Seems like the differences voiced in this discussion much represent the issues at hand, and that is you just gotta do your homework and use some common sense – good judgment skills when making these kinds of decisions.

And if you wait to use or not use any so-called registry cleaners AFTER you have encountered a problem, or series of problems, then you probably ought to go back to square one and construct a good solid backup and restore policy on your system. For some it seems that this BU&RP would simply read wipe out everything and start over. OK, if that works for you, but of course that goes without saying, providing your personal user files are not hanging out there somewhere and in harm’s way.

( We have been saying “back up your data” to end users since the dawn of the IBM “Personal” Computer August 12th, 1981, and now here some 27+ years later, how many folks even do that? Let alone BUY their software and keep track of their licensed copies and keys?)

Anyway, back to the bottom line…
to use or not to use registry cleaners?

For clarification, and I think most of us understand this, if a so-called registry cleaner frees up MBs or GBsof hard drive space, it was doing more than just cleaning up the registry. Obviously it was cleaning out temp and temp internet files and the such as well, so those points are not really relevant.

I do think Ed’s original thesis still holds up well. In a nutshell, as I read it, “Show me the money!” OR rather, in this instance “Show me the performance stats!”

OK, yah, it might seem that some problems that may have been slowing down the system were corrected by a registry cleaner, but what was the actual problem entry(s) and can you actually verify that that one action was what actually corrected the problem(s)? or were other corrections/actions also relevant?

I think Ed stated it very well in the beginning, and that is that a registry scan might be valuable in pointing to a specific problem area, but then you could go directly to that specific entry and deal with it manually, instead of risking throwing the proverbial baby, or rather many babies, out with the bath water!

OK, some have reported good results with a number of registry cleaners. Seems like JV16 and CCleaner have good reports, but remember CCleaner does MUCH more than just “clean” the registry. But some severe problems have been also mentioned by users as well.

So we simply ask the question, “Is is really worth the risk? Is is a necessary risk?”

I have only been working with PC’s since 1984 and I have yet to be able to affirm that any so-called registry cleaner has actually singularly improved the overall system performance of any of the 1000’s of systems I have worked on. To be sure there is an awful lot of hype out there, but little if any real tangible evidence to support their claims.

THIS IS NOT TO SAY THAT MANUAL ADJUSTMENTS, OR THAT EMPLOYING ANTI-MALWARE TOOLS THAT DO MAKE CHANGES TO THE REGISTRY ARE NOT BENEFICIAL!!!! THIS IS ANOTHER TOPIC ALL TOGETHER!

My take on all this is simply to say that to date, general registry cleaners are probably not worth the risk of major problems ( let alone the loss of time and money! ) unless, of course, like some users, you could care less about the whole system and would just assume wipe out all and reinstall all.

Start with a clean system.
( Don’t talk to me if you got your PC from a Pawn Shop!)
BUY & Install only original and licensed software.
( Don’t talk to me if you use pirated OS or software! )
Keep track of all the original discs for OS and Programs.
Minimize just “trying out” software on your computer.
Learn to backup your critical data on a regular basis.
( Know just what is critical and just how to back up! )
Keep security programs current and up to date,
( current is related to license and version;
up to date is related to definition files )
& RUN THEM on a regular basis!
Employ a good reliable disc imaging strategy, such as ghost, disk image, or others to create master images or hard drives of known good configurations.
Don’t let others use your computer AT ALL!!!
( They don’t call them Personal Computers for Nothing! )

…AND DON’T EXPECT THAT ANY SILVER BULLETS,
ESPECIALLY THESE ALLEGED REGISTRY CLEANERS,
ARE GOING TO COVER YOU IF AND WHEN YOU FAIL
TO DO YOUR REGULAR MAINTENANCE ON YOUR pc!

That’s my two cents, and even though it takes another 98 cents to make a dollar, even the humble dollar is depreciating even as we converse here presently.

Thanks to one and all once again. miklskon

It detected cca 1300 errors (?!?) and among many “errors” was also a system restore utility… yeah, right. Maybe few programs are OK (like CCleaner, never did something like this to me), but in general, avoid this stuff, especially on Vista.

I am a PC tech. I do not trust Reg Cleaning programs. I think they can cause more problems then solve, especially if you do not know what is being deleted. I have tried JV16, thought it was OK. Tried RegCleaner, I thought it did a good job. Tried RegDr by PCtools, I thought it did a good job. What I like the best is Ccleaner. It allows you to delete what you want, period. I also use Diskeeper in auto defrag mode. This program keeps the drives inline and running fast.

Just be careful on what you let delete for you. Find out first what files do what in the registry. And, no I do not use any of these programs regularly. Thats why I am researching now, because I am running Vista and this new program RegCure says I have issues…LOL. What ever..

The best thing you can do to improve overall speed is to keep your drives defragmented. You can use DEFRAG that is included with the OS, or if you have a lot of activity on you PC, get a really good one like Diskeeper.

Next best, especially if you turn your PC on and off every time you use it, is to educate yourself about processes that start up when you start the OS and delete or quarantine the ones you don’t need using msconfig (also included with the OS). No lessons here, but you can find out how to do this with a few Google searches. Unless you are really cramped for memory, most processes that start up at boot time just set there.

Also run a good spy bot cleaner because these processes affect your browser significantly.

Mess with the registry ONLY when you need to and only with clear instructions that you are comfortable with, a registry backup and a way to reinstate it if all goes to hell.

http://www.freedomlist.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=181938#181938

Otherwise just dont use them.

I also use another registry program called Registry Workshop this is a great program for searching the registry but does more besides.

As for actually having a registry I’ve read recently that a registry isn’t actually necessary and that programs just require an ini file to run. I have programs that do just that on my U3 stick and on my flash drive.

So why exactly does micosoft want every PC to have a registry?

Result: only 2 of the 10 tested programs worked. Two of the programs that had poor performance were highly recommended elsewhere. The two that performed well: JV16 PowerTools and EasyCleaner (The second one is free).

The testing could have been more complete, but it was the only evaluation anywhere I could find that didn’t base ratings only on features or ease of use, but actually had a structured test to evaluate performance. I didn’t read all of the posts, but did notice favorable mentions of these products, and warnings against several others.

Caveat Emptor
Roy

Personally, the only cleaner I found reliable is myself and regedit. I’m more careful then any of these programs about what I delete (AOL crap)

Today I did a complete restoration of my laptop and everything is back to normal.

Your best bet is probably a virus and spyware scan. I’d bet decent money your issues lies there.

If those don’t clear up your issues, your next best bet is probably to reinstall windows (there are other options, but those are beyond what I can get into here).

Beware the snake oil, there’s a lot of it out there. If they are trying to sell you someting and promising to solve all your troubles, 90% chance they’re full of kaka.