The Windows Registry is an essential system file that houses a massive collection of details about where on your computer programs are stored, which helper programs (known as DLLs) are shared among your various applications, listings of all your Start-menu shortcuts, and pointers to the programs that fire up when you click on an icon. And that's just the beginning.
Practically everything you do in Windows is recorded somewhere in the Registry. For instance, the URL for this article probably has an entry now. The paths to the last dozen or so images or documents you opened are there, too, as are the details of the programs you most recently installed or uninstalled.
However, Windows doesn't efficiently clean up after itself as it goes about its daily business. It constantly creates new entries, but seldom, if ever, removes them after they're no longer needed, which eventually slows down your system.
Registry Cleaners: Boon or Boondoggle?
The big question is whether a Registry cleaner will speed up your PC, making it boot more quickly and run faster. Possibly, because everything depends on the condition of your Registry.
We tested five of the most popular Registry cleaners and defraggers to find out which catch the most errors, and are safest and easiest to use. I tried each tool on my messy production PC using Windows XP SP3, on a pristine Fujitsu Lifebook T-Series laptop running Vista, and on an old Lenovo ThinkPad laptop. I ran the Registry scan and repair module of each application, rebooted the system, and watched for problems, and I also tried to determine whether the system seemed friskier. After each test, I restored each system to its original state of disarray with Acronis TrueImage.
NEXT PAGE: Registry dos and don'ts
- Top tips to speed up your PC
- Registry dos and don'ts
- Registry Cleaners: How They Fared
- Registry First Aid
- RegSupreme and RegSeeker
- Advanced WindowsCare Personal
- jv16 PowerTools
Comments
zhang rita said: AthTek Registrycleaner is also one of the best registry cleaner why doesnt it get a mention
WANEY said: Thanks John I have the Windows XP system any advice anyone
wilsenda said: As a newbie I have been advised to use RegCure - recommended as the best available but it doesnt get a mention Why not
Catweazle (part 1) said: I didnt recognise the RegSeeker reviewed compared to that which I have installed and use regularly The author says its interface sports a strangely labelled OK button that doesnt really give you a sense of what the program will do next It seemed quite obvious to me when I came upon it Said button also contains a small picture of a besom which quite clearly indicates what it is going to doAlso you must make sure to check the Backup before deletion option another oddly labelled feature In my opinion not true on both counts The Backup before deletion is a not oddly labelled - entirely logical in my view and b is checked by default and one has to uncheck if required ie the default condition is to perform a backup Not a problem there I think
Catweazle (part 2) said: Also it also didnt provide categories such as invalid path or shared DLL in order to help me decide whether items were safe to delete Yes it does It tells you what category the fault lies in and also codes the entries red or green according to whether you should pay some attention to it or just delete it regardlessI always delete every registry entry that RegSeeker finds and have never had any issues That of course will now guarantee a cornucopia of future problemsHey ho
John Zebedee said: A very helpful article Steve thanksI have Windows Registry Repair Pro it allows you to restore changes youve made if youve cocked up not too sure how this would rate amongst the rest
DieSse said: You say 5 BST registry cleaners - how do you know theyre the best if youve only tested 5And what about the various free ones commonly recommended in you own forum Help RoomBit pathetic Im afraid
Gordon Braid said: I was disappointed you didnt include something about Fix It Utilities 7 which you gave away free 2 months ago I have found its free Registry Cleaner and Registry Defragger do everything all the programs mentioned above can do both safely and well
Michael Durham said: Disappointing It should be made CLEAR at the beginning that these are NOT Free
Karl said: Eysha Have you never run Windows own DiscCleanup or defragmented the hard drive in 18 months Both are safe to do
eysha said: Sounds like a novice like me should stay away from registry cleaners all together Is there no other way to speed up the computer Mine is quite slow now after 18 months use and no regestry cleaner ever used so is there any help for us novices or is it a case of leave well alone I was very surprised to learn that messing with the registry can send your computerlaptop to laptopcpmputer heaven too - nasty More articles please for people like me but make them easy to understand too I learnt two things from this article one is dont mess with what you dont know about and the other is how to kill a computer What other ways can you kill a laptopcpmputer just so i know what to avoid doing I cannot be the only one here that knows little to nothing about computers so educate us please and save the lives of lots of computerslaptopsThanks for the articleE
Robert Alcorn said: I use CCleaner though it is a junk file searcher primarily it has a registry checker which I have used on 3 systems with various usage and have came across no problems In fact between avast antivirus spybot auslogics disk defrag and ccleaner I have rarely had any malware spyware viral or registry problems
John Walne said: waney you do not say which system you have but if you have Vista you can tell your pc to do a clean up from the control panel before booting up This sometimes resolves boot up probs
John Walne said: I thought Vista Manager or XP Manager would have been included too as well as a fab freebie Wise Registry Cleaner Both can show you where the errors are and whether you want to fix them
waney said: Im a techy novice and wonder if a registry cleaner will cure my computer of a faulty in that it sometimes needs 2 or 3 seperste attampts to boot up in fact sometimes I need to switch everything off and re-start any advice please
Dave Haverty said: Very useful article but would have been good to see Registry Mechanic included in the comparison because its generally highly regarded