Should I Repair My Own Windows Registry?
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There is truly no "Set in Stone" answer to this question. Let us take a look at our options and we will let you decide if self-repair is the right option for you.
Fixing the registry is no easy task. Manual registry repair can often lead to more problems than there were originally. We recommend automating the error detection process. Try Regclean's free scan to perform this diagnosis. Check it out here .
The Windows registry regulates the entire operation of your system. Changes are effected within the registry whenever you uninstall existing software, install new software, delete files, use the chat program or create a new user. As you go on using your computer, new information is continually being added to the registry of your computer. Various unused keys, incorrect entries, invalid keys or adware and spyware keys can cause problems within the registry. It is important to carry out regular cleaning and maintenance of the computer in order to keep the computer running smoothly and efficiently
Repairing Registry Errors
Here is what is involved in the manual repair of the registry on your machine.
1. Backing up of the entire registry to ensure that you have a working copy before you start making changes.
2. Identification of potential problematic registry keys and values - remember there are hundreds of thousands of entries on your machine. Some belong there and some do not. We will not attempt to go into the process here.
3. Research the problems: Now that we have identified the problems we need to research them! Lets plug each and every one into google in order to obtain the steps neccessary to repair them. Keep a log of all of these steps as we will need them in step 4.
4. Manually deleting registry keys and values - This process has taken EXPERT technicians many hours on some machines. Attempting to do this is usually inefficient and RISKY. WE DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS APPROACH!
5. Undoing any potential mistakes made during the manual cleanup - If you made any mistakes during the process you will more than likely receive a few NEW error messages! Don't go blaming yourself for this as this is bound to happen from time to time while performing a manual cleanup. Repeat the first three steps and wipe out these extraneous errors. Let's go back and repair these and once we have repaired them all we can rest easy until the next registry cleanup needs to be done.
So, can you repair registry errors yourself?
Absolutely you can. We wrote this article to make you aware of the potential risks involved. The registry is not the biggest mystery in computing. It is a well documented and widely discussed topic! There is however a bit of a learning curve involved in the cleaning process.
If you don't know where to find startup registry keys then you may indeed be in for a long cleaning process. Remember the most important question: What is your time worth to you? Sure 40 dollars may seem like a lot to pay for a piece of software but consider the amount of hours it would take without this small investment.
Our trained technicians have attempted these types of fixes and have almost 100% of the time went back to the automated method of registry cleaning.
How Registry Repair Software saves you Time and Money
As I was saying before, time is money and the manual process of cleaning the registry takes time! (lots of it) If you are like us you have families and jobs, and have MANY other things to worry about. Cleaining the registry is usually not on the top of anyones list! This is why problems build up over time. When I call someone up on a night or weekend the last thing in the world I would expect to hear is "I can't come out I'm busy manually repairing my computers registry!" Seriously, it is just not that high up on peoples lists of things to do.
Let's take a step back and remember that the registry is something that MUST be cleaned and maintained! Instead of wasting time, and risking potential data loss and corruption lets let an automated registry cleanup utility handle this for us.
Here are some of the features in a QUALITY registry cleanup utility:
- Backup and Restore: You need peace of mind in knowing your software has backup and restore features. If you are using Vista or Windows XP, there are two ways for you to protect against accidents: system restore points and backup files. Meanwhile, if you are using Windows 2000 (SP4), Windows 98 (SE) or Windows ME, every time you remove a registry item a backup file is created.
- Invalid Program Shortcuts Repair: Incorrect program shortcuts can cause headaches! They could cause applications to take longer to launch or even stop them from working at all. RegCure finds and removes these incorrect shortcuts and improves your PC’s performance.
- Contains a Built-In Scheduler: If your software has a scheduling feature, you can just tell it when you want it to do its job, sit back and relax. You can set it to scan at system startup or assign it to work on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. You can even set up more than one schedule.
- Repairs Invalid Class Keys and Shell Extensions: Non-working class keys and shell extensions can seriously slow down your PC and cause frustrations. RegCure scans to find invalid entries and remove them.
- Detects and Repairs Empty Registry Keys: Useless registry keys have no value and actually are detrimental as they can clog up and slow down your system. RegCure sweeps away this mess.
- Allows for Automatic or Manual Repair: Your software should allow you to automatically scan for and repair problems. There should also be an option to take the power into your hands and manually guide the repair process.
- Organizes Windows Startup Items: With this feature, you can easily improve the startup speed of our PC. You can choose which programs you wish to launch when your computer starts and you can stop unneeded software from starting automatically. As well, RegCure will find and delete missing programs in the startup area of the Windows registry. These missing items can cause countless problems.
- Live Scan Progress: You never have to wonder what RegCure is doing! With an easy-to-use interface, you know exactly what is going on.
- Removes Invalid DLL Entries: Have you been to “DLL hell?” If not, you are lucky. Invalid entries in the dynamic link library section of the registry can cause frustrating application failures. Your software should restore and repair the registry.
- It should be Easy to Customize: It should allow you to scan only the items you want or you can establish and manage an “ignore list”. This will exclude certain items from removal.
After reading this we hope that you will make the right decision about which method to choose. Sure you can clean it yourself but why would you? Even with 15 years of experience under my belt, I rarely dive into these treacherous waters! I too have other things to do and so do my clients. They don't want me sitting there for 5 hours clicking and deleting registry keys manually.
We honestly recommend RegCure for all of our registry maintenance needs. It fulfills all of the above requirements and is truly simple to use. Remember a free scan can often reveal unknown and often critical problems.
We have written many articles describing the steps involved in repairing the windows registry. Please click on the links below to access the appropriate article.
