Shareaza Toolbar, a.k.a. Music Toolbar is specifically designed only for Internet Explorer and Google Chrome. If you use some other browser, you may not even notice that you have it in your computer. Chrome actually even disables this add-on by default, as it did not come from its own extension shop, however, IE does not operate under the same settings and if you are browsing with it, you will notice the Music Toolbar instantly. You will probably want to delete Shareaza Toolbar because of the simple fact that it considerably slows down your browser. Plus, the functions it offers are also really slow and not at all exclusive or the least bit more useful than a simple online radio.
This extension is an add-on from Bandoo Media Inc. It is not by any means malicious, however, it can quite quickly prove to be a nuisance, and so it would be categorized as a potentially unwanted application. While this extension does not have its own download page, its main source is at shareaza.com. This is where you can download Shareaza P2P client with which the toolbar is bundled in hopes that you will rush through the installation process and unintentionally let it in your computer. While this practice is not illegal, it is not entirely ethical either, and it alone may make you want to remove Shareaza Toolbar.
If you have not download the Shareaza P2P client, you may be not clear on why the Music Toolbar is sitting in your Internet Explorer. The answer to that is that it probably used the same technique to get in, simply with another freeware or shareware program of thousands that are available online at all kinds of more or less reputable download websites. As it has been mentioned already, this is not an illegal practice. In fact, you can easily avoid unwanted programs being installed if you simply take a few more minutes while installing something and look over what is being offered to consent to.
Fortunately, it is not an impossible task to remove Shareaza Toolbar when it is already in. If you have seen reports of people not being able to delete it, that was due to a bug in the program which has since been fixed and should not interfere with your efforts to get rid of the Music Toolbar. After you uninstall it, you will still need to reverse your browser settings, because they will not be back to normal automatically. Even though Shareaza Toolbar is not by any means a computer infection, it would still be a good idea to scan your computer, because the fact that it still got in means that you are downloading freeware or shareware programs, and while some of them are perfectly genuine, others can lead to malware.
Shareaza Toolbar Removal Guide
Windows XP:
- Click Start.
- Open Control Panel.
- Select Add or Remove Programs.
- Click on and Uninstall the programs you want to remove.
Windows Vista/7:
- Click Start.
- Go to Control Panel.
- Choose Remove a program.
- Select and Uninstall the programs you do not want.
Windows 8:
- Open the Metro UI screen.
- Right-click on any of the programs.
- Click Uninstall on the tab that will appear below.
- You will be taken to Programs and Features.
- Here, select and Uninstall the programs that you want to get rid of.
Change your browser settings:
Internet Explorer:
- Press Alt+T.
- Go to Internet Options.
- Under Home page, click the Use default button.
- Press Alt+T.
- Go to Manage Add-ons.
- Select the Search providers tab.
- Delete the unwanted search engine.
- Select a search engine you want to use.
Google Chrome:
- Press Alt+F.
- Go to Settings.
- Under Appearance, click Change below the Show Home button.
- Type in the URL of the website you want to have as a home page.
- Under Search, click Manage search engines…
- Hover over the search engine you want to use for options to appear.
- Click Make default.
- Repeat the step 6 for the search engine you want to delete.
- Click X to remove it.