How to Clean Registry on Windows PC?
Before knowing anything about how to clean registry on Windows PC. First, we know about what is Registry? Windows Registry is a database of information and other value of software and hardware. It gives information about basic boot-up functions, startup options, user profile information, installed applications and drivers, specific design settings, and system hardware information. It has basically two elements keys and values. It is an extremely sensitive part of your computer.
Registry Editor, commonly known as Registration Info Editor or Registration Editor, is the platform from which you can change the Windows Registry. You may view all of the registry’s keys and values with the Registry Editor.
When you open Registry Editor the first thing that appears is root keys that contain all registry values. So let’s go into deep and know more about it.
HKCR (HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT)- Provides configuration information for automation, including information about COM objects, Visual Basic programs, and data that links file types with specific programs.
HKCU (HKEY_CURRENT_USER)- The user who is presently logged in-specific settings are kept here.
HKLM (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE)- This key contains information about drivers, Windows services, general OS settings, and programs that are launched automatically for each user. One of the most commonly accessed and altered parts of the registry by users is this key and its subkeys.
HKU (HKEY_USERS)- It includes user-specific configuration data for each user who is currently logged on to the computer.
HKLM (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE)- It works as a shortcut or pointer to a registry key that contains data about the hardware profile currently in use; it doesn’t really save any information.
HKDD (HKEY_DYN_DATA)- The key stored the dynamic status information and plug-and-play information and was only utilized in Windows 95, 98, and NT. As additional or removed devices are connected to the computer, the information may modify. Each device’s information comprises its current condition, including any issues, as well as the relevant hardware key.
Why do we need to clean the registry?
Thousands of registry entries are created when you install and remove programs, switch keyboards, and change mouses. These records take up minimal space on your hard drive and are no longer necessary for your PC. However, your operating system must filter each of them, which reduces system performance. Therefore, clearing the registry will help your system run a little bit faster and remove any unwanted entries.
But sometimes it is necessary to get into the registry and fix it. An example of this is when malware enters your system and messes with your registry by infecting it. You must fix registry errors before you may fix broken registry items. Therefore, before performing any actions on the registry, you must be aware of what you’re doing, and you must first create a registry backup.
Let’s talk about registry errors in more detail, common registry errors are:
Duplicate keys- When you upgrade and reinstall any software, including the operating system, on your computer, duplicate keys are created.
Orphaned entries- When software is removed from your computer, little pieces of registry entries can remain and become orphaned entries.
Fragmented registry- When you upgrade or uninstall software so there is a possibility the registry may fragment.
Malware- Malware is also the one reason which creates problem in the registry there are many types of malware that modify the registry and change the values of startup keys so when you restart your PC it activate.
System shutdown errors- A copy of the registry is stored when every time the system shutdowns. Future problems could arise if your computer shuts down, crashes, or shuts down without following the typical shutdown procedure, but this is uncommon.
How to Clean Registry on Windows PC?
Cleaning the registry is the ideal approach to get rid of unnecessary registry errors. Because the registry contains important data, you should understand it better before making any changes to avoid causing other undesirable errors and problems. As stated above, we also advise you to create a registry backup. So here we discuss and leaner the safe way to clean the registry.
Use Disk Cleanup
Disk Cleanup is inbuilt a tool that manages disk space and it is the simplest way to clean the windows registry. Basically, it is used to clean temporary files or cached but it also helps to remove unwanted keys and values in the registry. The slow computer is full of trash by using the Disk Cleanup utility you can free your computer space and improve system performance.
You can start Disk Cleanup with two different methods.
- The first one Go to the search box by pressing Windows key + S then type “Disk Cleanup”.
- Open Disk Cleanup from the search result.
- If you have multiple drives select the system drive because Windows operating system is installed in the system drive.
- The last step is to click on the Clean up system files button.
Another method, you can open Disk Cleanup by the Run console.
- To open the Run console press the Windows key + R.
- Type in the run search box ‘cleanmgr’ and press Enter button.
Use DISM (Deploy Image Servicing and Management)
Another way to clean the registry in Windows 10 is to use the built-in and command-line program Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM). It is used to maintain Windows images, and you can acquire information about Windows image files, Full-flush utility files, or virtual hard discs using DISM image management commands. Essentially, it is meant to fix problems and clear up system files, but you may also use it to clean the registry to a certain extent.
- Go to the Start menu and click on the search box and type cmd and click on Run as administrator to open Command Prompt.
- Type the same line shown below after the Command Prompt has opened.
dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth
- Press Enter button.
- Let the procedure go all the way through. Restart your system after it’s finished.
Manually Clean the Registry
You can clean the registry manually if the DISM utility does not effectively do so. You might not require a registry cleanup tool if you are familiar with how the registry works and what has to be done. As was already noted, carelessly altering or even deleting keys could have a long-term impact on how well your computer functions. Therefore, you must locate faulty registry keys. If you’ve tried installing a number of different programs or apps and want to make sure none of them are leaving traces in your registry, manually removing entries is a smart alternative.
Steps to remove registry entry manually
- Open Registry Editor by pressing Windows key + R, type regedit in the search box, and press the Ok button.
- Navigate the key you want to delete. You can find keys related to apps and programs in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, HKEY_CURRENT_USER, and HKEY_USERS folders.
- After selecting the key you want to delete right-click on it and click on the Delete option. Keep in mind that if something is deleted, it cannot be recovered without creating a new key. Take screenshots of the items you’re removing in case you need to add them back in the future.
Conclusion
Utilizing the registry hacks provided will offer you more control over registry operations and improve Windows functionality. However, unless absolutely necessary, we advise against selecting Clean Registry in Windows 10. There is no issue if the proper tools and methods are used to clean the registry.
Disk Cleanup, DISM, and manual registry cleaning are all methods you can use to clean your registry. We hope that this article will be useful to you in your quest to learn more about Windows 10’s Clean registry.