What Every Computer User Needs
Why is the registry important?
The registry is one of the most vital components of your Windows operating system because it comprises essential configuration information that is required by various hardware devices and software programs installed on your computer to carry out their operations. The registry also stores your user preferences and system preferences. In other words, the registry is the heart and soul of your Windows computer and there is not a single task that you can perform without going through the registry.
What causes registry errors?
Registry errors are caused by the accumulation of obsolete, invalid, and corrupt information within it. Some of the common operations and actions that add this unwanted data in the registry are:
- Frequent installation of programs on the system—especially freeware tools, software and utilities downloaded from the Internet. Quite often, software downloaded from dubious Web sites come packaged with spyware and adware programs that stealthily install on your computer. These malicious programs fill up the registry and your system with loads of malicious information, steal your confidential data, display troublesome popup-ads and dramatically slow down your computer.
- Left behind orphan and empty registry keys when programs are uninstalled.
- Incorrect program uninstallation processes.
- Unwarranted system crashes that prevent the registry loaded in the system’s memory to be written back to the hard disk.
- Virus and spyware infections that fill up the registry with loads of malicious keys and values.
- Faulty software programs and device drivers.
Why do I need a registry program?
Despite the importance of registry maintenance to maintain a healthy registry, the Registry Editor tool that is shipped with Windows computers does not include features that can help you perform regular registry maintenance. This is the reason why it becomes essential to opt for a third-party registry cleaner program to perform regular and preventive maintenance of the registry.
What are the benefits of a registry program?
There are several benefits of registry cleaner programs. You can use them to:
- Perform a thorough scan of the registry and eliminate all unwanted information accumulated within it.
- Search for erroneous registry keys and repair them to resolve several computer errors, such as stop errors, runtime errors, and fatal errors.
- Weed out malicious entries added by virus and spyware programs from deep within the registry to ensure complete removal of these malware programs.
- Defrag the registry to compress its files by removing empty registry keys and reindexing its fragmented files to speed up data access time and thus enhance the performance of your computer.
- Backup the registry regularly to ensure that you can repair your system in case of system failure or errors that may damage the current registry.
How to choose a registry cleaner tool
When you perform a search on the Internet, you will find several Windows registry resources claiming to provide the best registry software. However, as a vigilant user you must do the following:
- Choose a tool that uses smart algorithms to report only genuine errors.
- Purchase your tools only from a trusted Website—in fact this is a precaution that you must follow for all your online purchases.
- First use the trial version of the registry tool and then purchase it only if you are fully satisfied with the result.
- Opt for tools that provide a few other essential features that enable you to perform tasks such as managing startup programs, Internet Explorer Browser Help Objects (BHOs), and orphan system files and folders.