The Microsoft Registry Editor enables you to view,
search for, and change settings
|
in your system registry, which contains
information about how your computer
|
runs. Windows stores its configuration information in
a database called the
|
registry which can be accessed using Regedit.exe
(Registry Editor). The registry
|
contains profiles for each user of the computer and
information about s ystem
|
hardware, installed programs, and property
settings. Windows continually
|
references this information during its
operation. Although you can use Registry
|
Editor to inspect and modify the registry,
doing so is not recommended, as making
|
incorrect changes can damage your system.
|
Registry Editor is an advanced tool for
viewing and changing settings in your
|
system registry which contains information
about how your computer runs.
|
Windows stores its configuration
information in a database (the registry) that is
|
organized in a tree format. When you view
the registry in the Microsoft Registry
|
Editor its hierarchical nature becomes
obvious. The editor presents an
Explorer-
|
like view of the registry, with a tree in
the left pane and data in the right
|
The registry tree is divided into six
broad sections (five in NT).
|
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT HKEY_CURRENT_USER
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
|
HKEY_USERS HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG
HKEY_DYN_DATA Folders represent keys in
|
the registry and are shown in the
navigation area on the left side of the Registry
|
Editor window. On the left side below My
Computer their are five keys
|
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, HKEY_CURRENT_ USER,
HKEY_ LOCAL_MACHINE,
|
HKEY_USERS, HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG, HKEY_DYN_DATA.
On expanding these
|
Keys we’ll get the sub keys In the right
side area, the entries in a particular sub
|
key are displayed, which are Name
(Contains name of the value), Type (contains
|
type of the value), and Data (Contains
associated data of the value.)When you
|
double-click an entry, it opens an editing
dialog box. At the status bar of regedit
|
path is shown.
|
 |
You should not edit your registry unless it is
absolutely necessary. If there is an
|
error in your registry, your computer may not function
properly. If this happens,
|
you can restore the registry to the same version you
were using when you last
|
successfully started your computer Regedit.exe is
automatically installed during
|
setup and is stored in same folder as is Windows. To
start Regedit.exe
|
1.
|
Click
|
Start
|
, and then click
|
Run
|
.
|
2.
|
Type Regedit, and then click
|
OK
|
.
|
the navigation area of the Registry Editor displays
folders, each of which
|
represents a
|
predefined key
|
registry for e.g.: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE) on the local
computer. When accessing
|
the registry of a remote computer, only two predefined
keys, HKEY_USERS and
|
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, appear.
|
Description
|
Folder/predefined key
|
Contains the root of the configuration information for
the user
|
who is currently logged on The user’s folders, screen
colors, and
|
HKEY_CURRENT_USER
|
Control Panel settings are stored here.
This information is
|
referred to as a user’s profile
|
HKEY_USERS
|
Contains the root of all user profiles on the
computer.
|
HKEY_CURRENT_USER is a sub key of HKEY_USERS.
|
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
|
Contains configuration information particular to the
computer
|
(for any user).
|
Is a sub key of
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software. The
|
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT
|
information stored here ensures that the correct
program opens
|
when you open a file by using Windows Explorer.
|
HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG
|
Contains information about the hardware profile used
by the
|
local computer at system startup.
|
Data type
Description
|
Raw binary data. Most hardware component
|
REG_BINARY
|
information is stored as binary data and
is displayed in
|
Registry Editor in hexadecimal format.
|
Data represented by a number that is 4 bytes long.
|
Many parameters for device drivers and
services are
|
REG_DWORD
|
this type and are displayed in Registry Editor in
binary,
|
hexadecimal, or decimal format.
|
A variable-length data string. This data type includes
|
REG_EXPAND_SZ
|
variables that are resolved when a program
or service
|
uses the data.
|
A multiple string. Values that contain
lists or multiple
|
values in a form that people can read are usually this
|
REG_MULTI_SZ
|
type. Entries are separated by spaces,
commas, or
|
other marks.
|
REG_SZ
|
A fixed-length text string.
|
REG_FULL_RESOURCE_DESCRIPTOR
|
A series of nested arrays designed to
store a resource
|
list for a hardware component or driver.
|
Incorrectly editing the registry may
severely damage your system. Before
|
making changes to the registry, you should
back up any valued data on your
|
computer.
|
You must back up your registry before tweaking into it
or it may lead you to
|
reinstall your operating system.
|
You can search for lot of registry backup
tool an use any one of them, like
|
ERUNT
|
or click here for alternate methods of
backing up registry.
|
Microsoft Help and Support center.
|
PC SUPPORT ADVISOR
|
picture -
http://www.nogeekleftbehind.com/images/regedit_dell_wallpaper.jpg
|
