REgistry Cleaner

[ZERAT]

im thinking of buying a registry cleaner. I hear that is will speed up my computer.


will it really?

if i use it will it take away my ability to backdate my computer?

[Kloaked Spirit]

Everytime you install and uninstall a program, there will almost always be clutter left behind in the registry. This can cause the registry to get bloated, which will have an effect on your computer's performance. Cleaning it out (especially if you've never done it) is probably going to have a noticable effect on your computer's performance. Also, these things do not stop your ability to use backdating systems such as system restore.

The real question is if you really need to go out and buy one. If all you're needing is a basic registry cleaner that has a backup capability, just grab something from download.com or other freeware sites. For example this one cleans, makes backups, and alerts you if a registry item that you can clean out could in fact cause an issue.

http://www.download.com/Eusing-Free-Registry-Cleaner/3000-2094_4-10521691.html?cdlPid=10814544

[Dymond]

Thanx KS.. Nothing really to add to that.

[hoos]

Guess that would help me out.

[Kloaked Spirit]

The only thing that I can add to this, is make sure you do multiple scans until you constantly come up with 0 entries being removed. The reason for that is you can have entries which are "technically" fine, but then become problems when your first registry scan removed other registry entries that made it ok in the first place.

[Dymond]

If got nothing to add to the nothing to add..

OK I do have one thing to add that KS brought up.. Make a good backup before doing this. I did have one overzealous registry cleaner make my OS an NS (Non Operating System) once.

[Red Dragon]

There are a few misunderstandings about the Registry. People seem to think that cleaning the Registry will make the Registry smaller and easier managable. Unfortunately it doesn't work that way. What you are doing is create miniature gaps in the Registry's on-disc file. These gaps will be reused by new data to be inserted in the Registry. End result of this action is that the Registry becomes fragmented. Searching data in a fragmented file (be it a database on a network server or a user's Registry) is way slower than an optimized file. In short the only way to speed up handling of the Registry (and even that is marginal) is by completely rewriting the file(s)

Cleaning the Registry is a difficult thing for someone who knows what he's doing as programmers can put anything they want in the Registry. If an unexperienced person is going to take a look at the Registry and based on a program is going to delete things.... Recipe for disaster.

The perceived benefits of cleaning a Registry is marginally (if at all) noticeable.




If you do want to do this I would suggest CCleaner- it will ask you to backup the registry before doing anything

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a117/justinlutzfl/header_2.gifCCleaner

Download from HERE (http://www.ccleaner.com/download/downloading)
Close all browsers.
Run the programme and make sure all the boxes are ticked under the Windows and Applications tabs, Also check All Advanced tabs(except for the Old prefetch Data option, this should be unticked)
Click the run cleaner button.(may have to do more than once)
In the left pane click Registry Icon
Click Scan for issues, then fix them
As posted above you may have to do this a few times