Well said, Lorne. However, you know what they say about assumptions...

Two key questions have not been asked or answered yet - whether it is a workstation or server that is having the (un)install problem - and what was the reason for performing the (un)install in the first place? Then again, they are irrelevant, as the problem still exists and must be resolved regardless.
Yes, servers do take a bit more time to setup, but that all depends on what you are running and how much you need to configure as well. I had upgraded our server last year starting with new raw components, put them together, installed and configured the software. Was nice to have a fresh start on a much faster machine.
Anyway, if you go forward with the rebuild, I would recommend creating a Ghost image when you're done, and save yourself some time in the event this happens again. Don't know if any of this is any help to you Vicki, but again, best of luck to you.