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Registry Cleaners Improve Performance

You are correct in deciding that a registry cleaning utility will help your computer’s performance. That’s because a huge number of computer errors and system slowdowns start in the registry. By fixing the problem at the root level, your computer’s performance will improve dramatically. For example, the Windows registry contains tens of thousands of instructions and variables. The operating system refers to the registry for performing its functions. However, if a registry entry is obsolete, incorrect, missing, or damaged, then Windows can’t follow the instructions properly or efficiently. The result: a computer error or slow performance.

The Problem with 64-bit Versions of Windows

Unfortunately, users with 64-bit versions of Windows are outside of the “mainstream.” While these operating systems offer numerous benefits, they also are not as widely supported by third party software developers. Hence, you’re having a tough time finding a registry cleaning utility for your operating system. Fortunately, you asked a Tech Jock who asked a major software developer for help. I contacted ParetoLogic software and asked if RegCure would work on your system. This is one of our recommended tools and a personal favorite of mine. Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait until 2009 when they release a 64-bit version.

Recommended Registry Cleaners

You don’t want to wait, do you? I didn’t think so. I did find a 64-bit registry cleaner online called CleanMyPC. This product is built for 64-bit operating systems and is fully aware of the nuances of your system. This is a commercial product that costs about $30 for a one-year subscription. A lifetime subscription is also available. They offer a free 15-day trial so that you can get a feel for the software and what it can accomplish before you buy.

In addition to working on the 64-bit version of Windows XP Professional, this software also works with the 64-bit version of Windows Vista. For those who need an alternative to RegCure and don’t want to wait for the 64-bit version, consider this as an alternative. Come back to Filetonic.com and let us know how it worked out for you.

I can’t open any of my programs because of a registry fix program I downloaded, hence anything now I try to download to my computer won’t open. I can’t system restore, nothing, my desktop has white background with writing all over it. Can you help please?

Unfortunately, many malicious programmers create utilities designed to trick users into downloading malware. For example, free screensavers and registry cleaners are often nothing more than lures - once a user nibbles and the program is downloaded, the malware takes over. Not knowing the name of the registry fix utility, I can’t say for sure that this happened to you but it may have.

Since downloading doesn’t appear to be an option, try http://housecall.trendmicro.com/  This is a free web-based scanning tool from Trend Micro, a well respected anti-virus and anti-spyware company. This tool should be able to detect and repair malware on your computer.

If you have Windows Vista, your computer should also have Windows Defender installed on it. This is a built-in tool that scans for malware. While Windows Defender does provide real time protection, if the malware is new, it may not have been caught upon installation. Update Windows Defender and run a full scan to see what Defender finds. Go to the Start button, type in Windows Defender, click the program icon, and then click the arrow next to the question mark. Click Check for Updates. Once updated, click on Scan > Full Scan.

Likewise, run a full scan with your existing anti-virus program. Many anti-virus programs do not provide real time detection. This means that viruses can get in and won’t be detected until a scan takes place.

If your computer comes up clean and the registry program is legitimate, it should have a “restore” feature. For example, RegCure, which is a legitimate registry cleaner from another well respected software developer (ParetoLogic Software), makes backups of the registry before making repairs. Should you ever have undesirable results after a RegCure registry fix, you can always go into the software, click on the Backup button, and restore your registry to its original condition. Check your registry fix utility for such a feature and restore your registry if available. By restoring the registry, your related problems should disappear.

Since your desktop is a mess, and you can’t use System Restore via normal methods, try going into Safe Mode and entering the command prompt for System Restore which is:

%systemroot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe

Instructions for doing so are found in this Microsoft Knowledgebase article.

Yes. Your computer can download ActiveX controls without having to buy software. Products such as RegCure aren’t designed to assist in downloading ActiveX controls or other add-ins. Nor are they designed to analyze the safety of ActiveX controls. Rather, RegCure (and other registry cleaning utilities) is designed to clean up the registry in the aftermath of failed installations and un-installations as well as remove registry entries related to malicious programming such as when a malicious ActiveX control has been installed. These products also remove obsolete entries and more.

ActiveX controls are also called “add-ons.” They are small programs that are used in conjunction with your Web browser. In a perfect world, ActiveX programs would be safe to use every time. Unfortunately, ActiveX controls have been abused by advertisers and malware writers, making it necessary to take precautions.

Your computer’s Web browser comes with options for allowing or preventing the downloading of ActiveX controls. If you have Internet Explorer 7.0 (the process is similar for other versions), go into the Tools menu and choose Internet Options. Click on the Security tab and make sure the Internet icon is highlighted. What security level is your computer set on? Each level has difference allowances. For example, at “medium-high,” Internet Explorer is told not to download any unsigned ActiveX controls.

You can also click the Custom Level button and make your own security decisions regarding how ActiveX controls are handled. Scroll to the ActiveX Controls and Plug-ins section and make your decisions. Among the options are:

• Allow previously unused ActiveX controls to run without prompt
• Allow Scriptlets
• Automatic prompting for ActiveX controls
• Binary and script behaviors
• Download signed ActiveX controls
• Download unsigned ActiveX controls
• Run ActiveX controls and plug-ins
• Script ActiveX controls marked safe for scripting

Each of these options has choices such as enable, disable, or prompt. Prompting is a good compromise when you’re unsure what to do about your settings. By being prompted, you can evaluate the ActiveX control on a case-by-case basis. For example, if you trust the Web site and are prompted to download an ActiveX control, you can make an informed decision about whether or not to allow the download. Likewise, if you’re on a random Web site such as one you visited based on a link in a Spam e-mail message, you probably shouldn’t allow the download without further evaluation or research.

You can also remove ActiveX controls from within Internet Explorer. Go to the Tools menu and choose Manage Add-ons followed by Enable or Disable Add-ons. From there, you can disable or delete ActiveX controls.

A registry cleaner, or a registry scanner, is designed to read and inspect your computer’s registry looking for errors or redundant files that are slowing down your computer’s functions. The registry is similar to an information catalogue where your system stores data about all the processes that the computer runs.

Over time, all computer registries will become clogged with extra bits of information that the system no longer needs. For example, when you use Windows add/remove function to uninstall programs, sometimes pieces of data are left behind in the registry that serve no purpose other than to hang around and get in the way. Other contributors to registry clutter are broken or bad links, old, unused versions of replaced programs and orphaned or bad applications.

In as little as six months of normal computer operations your computer’s registry can store enough pieces of clutter to cause problems. The first sign of a cluttered registry is sluggish performance. You might notice a longer boot up time and a longer wait for your operation system to load your programs and applications. You might also notice slow response times when you give your computer commands.

Depending on the amount of clutter on your registry, you might experience more serious problems like frequent error messages and an inability to open some programs, files and folders. If too many bits of useless information are stored on your registry, then the registry’s ability to load and execute other functions will be limited. Declining operating speed, system stalls, application errors and, in the long run, not enough speed and space to run your operating system will likely result.

Some common errors that can be fixed by running regular registry scans include runtime errors and Windows errors and program crashes that result in the ‘blue screen of death’, otherwise known as a fatal error. These errors result in the unexpected and unwanted closing of programs and the loss of unsaved information.

A registry cleaner can help you avoid all these problems. The scan will read all the files and data bits on your registry and find all those that are incomplete, corrupt, redundant or otherwise unnecessary and thus limiting your system’s performance. When the scan identifies potentially undesirable data, it will provide the user with a brief description and risk assessment. If the data is unwanted, then the registry cleaner will delete the files.

Good registry scans can be set to user specifications and have automatic update functions that can be set to run periodically. It is a good idea to scan and repair your registry every six months to prevent errors, program stalls and crashes. Before you scan your registry, it is a good idea to back up the registry because, even if you have junk to clear out, if something goes wrong you might prefer to reapply the registry rather than reformat the system.

If you are experiencing computer problems like slow boot up and response times, unexpected program stalls or frequent error messages, there is a good chance that a registry scan can help. Registry scans read the computer’s registry - the catalogue that the system keeps of all the processes and operations that the computer runs - and looks for any unnecessary information. As you use your computer and bits of unnecessary data are stored in the registry your system’s performance can suffer as it has to work harder. Cleaning out the clutter is an important part of maintaining your system’s health.

A registry scanner reads all the bits of data on the registry. Every time that the computer does anything and every time that information comes in to or goes out of your system, the registry makes a note of the process. If there are bits of process on the registry associated with redundant, replaced or broken links or files then the clutter can get in the way of the other, necessary, operations. However, when you adjust your registry, either on your own or with a registry scan, you have to be really careful not to delete important information.

The important first step is to back up your registry. In different versions of Windows, there are different procedures for backing up the registries. For Windows Vista, in the Start menu, type systempropertiesprotection in the Start Search box and press enter. At this point you might be asked for the administrator password or confirmation, which you will need in order to access the registry. Wait for Windows to look for available disks and the most recent restore points. In the System Properties dialog box, under the System Protection tab, click Create. Type a name for a restore point - a file for the backup registry - and click Create. After the restore point has been created, double click OK.

If you are running an earlier version of Windows, there are steps for backing up registries available on Microsoft Support Pages. If you don’t back up the registry, it is possible to lose data or important system function operations.

If you decide to edit the registry manually and skip the use of third-party software, unless you have nothing to lose, it is imperative that you back up the registry because if the registry edit is performed improperly you may have to reinstall your operating software. Since the registry stores all the settings, options, and information for the computer’s operating system, software applications and hardware, editing, adjusting or altering your computer’s registry could remove, misplace or damage important data. If your registry is damaged as a result of a registry edit, you might have to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft recommends editing your registry at your own risk.

A computer registry is the central information center for the computer that logs and details all the activity performed on the system. All of the specifics relating to the various hardware components, software applications and file and folder activities have corresponding log entries in the registry. Every time an activity is performed, an entry is created, so it is easy to imagine the bulk of data that is stored on the registry.

As information entries pile up on the computer’s registry, the extra bulk can begin to cause problems. Actually, in as little as three months of normal operations, a cluttered registry can begin to result in slow boot up and operation times, frequent error messages, program stalls and crashes, and even an inability for your system to run the operating system at all. In order to prevent these potentially debilitating problems, a registry cleaner is recommended for regular and periodic use.

Registry cleaners open the registry and inspect the contents. Often there are bits of useless data, left over pieces of programs that have been uninstalled, obsolete or multiple applications and/or programs and corrupt or unusable files that sit on the registry and clog up its performance.

Registry cleaners work by reading the information bits that are left on the registry and finding and deleting all those that are no longer required or are redundant, having been replaced by newer, updated versions. Broken links, files, and any other unwanted information will be identified and then the cleaner will offer a prompt to the user to either clean or repair the entry.

First, after deciding to run a registry scan and downloading a compatible program to your computer, before you execute it, you should back up the registry. In the case that something goes awry, you might want to reload the registry to its pre-scan condition rather than reformat the entire system.

Once your registry is backed up, installation of the scan is next, and should be relatively pain and hassle free. There is usually a link on the desktop for the .exe file that you can click on to launch the application. From here, follow the instructions and prompts offered by the system. Select the ‘scan the registry’ link. It generally takes less than five minutes for the scan to read the registry and then it will display the garbage or broken links on the page. It will then prompt you to repair the registry, which you do by clicking the ‘repair’ link. This operation will only take a few seconds. Once you reboot your computer after the process, you should notice increased speed and processing ease.