Uninstall DeepSeek Harness on Windows, macOS, and Linux

The hard part of uninstalling DeepSeek Harness is never the command; it is knowing which paths to delete and which to keep. Commands differ little across platforms, but paths differ a lot: the program lives in the global npm directory, the cache in npm's cache directory, and your configuration and sessions in the data directory $DSH_HOME (default ~/.dsh). This article lists all three tiers for Windows, macOS, and Linux, with a way to verify each.

How to uninstall DeepSeek Harness: program, cache, data

Uninstalling DeepSeek Harness starts with three tiers, and only then do platform differences matter, because each tier is a different path with a very different cost of getting it wrong (source).

The order in which to decide:

1. Identify how the program was installed. The no-install npx path has no global files, a global install needs the uninstall command, and a source build just deletes the repository directory. Expected: getting this right clears the program tier in one step; getting it wrong leaves something that still runs.
2. Decide about the cache. The cache is only a downloaded copy. Expected: keeping it changes nothing but disk usage, so clear it only if you want a spotless machine.
3. Decide about the data. The data directory holds profiles, configuration, and sessions. Expected: keep it and a reinstall restores everything; delete it and you have reset the environment.

The full method-by-method comparison is in how to uninstall DeepSeek Harness.

Uninstall DeepSeek Harness on Windows: global directory, PATH, data

Uninstalling DeepSeek Harness on Windows takes four steps: stop the process, remove the program, clear the cache, settle the data (source).

1. Stop the running process first. Close every dsh window and, if needed, end leftover Node processes in Task Manager. Expected: netstat -ano | findstr :3080 prints nothing, so the port is free.
2. Remove the program. If you installed globally, run npm uninstall -g @deepseek-ai/dsh. Expected: the dsh command stops working.
3. Check the global directory and command shims. Run npm root -g for the real global node_modules path, typically %APPDATA%\npm\node_modules on Windows, while the command shims sit alongside in %APPDATA%\npm. Expected: the package directory is gone and the shims disappear with it.
4. Clear the cache. Get the cache directory with npm config get cache and delete its _npx subfolder. Expected: the no-install downloads are removed without touching other Node projects.
5. Settle the data. The data directory is %USERPROFILE%\\.dsh. Expected: keep it for a future reinstall, or delete the whole folder for a clean break, after a backup.

Uninstall DeepSeek Harness on macOS: global node_modules, Finder

On macOS the trick is to get the real path from a command first, then confirm it in Finder (source).

1. Stop the process and confirm the port. Close dsh in your terminal and run lsof -i :3080. Expected: no output means the server has stopped.
2. Remove the program. Run npm uninstall -g @deepseek-ai/dsh. Expected: the command is no longer available.
3. Get the global node_modules path. Run npm root -g. Expected: the path depends on how Node was installed, so it may be a system directory or inside an nvm version folder; never copy a fixed path from an article.
4. Confirm leftovers in Finder. Press Cmd+Shift+G, paste the path, and press return. Expected: you see immediately whether the package folder is still there, which beats cd-ing through directories in a terminal.
5. Settle the data. The data directory is ~/.dsh, that is /Users/<your-name>/.dsh. Expected: it is not a system app cache, so decide about sessions before deleting it.

Uninstall DeepSeek Harness on Linux: permissions and autostart

On Linux, uninstalling DeepSeek Harness most often stalls on permissions and autostart leftovers (source).

1. Decide whether you need sudo. If Node came from a system package, the global node_modules belongs to root. Expected: without sudo you get a permission error, which is a privilege problem rather than a broken package; see uninstall failed for the treatment.
2. Remove the program. Run npm uninstall -g @deepseek-ai/dsh, with sudo if the previous step says so. Expected: the command is no longer available.
3. Check the global directory. Run npm root -g and confirm the path, commonly under a system node_modules, or inside your home directory when Node came from nvm. Expected: nvm users need neither sudo nor system directories.
4. Check autostart and background processes. If you wrote a systemd unit or a background launch script yourself, stop and remove it too. Expected: pgrep -af dsh returns no process, so nothing keeps holding port 3080 after the uninstall.
5. Settle the data. The data directory is /home/<your-name>/.dsh. Expected: back it up before deleting, especially when you want to keep session data.

DSH plugins and leftovers: confirming clean, keeping for reinstall

Confirming a clean uninstall means checking three layers: program, port, and data (source).

1. Program layer. Run dsh --version and inspect npm ls -g --depth=0. Expected: the first reports no such command and the second no longer lists @deepseek-ai/dsh.
2. Port layer. Check whether 3080 is still listening (lsof -i :3080 on macOS and Linux, netstat -ano | findstr :3080 on Windows). Expected: empty output is clean; anything else means a process is still alive.
3. Data layer. Confirm the state of $DSH_HOME matches what you intended. Expected: for a reinstall you should still see it, and for a clean break you should see it gone.
4. Never hand-delete DSH plugin files. To remove only some DSH plugins, use the uninstall action in the installed list. Expected: Hub shows a confirmation dialog naming the plugin and its source repository, and removes nothing until you confirm, which guards against deleting a plugin you still want.
5. Keep the data if you plan to reinstall. Leave the data directory alone while removing the program. Expected: configuration, sessions, and plugin records return intact after reinstalling; see uninstall, reinstall, and data migration.

Caveats and limits of uninstalling DeepSeek Harness by platform

1. Same command, different paths. npm uninstall -g works the same on all three platforms, but leftovers move with how Node was installed, so always query npm root -g live.
2. The data directory is out of scope. No uninstall command touches $DSH_HOME; deciding its fate is on you, and a backup comes first.
3. Permission errors are not failed uninstalls. An EACCES on Linux usually just means you need sudo or an nvm-managed Node, not a Node reinstall.
4. Autostart leftovers are the easiest to miss. A service or background script you configured by hand does not vanish with the package and keeps holding the port, which confuses later upgrades and reinstalls.
5. Where a full clean ends. Deleting all three tiers is a complete clean, while deleting only the program is a routine uninstall; for leftover cleanup see how to clear leftovers.

To remove DSH plugins rather than all of DSH, use the installed list in DSH Plugin Hub, where source tags let you clear only the manually installed ones.

Sources: DeepSeek Harness README (official repository), dsh CLI README (official repository), npm uninstall docs