A corrupt computer registry can have a devastating knock on effect while you're doing your utmost to get the most out of Windows. A corrupt Windows registry is the number one reason for those annoying runtime errors, programs refusing to function as they were intended to, and in the worst possible case scenario - that dreaded blue screen of death.
So what is involved with fixing a corrupt computer registry? Before you go in all guns blazing trying to force the registry in to working as you require, note that the files in Windows' core library are extremely sensitive to change. Some system settings are manageable by adjusting the various options until you find one that works. With the computer registry, blind adjustments in hope are really not something that you want to be experimenting with. It's possible to lock yourself out of Windows completely, and do more damage than was done before.
It is possible to manually edit the computer registry, but you must know exactly what you're doing.
If you do, you can go to Start, then Run.
Type in regedit and wait for the registry editor to pop up on your desktop. You will notice that its presented in a format similar to the old Windows Explorer. There is a hierarchical tree of elements, and a bunch of registry hives. These registry hives are responsible for grouping all your settings in to logical manageable areas.
To fix a registry entry, you will need to track down the exact reference point where the data is stored. It's advisable that you check with the documentation of the problematic software or hardware before trying this, though advanced users may be able to search it out through logic.
When you save your changes, it will normally be necessary to reboot the computer - such is the importance of the registry that Windows needs to initialize it on boot to be able to deal with all the settings and configurations.
Before you even think about making registry changes, however, it should be seen as an absolute must that you back up your registry. Countless die hard PC users have ventured in to their registry editor with keen overconfidence, made a bad edit, and found themselves locked out of Windows or suffering from a sudden burst of new errors. If you don't have a backup of your registry, you're going to have a particularly torrid time should it be necessary to revert to old working settings. Keep a recent backup stored on your computer. This is a good idea even if you aren't going to make any edits anytime soon.
The nature of Windows is that programs and applications are constantly writing to the registry. If you've noticed errors appearing more prolifically than usual, there's a good chance you'll be able to reverse the trend by restoring to a recent and fine registry - although it may restrict any new apps that you've recently installed, and certainly hardware.
Thankfully, we don't have to rely on manual edits to prolong the life of the registry. There are many free registry fixing products that do the hard work for us...
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