Do I need a Windows Registry cleaner?

Question

Do I need a Windows Registry cleaner?

Answer

Registry cleaners are designed to help remove invalid references made in the Windows Registry pointing to a DLL, program, font, uninstalled program, or other system information that no longer exists on the computer. These references can be left behind when a program is not uninstalled properly, the uninstaller is poorly written, or the system has crashed in the past causing these invalid entries.

Although these utilities can make the Windows Registry clean, the overall potential benefits are greatly outweighed by the potential harm a they could cause. We suggest users do not install or use Windows Registry cleaners on their Windows computers.

Can running a Registry cleaner cause problems?

Yes. Any Registry cleaner or other Registry utility that is poorly written and removes or changes the Registry improperly can cause issues with programs and in some situations cause Windows to stop working.

If you don't suggest Registry cleaners what should I do?

There are several things that can be done to resolve computer issues before attempting to use a Registry cleaner on your computer. If you're experiencing issues we suggest you try the below suggestions before resorting to a Registry cleaner.

• If you're getting an error, search for that error. Often steps on how to resolve that issue can be found without needing a Registry cleaner.
• Run through the basic troubleshooting steps for your version of Windows here.
• Run a spyware and antivirus scans on the computer.

What do Registry cleaners report to fix?

These programs have been known to fix one or more of the below situations.

• Fix errors caused after program uninstalled
• Files or shortcuts associated with uninstalled programs.
• Slow boot times
• Overall computer response time

I still want to run a Registry cleaner, which one should I use?

If you've tried the above suggestions and still encountering problems there are dozens of Registry cleaners available today. Below is a list of a few of the programs we'd recommend.

• Ccleaner
• Glary Utilities
• EasyCleaner

* When running any Registry cleaner we always suggest using the utilities backup Registry feature first incase issues arise after the clean.

Do I need to run the Registry cleaner in Safe Mode?

No. These utilities should be deleting keys that are not in use and therefore should not encounter issues if ran in Normal mode. However, if you're encountering problems that prevents you from getting into Normal mode or you get errors while in Normal mode, we suggest running them from Safe Mode.

The Registry cleaner found xx amount of problems, now what?

After Registry keys or other system settings have been found, use the utility to delete or clean those keys. Often you'll need to select all found items and click a clean or delete button.

After running a Registry cleaner my computer or programs no longer works.

If you're encountering new problems after running a Registry cleaner, boot the computer into Safe Mode if Normal mode does not work, and run the utility to restore the backup made.

If you did not make a backup of the Registry, try using the Windows System Restore feature.

Windows computer boots up slow

A slow Microsoft Windows boot up can be caused by a wide variety of issues. Below are various suggestions and tips that can help improve the overall speed of your computers startup.

Tip: In addition to the below steps, if you use your computer frequently you may also consider either not turning off the computer or having your computer go into a hibernation mode when pressing the power button.

Disable startup programs

Programs that are loading up as the computer starts up to remain active in memory, are often one of the main causes of a slow boot in Windows. Disabling programs you don't often use from automatically starting up each time the computer boots can increase the boot time.

A program that makes managing your Windows startup programs is Mike Lin's Startup Control Panel. Using this program, you can disable any program in any of the locations programs use to start themselves automatically.

• How to remove TSRs and startup programs.

Scandisk and Defrag

Running Microsoft ScanDisk and Defrag or similar disk utilities on the computer can help verify the hard drive has no errors, as well as make sure the data on the hard drive is organized in the most efficient method. We suggest running both of these utilities at least once every few months.

Hard drive space

If your computer does not have at least 250MB of free available hard drive space this can cause an overall slowdown with your computer as well as decrease the boot time. Make sure your computer hard drive has 250MB or more of available disk space.

• Determining available hard drive space.

Add memory

Adding additional memory (RAM) to the computer will help increase the overall speed of the computer and in some cases can also increase the load times of your computer. Today, we suggest all computers be running a minimum of 1GB of memory in their computer. If your computer is running less than this it may be time to upgrade.

Update drivers and Windows

Corrupt, incorrect, or out-of-date drivers can cause a number of different issues. Make sure your computer has the latest drivers as well as any available Microsoft Windows updates.

• How to update a Microsoft Windows computer.
• How do I locate software or drivers for my computer?

Registry cleaner

Although we don't often recommend registry cleaners in some rare situations running cleaners can help improve the overall performance of Windows including the Windows startup. If you've run through all of the above recommendations you may want to clean your system registry.

• Do I need a Windows registry cleaner?

Format and reinstall

If after following all the above steps your computer still seems to be slow you may want to erase everything from the computer and re-install Windows. This will clean your computer and make it like new.