February 11, 2025
Windows 7 Top Contributors:
LemP - Bill Smithers ✅
Are "registry cleaners" safe to use?
I just want to know if those so-called "registry cleaners" are safe to use. Since they are all over the Internet, I assume a lot of people do use them. They give promises of faster computer performance, getting rid of all the junk left by previously uninstalled programs. But I am thinking that to an untrained hand, isn't that going to cause more trouble?
The reason I am asking is that yes, I do see folders left by previously uninstalled programs and it's pretty annoying to find folders that have nothing in them. I just need advice if using these things will be okay.
And I would also greatly appreciate if you could give suggestions on what cleaners I would use. As you have noticed I am not very adept with computers, but I am also trying to avoid inadvertedly damaging anything because I know I cannot fix it.
Thanks!
-Reine
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> Hi,I just want to know if those so-called "registry cleaners"
> are safe to use.
No!
> Since they are all over the Internet, I assume a lot of
> people do use them.
Yes, unfortunately.
> They give promises of faster computer performance, getting
> rid of all the junk left by previously uninstalled programs.
> But I am thinking that to an untrained hand, isn't that
> going to cause more trouble?
Yes! Registry cleaning programs are *all* snake oil. Cleaning of the
ve the registry alone and
don't use any registry cleaner. Despite what many people think, and
what vendors of registry cleaning software try to convince you of,
having unused registry entries doesn't really hurt you.
The risk of a serious problem caused by a registry cleaner erroneously
removing an entry you need is far greater than any potential benefit
it may have.
Read http://www.edbott.com/weblog/archives/000643.html
> The reason I am asking is that yes, I do see folders left
> by previously uninstalled programs and it's pretty annoying
> to find folders that have nothing in them.
That has nothing to do with registry cleaners, which don't do anything
about them at all.
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP (Windows Desktop Experience) since 2003
Ken Blake
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Ken you're copletely right.
Those tools are completely useless since Vista. Vista/7 optimize themselves (Superfetch, ReadyBoot, automatic defragmentation during idle). And Windows doesn't completely load the registry into the RAM any longer. So those tools are useless.
Save the money and better buy more RAM to speed up your PC!
André
"A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" CLIP- Stellvertreter http://www.winvistaside.de/
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> KJBlake has it down here... registry cleaners really
> don't give you a noticable speed increase. However I
> use CCleaner (ccleaner.com), which also cleans junk
> files off your system, not just clean the registry.
CCleaner *is* a good program, as long as you don't use its registry
cleaning function.
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP (Windows Desktop Experience) since 2003
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> Thank you for your replies. I verified this information with my
> friends before buying a new computer and Windows 7. Your input is
> much appreciated. :)
You're welcome. Glad to help.
--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP (Windows Desktop Experience) since 2003
Ken Blake
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Registry cleaners are unsafe. They can damage your system, make your computer unbootable, and stop your programs from running. They use all kinds of "algorithms" to see what items in your registry should be deleted, and then delete vital registry keys and values that are essential for your computer to run properly. There is no significant improvement in your computer performance from using them. They are the snake oil of the software market. See http://chris.pirillo.com/are-registry-cleaners-safe-to-use/
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Last updated December 27, 2024 Views 35,072 Applies to: