How to perform a Registry Clean Up – 3 steps to a faster PC

Struggling with a slower then normal computer? In need of a Registry Clean up? Take a couple of minutes to read this article and you'll discover just how easy it can be to clean your windows registry either manually or using a registry clean up tool. More specifically we'll talk about how  perform a review of your registry, how to backup your old files before changing anything, and then how to actually make the required changes to your registry. By the end of this article you should be able to clean out your registry either with a little bit of research or using one of the many software tools available on the market.

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Perform a Manual or a Free Scan of the registry

The first step needs to be reviewing the items that are in your registry and determining which are old information, bad data, or errors. This can be done a couple of ways. The first is running the Regedit program that comes with windows. You can access this free registry cleanup tool by:

Clicking Start - > Run - > Type Regedit

If you're not a tech minded person or care to learn more about how the windows registry works this probably isn't the best alternative for you. The other option is to use a registry scan tool to look for errors. Most registry repair tools offer a free scan utility. You can download one here from Regcure. This tool will scan your entire registry looking for particular items that the software knows to cause problems.

Download the Free Scan tool from Regcure

Backup you current Registry Files to avoid disaster

The second step after you've located the items that require fixing or removal from your registry is to backup the current settings. Doing this will avoid potential disaster in step three. There's always a possibility with software programs and computers in general that things can go wrong. Backing up old data ensures that you can undo anything you change if things did go bad.

During a registry clean up you can manually backup your system settings using windows system restore feature, or you can utilize the registry cleanup tool if it offers backup capability. To do this manually you would:

Click Start -> Help and Support - > Click the button 'Create new Restore Point'

You'll be promoted to name the restore point, do so with something you'll remember but also incorporates the date.

Perform the registry clean up

Once you've located the items that require fixing, and backed up your current system settings you're ready to complete the registry clean up. If you're handling this manually using the Regedit registry editor built into windows I'm going to assume that you have a firm understanding of what registry entries and keys are important to the workings of windows. If you're using registry repair software to complete this step, read on.

Each registry clean up tool will work a bit different then the next one. How ever the basic concept should be the same. Once the scan has completed in step one you'll have the option of auto or manual repair. The auto repair method with automatically fix, delete, or repair all of the items found in the initial scan. I don't like the auto feature, because this allows the software to make mistakes.

Use the manual option that comes with your registry repair tool. This will allow you to review each item found during the scan one by one. If you find an item that appears it might not be an error, and is related to a current piece of software or hardware you can skip it. If an item is questionable as to whether it's an error or not, don't delete or repair it.

Try Regcure to perform your Registry Cleanup

Analyze your Registry Cleanup Results

After you've completed all three steps it's time to restart. This is the first step to reviewing how the registry cleanup has affected your PC's performance. You should notice increased speed at startup (if slow startup was a problem to begin with), and faster program access and startup.

If you notice any errors on the screen, or your PC struggles or won't startup you may need to use the backup you created in Step two to revert back to your old system settings.

I suggest that most people not computer savvy use software for their registry clean up. This automates the process enough that you cannot accidentally delete or change anything in the registry. Software will scan, backup, and repair registry items all at once saving you a big learning curve about how the registry system works. There are many registry repair utilities on the market, a quick search will reveal a hundred or more. My suggestion is to try Regcure, download their free Scan utility and take it for a test drive to see how you like it.

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