Registry - how do you clean it up

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Guest

Hello,

It there anyway to clear out the registary of win xp Pro? can one get rid of
all those progs you have installed and then uninstalled? How often should one
re-install windows? Is it a good idea?

thank you
Toady
 
Toady007 said:
Hello,

It there anyway to clear out the registary of win xp Pro? can one get rid of
all those progs you have installed and then uninstalled? How often should one
re-install windows? Is it a good idea?

1. Unless you are experiencing difficulties, there is no reason to clear
out the registry. Extra entries will not slow your system down at all.
If you are not experienced working with the registry, leave it alone.
With that warning given, if you want to delete entries from the registry
do it manually. Start>Run>regedit [enter]

2. Under normal circumstances and given good maintenance, it is never
necessary to reinstall XP. One of my computers has been running the same
installation of XP (with Service Pack upgrades, naturally) since XP came
out in 2001. Other XP boxen are also running for years, needing
reinstallation only when the hard drive failed, changed out motherboard,
etc.


Malke
 
It there anyway to clear out the registary of win xp Pro? can one get rid of
all those progs you have installed and then uninstalled?


It's entirely unnecessary.

How often should one
re-install windows?

Never.



Is it a good idea?


I think it's a terrible idea.
 
Toady007 said:
Hello,

It there anyway to clear out the registary of win xp Pro? can one get rid of
all those progs you have installed and then uninstalled? How often should one
re-install windows? Is it a good idea?

thank you
Toady


Why do you think you need to clean your registry?

What specific *problems* are you actually experiencing (not some
program's bogus listing of imaginary problems) that you think can be
fixed by using a registry cleaner? If you do have a problem that is
rooted in the registry, it would be far better to simply edit (after
backing up, of course) only the specific key(s) and/or value(s) that are
causing the problem. After all, why use a chainsaw when a scalpel will
do the job? Additionally, the manually changing of one or two registry
entries is far less likely to have the dire consequences of allowing an
automated product to make multiple changes simultaneously.

The registry contains all of the operating system's "knowledge" of
the computer's hardware devices, installed software, the location of the
device drivers, and the computer's configuration. A misstep in the
registry can have severe consequences. One should not even turning
loose a poorly understood automated "cleaner," unless he is fully
confident that he knows *exactly* what is going to happen as a result of
each and every change. Having seen the results of inexperienced people
using automated registry "cleaners," I can only advise all but the most
experienced computer technicians (and/or hobbyists) to avoid them all.
Experience has shown me that such tools simply are not safe in the hands
of the inexperienced user.

The only thing needed to safely clean your registry is knowledge
and Regedit.exe. If you lack the knowledge and experience to maintain
your registry by yourself, then you also lack the knowledge and
experience to safely configure and use any automated registry cleaner,
no matter how safe they claim to be.

Further, no one has ever demonstrated, to my satisfaction, that the
use of an automated registry cleaner, particularly by an untrained,
inexperienced computer user, does any real good. There's certainly been
no empirical evidence offered to demonstrate that the use of such
products to "clean" WinXP's registry improves a computer's performance
or stability.

I always use Regedit.exe. I trust my own experience and judgment
far more than I would any automated registry cleaner. I strongly
encourage others to acquire the knowledge, as well.



--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell
 
Toady007 said:
Hello,

......How often should one
re-install windows?



Only when a hardware failure (i.e., hard drive) makes it necessary.




--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:



They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell
 
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