and not the other.

michaelunify · Sep 20, 2023

Fresh install. No option in GUI or using DSIM to install VBSCRIPT

Edition Windows 11 Pro
Version 22H2
Installed on ‎19/‎09/‎2023
OS build 22621.2134
Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.22659.1000.0

LesFerch · Sep 20, 2023

michaelunify said:
Fresh install. No option in GUI or using DSIM to install VBSCRIPT

Edition Windows 11 Pro
Version 22H2
Installed on ‎19/‎09/‎2023
OS build 22621.2134
Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.22659.1000.0

Note that this tutorial is only applicable to the Canary channel build 25309 or higher. It is currently not applicable to any other channel.

Also note that VBScript is installed on all Windows 11 builds.

michaelunify · Sep 20, 2023

LesFerch said:
Note that this tutorial is only applicable to the Canary channel build 25309 or higher. It is currently not applicable to any other channel.

Also note that VBScript is installed on all Windows 11 builds.

Thank you for the clarification. Details provided to get confirmation from someone else as this doesnt appear to be the case in this instance (GA).

EDIT: its .dll appears to be on disk and in the correct place. "C:\Windows\System32\vbscript.dll"

michaelunify · Sep 21, 2023

My use case was windowless screenshots using task scheduler. I had set execution policy as remotesigned in PowerShell 7 which apparently is set differently to 5.1, once i fixed that in 5.1 it all started working again. Ooops.

Pieter Cooreman · Tuesday at 2:38 AM

After you remove VBScript, can you still use Classic ASP (using VBScript) on a Windows11, using IIS or IIS Express?

LesFerch · Tuesday at 2:49 AM

Pieter Cooreman said:
After you remove VBScript, can you still use Classic ASP (using VBScript) on a Windows11, using IIS or IIS Express?

No. Removing Vbscript totally removes it.

If you were to only disable WSH (Windows Script Host) you can still use Vbscript in Classic ASP or in an HTA.

Also note that you can still use JScript in Classic ASP and HTAs after removing Vbscript.

Pieter Cooreman · Tuesday at 3:03 AM

Thanks! This is good to know. And it's very bad news. I'm still hosting 300 websites using Classic ASP/VBScript. No way I can update those to JScript or .NET...

LesFerch · Tuesday at 3:37 AM

Pieter Cooreman said:
Thanks! This is good to know. And it's very bad news. I'm still hosting 300 websites using Classic ASP/VBScript. No way I can update those to JScript or .NET...

I expect VBScript will remain available as a quick and easy optional install for years to come (like SMB 1).

Pieter Cooreman · Tuesday at 3:55 AM

You're probably right. And that's why it's such a stupid decision. Windows hosting companies will no doubt keep on serving Classic ASP/VBScript. I can understand they disabled VBScript for Edge (MS had better removed Edge completely). But killing off a very popular scripting language, come'on.

LesFerch · Tuesday at 9:20 AM

@Pieter Cooreman As I'm sure you're aware, Microsoft essentially killed off VBScript, as a web language, with the introduction of IE 11 in 2013, so you're maxed out at IE 10 capabilities when using VBScript in web pages. Recently, I was searching around for a website that still required IE, but just gave up and made a local test page and here you've got 300 of them. Are any of those publicly accessible?

BTW, you can add code, like the following, to the top of your key web pages to ensure that users, who have removed VBScript, get a proper error message:

Code:

<script language="VBScript">
Dim TestVar
</script>
<script language="JScript">
try { if (TestVar) {} }
catch(Err) {
  alert("VBScript has been disabled or uninstalled.");
  self.close();
  window.close();
}
</script>

Pieter Cooreman · Tuesday at 9:44 AM

@LesFerch Yes sure, I'm aware VBScript has been taken out of Internet Explorer a while ago. But what I'm interested in here, is whether you can still use VBScript as server-side language in IIS on Windows 11 (in this case) after you've uninstalled it. Maybe Mr. Brink can shed a light? This would require IIS or IIS Express on your local machine, and a text-editor... Let me know if I can help to give this a whirl... Happy to help... thx!

LesFerch · Tuesday at 9:50 AM

Pieter Cooreman said:
@LesFerch Yes sure, I'm aware VBScript has been taken out of Internet Explorer a while ago. But what I'm interested in here, is whether you can still use VBScript as server-side language in IIS on Windows 11 (in this case) after you've uninstalled it. Maybe Mr. Brink can shed a light?

When it's uninstalled from Windows 11, it really is totally uninstalled. It won't be available in IIS or anywhere else. But you're not going to uninstall it from your own server and if Microsoft removes it in a future update, it will be available to reinstall for years, if not decades, to come.

Pieter Cooreman · Tuesday at 12:09 PM

@LesFerch would you be so kind to post the error message you get when you request an .asp from your localhost in IIS? What exactly does IIS return when you request an asp page in case VBScript is deleted?

LesFerch · Tuesday at 12:17 PM

Pieter Cooreman said:
@LesFerch would you be so kind to post the error message you get when you request an .asp from your localhost in IIS? What exactly does IIS return when you request an asp page in case VBScript is deleted?

My previous testing was for client side, so all I used was an HTM file, but I have set up IIS before (years ago) so I'm familiar with it. If I get a chance, I'll set up a test, but it might be quicker for you to do yourself if you have a test server to play with.

Pieter Cooreman · Tuesday at 12:52 PM

The only 2 hosts that I have access to is my old Windows 10 laptop, and a production Windows Server 2019. None of these allow me to remove VBScript yet... I hope you can help me out, but I sure understand if that takes some time...