Resolving WinCC flexible 2008 SP2 Uninstall HmiES Lock Error

Problem Statement

During uninstallation of Siemens WinCC flexible 2008 SP2 (and adjacent builds such as SP3/SP4 ES and Runtime), the installer halts immediately after launch with the following message:

Please close the application WinCC flexible, reboot your computer and start this setup again.

Rebooting the workstation does not clear the condition. The Setup guard returns the same prompt on every retry, blocking both uninstall and reinstall paths. The error originates from the WinCC flexible setup bootstrap (setup.exe) which probes for a sentinel — the running HmiES.exe process and several SIMATIC HMI services — and refuses to proceed if any of them are present in a state it interprets as "application open".

Affected Versions and Environment

Root Cause Analysis

The WinCC flexible setup bootstrap performs three independent guard checks at startup. Any single failure causes the "close the application" prompt:

1. Process scan: Enumerates running processes for HmiES.exe, HmiRTm.exe, CCStartSm.exe, and the WinCC flexible ES IDE shell HMIRES.exe.
2. Service scan: Probes the SCM (Service Control Manager) for installed SIMATIC HMI services that report START_PENDING or RUNNING.
3. Pending-file-rename / reboot flag: Checks the registry value PendingFileRenameOperations under HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager. If non-empty, Setup returns the prompt even when no WinCC process is running.

Two distinct failure modes are documented in the field:

Solution 1 — Terminate the Orphaned HmiES Process

This is the fastest path when an HmiES.exe instance is left running after a crash or forced logoff.

Procedure

1. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Windows Task Manager.
2. Select the Processes tab. On Windows 2000/XP, enable Show processes from all users via the checkbox at the bottom.
3. Locate any of the following processes (each is independently capable of triggering the guard):
   • HmiES.exe — WinCC flexible Engineering Station shell
   • HmiRTm.exe — Runtime manager
   • CCStartSm.exe — Control Center starter / sm@rtClient
   • HMIRES.exe — Engineering resource service
4. Select the process and click End Process. Confirm the warning dialog.
5. If the process re-spawns within 2-3 seconds, a service is launching it. Proceed to Solution 2 first, then return.
6. Re-launch the WinCC flexible 2008 SP2 Setup immediately without rebooting.

Solution 2 — Disable SIMATIC HMI Services via msconfig

This addresses Mode B (locked services) and is also effective as a preventive measure before reinstall.

Procedure

1. Close all open applications.
2. Click Start → Run, type msconfig, press Enter.
3. Switch to the Services tab.
4. Check Hide all Microsoft services to filter out OS services.
5. Locate every service whose Manufacturer or Display Name contains SIMATIC HMI or Siemens AG. Typical entries:

6. Uncheck the checkbox next to every Siemens entry. Confirm Disable.
7. Click OK. msconfig prompts to reboot — accept.
8. After reboot, run Setup. The guard will pass because no SIMATIC HMI service is in START_PENDING state.
9. Once uninstall (or install) completes, return to msconfig → Services and re-enable the entries you disabled. Reboot once more.

Solution 3 — Clear the Pending-File-Rename Reboot Flag

Use this when Solutions 1 and 2 fail and the prompt persists on a clean boot with no visible WinCC processes.

Procedure

1. Open regedit as Administrator.
2. Navigate to HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager.
3. Inspect the value PendingFileRenameOperations (type REG_MULTI_SZ). If populated, it lists file paths with rename/delete actions queued for the next boot.
4. Export the key as a safety backup (File → Export).
5. Delete the PendingFileRenameOperations value only. Do not delete the parent key.
6. Reboot, then run Setup.

Solution 4 — MSI Cleanup with the Windows Installer Cleanup Utility

If Setup continues to fail after applying Solutions 1-3, an MSI database entry for WinCC flexible may be orphaned in the Windows Installer registry.

Procedure

1. Download the legacy Windows Installer Cleanup Utility (MSICUU2.exe) — note that Microsoft has retired public distribution; obtain from an internal Microsoft portal or an approved ESD source if your environment permits.
2. Launch msicuu2.exe and remove any entry whose product name begins with WinCC flexible or whose publisher is Siemens AG.
3. Reboot and re-attempt Setup.

Solution 5 — Clean Reinstall Procedure (Post-Uninstall)

After successful uninstall, follow this sequence to install a known-good copy of WinCC flexible 2008 SP2 (or upgrade to SP3/SP4):

1. Confirm the install media matches the build. Mount the ISO or insert the DVD; verify the setup.exe size matches the manifest in the package.
2. Temporarily disable antivirus real-time scanning. SIMATIC HMI installs write large numbers of registry entries and files; aggressive AV heuristics can interrupt the MSI sequence and reintroduce the pending-reboot flag.
3. From the elevated context, run setup.exe /silent for unattended deployment or simply launch setup.exe interactively.
4. After install, re-enable the SIMATIC HMI services via msconfig or sc config.
5. Apply the latest hotfix from the Siemens support portal. Search for the WinCC flexible 2008 SP2/3/4 readme referencing your target panel family (e.g., MP 277, TP 177B, Comfort Panels).
6. Activate the license via Automation License Manager. A missing license does not cause the uninstall prompt but causes silent Runtime exit shortly after project start.

Verification

After Setup completes, validate the installation state with the following checks:

Siemens Official Reference

The same class of issue is addressed in Siemens Entry ID 28465761, which documents the message:

"Please restart Windows before installing new programs"

and applies to Windows XP / 2000 / Vista. Although the entry text differs from the "close the application" wording observed in the field, both prompts originate from the same Setup bootstrap guard family, and the remediation in the Siemens KB — a forced reboot and Windows Installer cleanup — is consistent with the procedure above.

Troubleshooting Matrix

Prevention Checklist

• Always shut down WinCC flexible ES via File → Exit, never by closing the IDE window directly. Power-user shortcut: do not log off with HmiES still in the foreground.
• Before any Windows Update or major AV update, close ES and stop SIMATIC HMI services to avoid leaving PendingFileRenameOperations populated.
• Maintain a Windows Installer baseline image (WIM) of the engineering workstation so a known-good state can be restored in < 30 minutes.
• Use a dedicated local Administrator account for WinCC flexible installs — not a domain user with roaming profile and not a non-admin UAC-elevated session.
• Document the install build (SP2/SP3/SP4 + Hotfix number) on the workstation asset record; reuse the exact build across the fleet to simplify license management and update propagation.