How to open Registry Editor For Windows 11/10/8/7 For 64-32 Bits {Updated 2023}

How to open Registry Editor For Windows –The Windows registry is a database that stores all the settings, options, and configurations of the system and the applications installed on it. Getting your hands on it can be very dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing, but that doesn’t mean that you have to completely ignore how to access it, nor that it’s risky to just glance at it.

This is the reason that today prompts me to explain to you how to open the system registry and explore the keys that compose it as well as make a backup and perform some simple maintenance operations. Take it as a starting point to approach the subject so, perhaps with time, you could become an expert and you will be able to fix computer problems by acting directly on the Windows registry.

How to open Registry Editor For Windows 11/10/8/7 For 64-32 Bits {Updated 2023}

So tell me, are you ready to find out what are the steps you need to take in order to succeed in the enterprise? Yes? Fantastic: then I would say not to waste any more time, to roll up our sleeves and start immediately to get busy. Please, carry out all the steps I am about to indicate to you with the utmost caution and do not take autonomous initiatives, so to speak. In this case, as I have already mentioned, you could risk compromising the functioning of your computer: then don’t tell me I didn’t warn you! Happy reading and happy studying.

As I mentioned in the initial part of this tutorial, the Windows registry – however small in terms of space – is one of the fundamental components of the operating system: it is a database which, in fact, contains all the “directives ” that dominate both the functioning of the Windows components and that of the various installed programs. The database in question can be accessed using the Registry Editor utility , built into virtually all editions of Windows since Windows 95.

Opening the utility in question is very simple: to start, press the key combination Win+R on the keyboard (the Win key is the one depicting the Windows logo, usually located at the bottom left), so as to call up the Run/Run panel command . Then, type the command regedit.exein the text box attached to the panel that opens and hit Enter . If necessary, then click on the Yes button , in order to authorize the execution of the command.

How to open Registry Editor For Windows 11/10/8/7 For 64-32 Bits

If, for some reason, you are unable to use the Run Command function above, you can access the Windows Registry Editor using one of the alternative procedures that I list below.

• Open the Start menu of the operating system, type the word regeditin the dedicated search field and click on the first result received (called Registry Editor ).
• Open the Windows Start menu , click on the item All programs / All apps and went to the Windows Tools / Windows System folder . Finally, double-click the Registry Editor** icon.
• Open the Command Prompt or a PowerShell/Windows Terminal window in administrator mode, issue the command regedit.exeand press Enter .
• Open Windows File Explorer , click on the This PC/Computer icon and double-click on the name of the disk containing Windows (e.g. C: ). Once this is done, open the Windows folder by double clicking on its icon and run the regedit.exe file located inside it.

The Registry Editor window takes up, in some way, the graphics of the Windows File Explorer and follows the “tree” navigation; the utility screen is divided into two sections: the one on the left, which contains the list of keys, and the one on the right, through which you can access the sub-keys and the list of values.

Basically, keys and sub-keys refer to certain elements of Windows, or of installed programs; the values , on the other hand, define the behavior of the element or of the program to which the key that contains it refers (e.g. the type of font to use, the default size of the window, the folder containing the reference files, the information licensing, etc.). Basically, the registry contains five “master” keys , called hives , which dominate as many aspects of the operating system.

• HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT (or HKCR) : this hive contains the file associations active on the computer, i.e. the indications about the programs to use to manage the various types of files (e.g. Notepad for .txt files, the browser for files of type .html and so on).
• HKEY_CURRENT_USER (or HKCU ): is the hive that stores some settings relating to the programs installed on the system, specific to the currently logged in user (for example the directory containing the environment variables or the one relating to files in automatic execution).
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE (or HKLM ): this hive contains values ​​and keys related to the “core” components of the operating system, such as the location of device drivers, update installation settings, passwords and Windows/program security settings installed, just to name a few.
• HKEY_USERS : is the hive that contains information about the remaining user profiles configured in Windows, if any.
• HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG : contains some information about the hardware usage in use at system startup.

Given the importance of the Windows registry, hives, keys and their values ​​should never be modified or altered “manually” in any way, unless you are perfectly aware of what you are doing. In any case, my advice is to periodically make a backup of the database, especially when you are about to make changes, to be able to restore promptly in case of problems.

To do this, once the registry editor has started, click on the Computer item at the top left, open the File menu located at the top and select the Save… item , located inside it. Subsequently, indicate the folder in which to archive the registry backup, assign a name to the file containing the save and conclude everything by clicking on the Save button. If you wish, you can also back up a single hive (or, in general, a single key), selecting it with the mouse and repeating the same procedure above. In case of doubts or problems, take a look at the guide where I explain how to make a backup of the system registry.

How to open registry without regedit

How do you say? Did you make one too many changes to the Windows registry and the operating system no longer starts, so you can’t use regedit to restore the backup you made just to avoid problems? In this case, the operating system recovery console could come in handy: using the Windows installation media, you can in fact access a minimal environment, through which you can open the hive/key on which to intervene for modification .

So, first of all, get the installation disk or USB stick related to your operating system; if you don’t have any support of this type, you can easily do it using a second computer, following the instructions I gave you in my guide on how to create a bootable USB stick.

Once the bootable media has been created, insert it into the problematic PC and turn it on: with a bit of luck, within a few seconds, you should see the Windows startup logo; if you should notice the appearance of a message asking you to press a key to boot from the USB / DVD , perform this last operation.

If, on the other hand, an attempt is made to start up your (alas not working) copy of Windows, you must manually act on the UEFI/BIOS settings and prepare, from there, the start of the computer: if you don’t know how to do it, follow the instructions I gave you in my tutorial on how to set the BIOS (or UEFI) to boot from USB.

If everything went smoothly, within a few minutes, you should see the Windows language selection window appear: therefore set the language , the time format and the keyboard layout you prefer to use, click on the Next button and then on the Reset item the computer , located at the bottom left.

Now, if you use Windows 10 or Windows 11, click on the Troubleshoot icon and then on the Command Prompt item ; otherwise, use the arrow keys on the keyboard to select the Command Prompt item and press Enter . If necessary, enter the BitLocker key used for disk encryption, or the password of one of the administrator users configured in the system. With a bit of luck, you should now find yourself in front of the Command Prompt.

The first thing to do now is to identify the partition on which Windows is installed: therefore type the command BCDEDITin the Command Prompt window, press Enter and locate the section called Windows boot loader . When you find it, identify the osdevice entry and note the letter after the partition= (e.g. D ).

At this point, issue the command regedit, hit Enter and go to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE hive ; once this is done, click on the File menu > Load hive… , open the folder This PC > [previously noted disk] > Windows > System32 > Config and navigate to the .reg file containing the hive to be modified (e.g. SOFTWARE ). Finally, type a temporary name by which to identify the key in the support registry (eg SOFTWARE_MODIFICARE ) and click the OK button .

Once this step has also been passed, all you have to do is open the newly created key and intervene on the additional sub-keys/values ​​that led to the Windows malfunction: the changes made will be instantaneous. When the work is completed, click again on the name of the previously loaded key, this time select the item File > Download hive… and press OK to remove the previously loaded hive. If necessary, repeat the same operation with all hives to be modified.

At the end of the work, close the regedit window, close the Command Prompt and restart the computer by pressing the key combination Ctrl + Alt + Del : if you have made the appropriate changes, Windows should now start again.

Note : If you’re having trouble manually editing registry hives, keys, and values, you can roll the registry back to a previous — and presumably working — state using Windows restore points. If you don’t know how to use them, refer to the tutorial I linked to you earlier.

How to open a system registry file (.reg)

Files with the .reg extension , as the name suggests, contain information about a certain combination of hives, keys and values ​​belonging to the system registry; these items can contain the backup of the entire registry as well as hives, keys and values, but can also be used to modify the registry itself (eg creating new keys/values, modifying existing keys/values ​​and so on). To join a .reg file to the system registry and make any changes inside it, just double-click on the file icon and answer affirmatively to the message that appears afterwards.

On the other hand, you should never join a .reg file to the Windows registry, especially if it comes from unknown sources, as this operation could compromise the stability and security of your computer , programs and data on it. In this regard, it will be useful to know that the content of .reg files is always textual: therefore, you can take a look at the content of a .reg file, and have a clear idea of ​​the changes that its union would bring about to the registry, by opening it directly with Windows Notepad.

To do this, right-click on the icon of the file in question, select the Open with item from the menu that appears and click on the Notepad item : in a few seconds, the entire contents of the file will be shown in the editor. Windows default text. To get an idea of ​​the changes that the .reg file could make to the registry, carefully read the definition of the hives, keys and values ​​inside it: in this regard, the official guide to creating a registry could help you. .reg file, available on the Microsoft website.