An overview of the system registry

Your computer’s system registry is basically the information compartment for Windows Operating System. It keeps the data to which a Windows OS refers when operating ports, folders and drivers connected to the Windows Operating System. By changing or editing any information on the system registry you can disable or damage the entire operation of the computer. Dealing with the registry is best left to a professional or a reliable registry tool. The system registry can be compared to the brain of the whole computer. If you disconnect part of the brain, you may get complete parts of the computer that malfunction. System registries are very sensitive and any changes to the system registry should not be undertaken without a program or professional help.

Whenever you install a new program, it writes information to the system registry. The components of the computer draw information from the registry as needed. Depending on the application you run, the application may need only the associated key while others may need the value data set for that specific key. There are “hives” in the system which has keys, sub-keys and values. Whenever Windows boots or reboots, it uses this information. If there are missing or invalid it can cause computer problems. These problems include stalling and crashing. Some of the things that can cause missing or invalid keys are frequently installing or uninstalling programs or improperly deleting old drivers. Also if you delete software that has not properly been uninstalled, it can cause problems.

When you “restore” your system to a previous date and time it utilizes the system registry. It takes your computer’s system back to a time before the problems started. Spyware also uses the system registry so sometimes restoring the system is not enough. Unless you are experienced in dealing with computer system registries you should not attempt to edit the registry yourself manually. There are many programs available that clean your system registry and many of them are reputable and well known. Some are free and others are not but with a program you can be fairly sure no damage will be done to your computer while correcting the system registry. If you do use a program to fix your system registry you should take advantage of the ability to back-up your registry information often. Once you fix your registry and frequently back it up there should be little reason to have to frequently use the program to fix the system. The important thing is to back it up before and after you run the program that cleans the registry.

System registries are very sensitive and control the operation of the computer itself. Problems with or mistakes correcting problems can both cause your computer to stop functioning. It deals with the Operating System- the system that makes the computer operate, therefore great care should be taken when editing any of the files in the system registry. Running most registry cleaners is normally a safe practice.