What Is My Windows Registry, anyway?

(and What's This "Registry Repair"?)

Do you know what your Windows Registry is? Don't worry if you don't, a large chunk of PC users aren't aware that their computer even has one. But it does. And it's vital to your PC's operation. What's more, it's also vital, as you will soon learn, that you care for and maintain your registry, that you clean it and conduct diligent registry repair.

Your Windows registry is your PC's central database repository. It's where your computer warehouses all the information it repeatedly references to configure itself for your use. In the plainest of terms, it stores your settings.

Your Windows registry includes:

• Profiles for every user

• What system hardware the PC is using

• Which ports are being used and for what

• What applications are stored on the hard drive

• What kinds of documents each application can make

• Proper settings for your folder and application icons

In ordinary computer usage you'll hardly ever interact with your Windows registry (or need to). Most of the functions your Windows registry describes, Windows handles in the background. You never need to deal with it. And any preferences you may wish to change you'd typically take care of using Windows Utilities, like those found in your Control Panel.

But the more you use Windows, the more entries are added to your registry. As your Windows registry grows it can become both cluttered and outdated. Entries can be moved and found missing. Entries can become invalid over time. Entries can attract obsolete and unnecessary information that only serve as cumbersome clutter. Entries relating to installed software can linger long after said software's been uninstalled.

All of these things - normal everyday operations and remnants thereof - can cause:

• frequent errors

• slow internet connections

• inability to remove programs

• slow running systems

• system freezes and crashes

Regular Windows registry scanning and cleaning and, whenever needed, immediate registry repair can prevent all of these problems and add renewed life to your system. But make no mistake: registry repair is as dangerous as it is critical, and in the most innocently naïve of hands can also cause your entire system to fail. (See our accompanying article on registry repair safety, called Caution: What You Must Know Before Starting Any Windows Registry Repair.)

Windows registry repair must be handled with care - put that on a bumper-sticker, why don't you? (Or at least scribble it on a post it and stick it to your monitor.) There are plenty of excellent software products on the market that can take you by the hand through the entire registry repair process while being sure to maintain the safety of your data and the integrity of your system.

Your Windows registry is also where spyware programs hide out while they collect and report to their masters your private data. And even if you already use an anti-spyware program, your Windows registry may still be sullied by leftover debris from the malware's presence. Registry repair programs often include features for removing spyware from your registry.

Not only will Windows registry repair software (also called "registry cleaners") clean your registry of unwanted files, but they can organize it, streamline it, defragment it, and compact it, all of which will dramatically boost your computer's speed and performance.

We've reviewed many of the leading Windows registry repair solutions currently on the market in the hopes of finding you an easy way to keep your computer operating at its best.