PcStuffThatWorks.com

When using the Windows operating system, the Registry is one of the critical components that keep your PC running correctly.

The Internet has made it extremely easy for us to download stuff anytime we want - which is a good thing. But a not-so-good side effect of this is that every time we download and install a program, settings and information is stored in the Registry.

Since having a healthy Registry is a crucial part of how our PC performs, there are several things you need to understand when maintaining your Registry. It is easy, actually too easy, to open the Registry file and tweak a few things. But you should be very certain of what you are doing before altering the Registry file, since it can lead to disaster if not done correctly. For example, if you delete information from the Registry that is actually needed, the program or hardware that needs that information will stop working and could cause your PC to fail.

A good rule of thumb is - if in doubt, do not make any changes.

No matter what else you do, be sure to make a backup of your Registry before you make any changes. The Registry actually saves all changes as you make them - it does not wait for you to click on the save file button. What that means is, once you change something, it’s done, with no going back. That's when you will be glad you made a backup. It is easy to make a backup directly from the registry editor, or if you are using a registry cleaner most of them have a utility built in to perform backups.

The longer you operate your PC, the larger and more complex your registry file will become. Even if you delete a program that you no longer use, many times it is not completely removed and remnants of the program are left behind that clutter up the registry.

The leftover data can cause your computer to run slower because it must navigate through it to find the data it is looking for. Sometimes the old unnecessary data can also conflict with current instructions and also reduce performance. An easy way to ensure that your registry is always maintained is with a registry cleaner program.

We tested six of the most popular programs designed to clean registry files. The top two performers were Registry Fix and Registry Easy. Both of these programs can be setup to automatically scan and clean your registry so your PC will always perform well.

Registry Fix identified and fixed the most registry errors. Registry Easy also did a good job of cleaning the registry and in addition performed other optimization routines to improve our computers performance.