How to remove
Uninstall Microsoft AutoUpdate
from Windows

Hello. I recently got a pop-up message on my Mac from something called Microsoft AutoUpdate. It claims that it will collect some of the diagnostic data about me. If I do not click "OK," the prompt returns and it is really annoying to me. What is Microsoft AutoUpdate, and why is it on my computer? I never installed it myself.

Microsoft AutoUpdate is a legitimate application component designed for Mac operating systems and is used to support and update MS Office and other Windows programs that run on Macs. In some cases, however, users claim that they do not have any type of Windows app installed on their computers and still see prompts from Microsoft AutoUpdate. So, what is going on? Is Microsoft AutoUpdate a virus? Let's try to find it out in this post.

MS Office productivity suite consists of Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, and other useful programs that are used mainly for work. Fortunately, Mac users can also enjoy this set of apps on Apple products. Note that executable (.exe)[ref en-2] files are only usable for Windows systems, so users need to download a particular version for Mac systems.

Just like any other software, Windows apps for Macs need to be updated for better security and features. For that, Microsoft released a specific component that comes pre-installed with MS Office and other applications - Microsoft AutoUpdate. However, multiple users claimed that they never installed MS Office on their Macs, yet the application appeared seemingly out of nowhere - and this is where the term "Microsoft AutoUpdate virus" comes from.

Users are simply unaware that other Microsoft-related applications, such as OneDrive, Visual Studio, would also install Microsoft AutoUpdate component for the smooth updating process of these apps. Note that the video game engine "Unity," despite being released by Apple, might also be related to the app installed, and users will not find any Microsoft-related apps in the installed app folder.[ref en-1]

Thus, forget the "Microsoft AutoUpdate virus" term, as the app is completely legitimate and all the sources that claim it is malware or Trojan[ref en-3] are wrong. It is true, however, that most do not know how to eliminate the app, as it sometimes annoys users with the frequent prompts about data collection.

Additionally, just like any update prompt (Flash,[ref en-4] for example), users might encounter fake pop-ups on various websites. To avoid downloading fake versions of Microsoft AutoUpdate, make sure it is not coming from Safari, Google Chrome, or another browser - the dialog window should come from the macOS system instead. If you have any doubts about malware, we suggest you scan your machine with [d2] or [d3] or another reputable anti-malware software.

Nevertheless, if you want to uninstall Microsoft AutoUpdate from your computer, you should follow the provided guide below - we explain each step in detail.

Step 1. Stop the process via the Activity Monitor

If you want to uninstall and remove Microsoft AutoUpdate without interruptions, you should first shut down the process related to it. For that, you need to go to the Activity Monitor:

• Click on Finder icon located in your Dock
• Go to Applications > Utilities
• Double-click on Activity Monitor

  

• Once opened, scroll down to locate Microsoft Update Assistant entry
• Click on the Cross (X) located at the left corner of the window
• Confirm with Quit

  

Step 2. Uninstall Microsoft-related applications

• Open Finder and go to Applications folder once again
• Locate all the apps related to Microsoft
• Right-click on each of them (or press and hold Command key, then click on the apps to select them all at once) and select Move to Trash

  

Step 3. Delete the MAU2.0 and other leftover components from your Library

The final step for you to remove Microsoft Update Assistant is getting rid of all the Library entries from your Mac.

• Select Go from the menu bar at the top
• Click on Go to Folder...

  

• Type in ~/Library into the new window and click Go
• From there, find and delete the following entries to complete MS Office removal:
  

  com.microsoft.errorreporting
  com.microsoft.Excel
  com.microsoft.netlib.shipassertprocess
  com.microsoft.Office365ServiceV2
  com.microsoft.Outlook
  com.microsoft.Powerpoint
  com.microsoft.RMS-XPCService
  com.microsoft.Word
  com.microsoft.onenote.mac

• Now delete entries related to Microsoft Update Assistant go to the following locations as explained above and delete these files:
  

  ~/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/MAU2.0/Microsoft AutoUpdate.app
  ~/Library/Preferences/com.microsoft.autoupdate2.plist
  ~/Library/Preferences/com.microsoft.autoupdate.fba.plist
  ~/Library/Application Support/Microsoft AU Daemon
  ~/Library/Saved Application State/com.microsoft.autoupdate2.savedState

After you remove these entries, you should right-click on each of the uninstalled apps' icons on the Dock and select Options > Remove from Dock.

This should conclude the Microsoft AutoUpdate full removal - you should no longer receive the prompts about the seemingly necessary update.

Step 4. Reinstall the Microsoft AutoUpdate to enable new interface

Several people expressed their concern on Microsoft forum[ref en-5] why the Microsoft AutoUpdater (the same version) features different user interfaces. For example, version 19 on one Catalina OS displays a renewed AutoUpdater screen, which shows all Microsoft applications that are or have been installed on the machine. At the same time, the other Mac device that runs exactly the same Microsoft AutoUpdater on Catalina does not provide any details except a claim that "Microsoft software is up-to-date."

I have three computers all running Microsoft AutoUpdater 19 on Catalina.  
On my computer I get a totally new screen with list of previously installed Office 365  programs... nicer.
However the other two computers (one identical to mine) gets the old, traditional gray screen that just says "All updated."
Any idea what is going on?

In this case, you should uninstall Microsoft AutoUpdater as explained above and then download its latest variant from the official Microsoft MAU page.