[RESOLVED] CCleaner Registry Cleaner

[Joseph Witchard]

My brother told me if you mess up your computer registry, you've killed your computer. I've never used the registry scan on CCleaner. How long does it take? What do I do if it's found problems? Is there any risk of messing something up by using it?

[Fang]

I've used CCleaner for many years without a single problem. The Registry cleaner takes less than a minute. Errors removed can be saved to a file which allows you to restore them if required.

Careful with the general Cleaner, it can remove all your cookies if you use the default configuration.

[Joseph Witchard]

What exactly do you mean by saving the errors to a file? How and why would you restore them?

[Fang]

CCleaner gives you the option to save the deleted registry entries in a .reg (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310516) file. Simply by double clicking on the file will restore those entries to the registry.
If you found that a program did not run correctly after using CCleaner, just run the last .reg file. I have never had to do this. CCleaner also allows you to set a System Restore point if you are worried about removing entries.
Other tools include: Cookie inspector, Startup inspector and program Uninstaller.

[Joseph Witchard]

Does doing that scan remove the entries? And how do you set/do the system restore point?

[Fang]

The scan can remove the entries, if you agree with the prompt.

In CCleaner > Tools > System Restore (remove only)
To actually set a Restore point:
Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore

[Joseph Witchard]

What's the difference in setting a restore point vs. doing a restore from CCleaner?

[Fang]

CCleaner only removes old restore points. CCleaner is a cleaner, removing 'unnecessary' data.

If you are so worried about changes made to the registry then don't use the program.

[Joseph Witchard]

The thing is, I'm in a bit of a pickle. Computers are about the only thing I can do given my current state of health, so I try to keep my computer in tip-top shape; I virus scan, spyware scan, CClean, disk cleanup, and disk defragment on a regular basis. But, if I WAS to do something that would mess up my computer, I wouldn't know where to begin on fixing everything. My brother has always fixed my computer before, but he's going to be royally ticked if I mess something up that could have been avoided quite easily. I don't know what type of regular PC maintenance is necessary to keep the system in optimal shape, other than the stuff I do now, so I try to do everything.

[Fang]

Just set a restore point, in Windows, before you cleanup.
If there are any problems you can restore Windows to a previous point. Using the programs you mention there should be no problems.

[Robbe]

You can also try using Registry Cleaner, but make sure you run it in simple modus as it has been known to crash computers. If you're comp. were to crash it would be a good idea to have a windows restore point.

[Joseph Witchard]

I'm using Windows 7 Starter on my netbook. Do I just follow the prompts on System Restore to set up a restore point? I ask because the first prompt that came up looked like it was going to do a system restore right then.

[max2474]

The page you are seeing only restores a computer.

To create a restore point :

Right click "My Computer" and choose "Properties" (this is the same as "Control Panel / System")

From the left menu, select "System protection"

At the bottom, you should see "Create...". Select it.

Give a description such as "march 2010 backup"

Create

Hope this helps. Good luck.

[Joseph Witchard]

Thanks everyone. Appreciate it:)

[neher]

Great thanks to you