Registry errors build up over a period of time sometimes causing only minor problems until the day they reach overload and seriously damage your computer. To avoid a real computer disaster it is a good idea to perform regular checks to make sure you nip potential problems in the bud.
Using Regedit to Repair Your Computer’s Registry
* This is a tricky area of your operating system and houses all your computer’s registry settings including damaged or dangerous ones. A single erroneous entry into the registry could render your system unusable so you need to really know what you are doing when first you dare to tread in this sensitive zone.
Navigating Your Computer’s Registry
* Regedit works on a ‘tree system’. To see your computer’s registry click ‘START’ ‘RUN’ and type the word ‘regedit’ into the space provided. This will open the registry Editor. Click on a plus sign and more branches are opened and click on a minus sign and they are closed up. As you navigate through the registry make sure not to accidentally make any changes. The idea is to get a feel for this aspect of your operating system. Don’t make any changes yet.
Creating a System Restore Point
* Creating a system restore point will enable you to restore your entire system to a date on which it was running properly.
* If you have it turned off, you can activate it by single clicking ‘My computer’ with the right mouse button and choosing ‘PROPERTIES’ and un-checking the box marked ‘Turn off system restore on all drives’. System restore is now activated.
Making a Backup of Your Registry
* Always make a backup before you repair your computer’s registry. This means that if something goes wrong you will be able to restore your computers to its previous state. Make a backup of your registry by clicking ‘START’, ‘RUN’. Once you are inside Registry Editor, single-click ‘My Computer’ with the right mouse button and choose ‘EXPORT’. Call the file ‘backup’ and save it in the normal way.
* If you need to restore your computer’s registry later on you can do this by opening the registry editor and selecting ‘FILE’ then single-clicking the Import open. Find the backup registry file and click ‘OPEN’.
Now, assuming you know what is wrong and how to repair your computer’s registry, you can set about making the necessary changes.
For example, you may want to rename keys or values or delete the contents of values. You can change an icon on the desktop and the background colors from the registry too, though it is easier to do this from within the Windows control panel.
One really helpful thing you can do is to remove programs from the Add/Remove Programs folder. To do this, go to:
The specific make-up of your system and any infected or damaged files will determine exactly how to repair your computer’s registry but be warned - you can irreparably damage your computer if you don’t know what you are doing!
If you are a novice, read on for some advice on using software programs to fix your registry.
