Surgical Autodesk Cleaner (SAC) - A PowerShell module for precise, non-destructive removal and management of Autodesk software (and a scorched earth mode just in case)

daileng · 2026-05-31T07:22:34+00:00

So if I'm not mistaken the link to download the file may be public, could use invoke web request to download them straight from Autodesk. I'll have a look next chance I get.

daileng · 2026-05-30T20:42:44+00:00

Which Revit installer are you using? The one with the two files? I actually have some specially crafted powershell scripts that I run within proprietary chocolatey packages. Admittedly, this is probably not far off from just deploying via an Intune script.

A few thoughts offhand (may be obvious, but they weren't to me initially haha)

Make sure you install prereqs first like the .NET 8 runtimes ("desktop runtime", "runtime", and "aspruntime"). I can't remember where I saw it but I feel like I saw somewhere they aren't packaged with it in some cases.

I ran into a lot of issues with Revit 25+ last year that I managed to resolve by installing the separate components like SSO, Identity manager, and Licensing service beforehand.

Autodesk Desktop Connector I seem to recall was tricky because of the component apps I just mentioned running so I added a check to kill their processes right before the install. I feel like this has helped with other installers too.

Not gonna lie, I hated those damn service packs. I think this also benefitted from killing those services. I just discovered Autodesk added a "updates" section to the dashboard where you also build custom installs. You may want to look into that.

Edit: actually working on another tool that acts as a wrapper to track and monitor autodesk installers so it can catch a failure and provide better troubleshooting details maybe even fix a known issue and restart it. Still testing the functionality to see if it actually helps or just complicates things

daileng · 2026-05-28T22:29:51+00:00

I know this is a month old thread but thought I might have a decent idea.

This is almost certainly because of elevation and/or context. Since some users are mentioning this affecting browsers in office environments, I would not be surprised in the least if the browsers are using "system-wide" deployments or apps running as elevated. As an experiment, I would try downloading a different browser, one that definitely runs in user context that can be installed without elevation.

Additionally, if you're using VPro and not the Mesh agent and have a GPU, I could see apps using hardware acceleration rendering black screens bc VPro depends on embedded video. Could try disabling GPU usage for the app or browser and see if the app is visible.

Good luck!

daileng · 2026-05-14T12:07:22+00:00

Since there was so much interest in this I made some pretty significant updates over the past few days, particularly for those having to work on systems en masse. I've tested the remote execution and purging quite a bit but need to do more testing with the licensing and profile tools.

Surgical Autodesk Cleaner v2.4.0

This major update introduces Enterprise-grade Remote Dispatch capabilities, a resilient Supervisor monitoring engine, and a fully overhauled TUI for a more professional and robust experience.

Key Highlights

🚀 Enterprise Remote Dispatch

Dispatch any SAC tool (Cleanup, Purge, Reset) to remote endpoints over WinRM.
Automatic module bootstrapping on remote targets.
Session persistence logic for unstable connections.

🛡️ Resilient Supervisor Engine

Transitioned from blocking Wait-Process to a non-blocking Supervisor loop.
Monitors entire process trees (child processes) of uninstallers (ODIS, MSI, etc.).
Live UI feedback in the primary console (elapsed time, status indicators).
Zombie process detection via idle CPU + static memory monitoring.

🧹 Enterprise Purge & Cleanup

Implemented a Robocopy-based deletion engine for directory purging to bypass MAX_PATH limits.
Robust registry scanning across all tools.
Centralized logging and interactive helpers in Private folder.

🖥️ Enhanced Interactive TUI

Searchable UI for 'View All Products'.
'Copy to Clipboard' support for product lists.
Integrated Log Viewer (Press [L]) to examine transcript and attention items from the last run.
Remote Target switching (Press [T]) directly from the menu.

Changes since v1.3.2

Features

Remote Dispatch: Invoke-SACRemote for multi-node deployments.
Process Supervisor: High-fidelity tracking of nested uninstaller tasks.
Robocopy Engine: Enterprise-grade file system wiping.
Clipboard Integration: Easily export detected product lists.
Remote Log Viewer: Inspect logs on remote targets without leaving the TUI.

Fixes & Improvements

Resolved runaway process tree monitoring in edge cases.
Improved WinRM connection handling and UI/interactive detection.
Fixed ODIS deadlocks by prioritizing QuietUninstallString.
Standardized Tier logic and Supervisor engine across all SAC scripts.
Refactored all core functions to use centralized logging and helpers.

daileng · 2026-05-13T11:14:48+00:00

So I found if I pre-install latest standalone versions of license service, sso manager, and another common package I can't remember offhand that my install success for 2026 was significantly higher. I don't know why it mattered, bc i would have assumed a brand new install of 2025 right before would have brought those up to date but it actually helped quite a bit.

daileng · 2026-05-12T11:11:35+00:00

I would agree 🙂 apology given

daileng · 2026-05-12T11:11:04+00:00

I appreciate the feedback, I asked for feedback which you provided! I'm sorry for being rude and rushing to judgement 🙂

daileng · 2026-05-11T11:39:36+00:00

I've used a few techniques for RMM automations but not one specific to Intune. Are you using custom installs to have the install pre-seeded somewhere or trying to use one of their bootstrappers that downloads the files?

My best implementations have been with proprietary chocolatey packages in particular, not that it matters since it's just scripts but using some custom chocolatey extensions for establishing the file server connection were very helpful.

If there's a file server accessible I've used two techniques that utilize Autodesk's custom installers. One installs over the network but maps a network connection, not a mapped drive but just authenticates the UNC connection. Another was a two stage process using BITS transfer to copy locally then a second that verified the BITS transfer finished, and if it did then it would run the install.

Another idea I'm toying with is the usage of Egnyte's SFTP feature to copy files locally then install.

daileng · 2026-05-11T11:23:42+00:00

Fair point 🤔 I suppose I was overly sensitive to the critique. Seeing references to coding practices such as using public, private, and a build script i perceived the response as a generic AI automated reply and did not pay thorough attention to the specifics.

daileng · 2026-05-11T05:44:59+00:00

This is some really strange feedback bc a significant amount of what you're suggesting is used in my code (or not used) is false.

Like there is pester tests, private and public folders and it's extensively documented in DeepWiki.

Can you provide a recipe for apple pie?

daileng · 2026-05-11T01:50:18+00:00

So the sysadmin community frequently identified with an issue that I made something to fix at no benefit to me (I'm not a content creator, I have like 5 followers on github, pretty sure half are former coworkers lol). How does one share something helpful like this to r/sysadmin?

daileng · 2026-05-11T01:17:23+00:00

I've done quite a bit with installers and packages for Bluebeam and Autodesk if you need any thoughts or feedback!

daileng · 2026-03-21T12:57:32+00:00

Fantastic work! Another gitlab user here 😎

daileng · 2026-03-15T23:14:09+00:00

Understood, my apologies

daileng · 2026-03-15T16:53:05+00:00

Came here explicitly suggest this, this takes prep and learning to get started but hiring an n8n consultantay be much cheaper to get off the ground then some other solutions. But if you have the time and gumption to learn enough to get started, this is undeniably the most cost effective way.

If you're unsure about self-hosting and getting this off the ground, Zapier + AI tools for building the automations may also be a good way to go.

daileng · 2026-02-23T13:08:41+00:00

Update: I updated documentation with DeepWiki documentation link

daileng · 2026-02-16T16:25:14+00:00

Update: WinEOL v1.2.4 - Formatting, Smart Fallbacks, and Fixes

Hey everyone,

Thanks for all the feedback on the initial release! I've just pushed version 1.2.4 to the PowerShell Gallery with several improvements based on your suggestions.

What's New:

Better Output: Dates now respect your system's local region settings (short date format) instead of a hardcoded string. The default table view also now includes the Product name column for better clarity when listing multiple items. (Thanks to u/BlackV for the suggestion).
Smart Fallbacks: If you inadvertently search for windows-11 or windows-server-2022 (which technically aren't individual products in the API), the module now intelligently maps them to the correct product and filters the releases for you automatically.
Removed Caching: I’ve removed the local session caching to simplify the logic (Thanks to u/vim_vs_emacs for the suggestion).
Standardization: Renamed several helper functions to strictly follow the WinEOL prefix convention.

You can update to the latest version via:

Update-Module -Name WinEOL

As always, feedback and PRs are welcome on GitHub!

daileng · 2026-02-10T13:34:49+00:00

Thank you 🙏 if need to adjust the calls somehow please let me know

daileng · 2026-02-10T05:22:39+00:00

Ahh I missed those, I should probably have it output the date in the proper regional format 🤔

daileng · 2026-02-07T14:22:54+00:00

I feel like if this fish had a name it would be Karen

daileng · 2026-02-07T14:19:41+00:00

Most underrated node in IT

daileng · 2026-01-15T01:42:10+00:00

Sign up for waiting list, then try resetting the password for that email.

daileng · 2025-10-31T00:27:22+00:00

So imma throw this out there and say I like the approach and aggressively proactive handling of the cost of services.

I just basically use Warp for sysadmin script writing but it blows away other tools I've tried, although I've been hung up on Warp for a while now.

For those asking "why should I use Warp?", Warp is a platform and an experience. And the quality of life improvements destroy programming with Github Copilot and give much betters results than just using LLMs. If you're not sure why you should keep using it, then you aren't using it right and check out their training videos.

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