What Is HP Support Assistant & Should I Remove It?

What Is HP Support Assistant

Nowadays, more and more PC manufacturers like to pre-install many programs on the PC and HP is no exception. One of HP PC pre-installed programs is HP Support Assistant (HPSA). It is a free utility on Hewlett Packard computers released after 2012 that helps avoid and resolve problems with the computer using updates and self-help options.

This software can help you do the following things:

• Update drivers. It can search the best driver for HP devices including the PC, printer, scanner, etc.
• Check PC information including serial number, system board, system BIOS, CPU, GPU, RAM, hard drive, audio device, etc.
• Diagnose HP battery, hard drive, network, and optical drive.
• Contact HP support service more easily.

Of course, there are other things it can do but I don’t mention because I think those features are a little useless. Only the above 4 features are important to users.

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Should I Remove HP Support Assistant

HP Support Assistant should I remove it? Some people may ask this question. Actually, it’s up to you. But before you make a decision, you can refer to the following factors:

1. Do you need this software?

In most times, you don’t need this software. Windows built-in Device Manager can help you update driver. You can also find the PC information in other tools like Windows system information, DirectX Diagnostic Tool, BIOS, etc.

But sometimes, you may need the HP battery, hard drive, and optical drive diagnostic tools. In addition, if you want to find the PC information more easily, this software is also a good choice.

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2. Does this software conflict with Windows?

This software doesn’t conflict with Windows but a post from techradar reporting that the HP Support Assistant software was found to have several unpatched vulnerabilities which could have let hackers access the system remotely, make changes in privileges or even execute arbitrary files.

Although this post is a little old, but it’s sure that the more software you have installed, the more vulnerabilities you may get.

Therefore, I would recommend you to uninstall this software if you don’t use this software frequently. When you need to use this software, you can download and install it again.

How to Uninstall HP Support Assistant

HP does not recommend removing HP Support Assistant. But if you want to uninstall it, you can uninstall the HP Support Assistant like other programs. Here is the guide:

• In Windows, search for an open Uninstall a program.
• On the Programs and Features window, select HP Support Assistant, and then click Uninstall.
• Click Yes to confirm you want to uninstall HP Support Assistant.
• Restart your computer to complete the process.

If you want to use this software again, you can download its setup package from HP website and then install it.

If you want to keep this software but you don’t want it to open automatically and interrupts other tasks on the computer, you can prevent it from starting automatically or adjust the time HP Support Assistant performs tasks.

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