Software

Clean up your registry with TweakNow RegCleaner

By // April 9, 2007, 10:10 AM PST

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  • By Greg Shultz

    As you know, the registry is basically a database of all the configuration settings in the operating system and if the registry becomes clogged up with bogus or outdated entries, it can bog down your system. To keep the registry in tiptop shape, you need to investigate TweakNow RegCleaner Standard Edition. It’s a very easy to use tool and does a nice job of cleaning the deadwood out of your registry.

    TweakNow RegCleaner Standard Edition is FREE to download and use.

  • Downloading TweakNow RegCleaner

    You can download TweakNow RegCleaner from TechRepublic's Software Library.

    To find it, just type TweakNow in the text box and click Search. When you click the Download link, you'll see the File Download dialog box and should just click Save.

  • Running the EXE

    Once you download TweakNow RegCleaner, locate the RegCleaner.exe file in Windows Explorer, and double-click it to launch the installation. When you do so, you might see the Open File Security Warning message. Just click the Run command to get started.

  • Starting the installation

    The TweakNow RegCleaner installation procedure is comprised of a 7 step wizard that walks you through pretty standard installation decisions.

  • Completing the installation

    The last step in the wizard prompts you to immediately launch RegCleaner.

  • Main window

    RegCleaner's user interface is very clean looking. As you can see, there are several configuration options.

    Under the Scan Mode section, you can select either Quick Scan, which will only scan the most important part of your registry, or Custom, which will allow you to manually select from a list of registry sections that you want to scan.

    Under the User Mode section, you can select Beginner, which excludes several complex registry keys during the scan process and only lists results that are rated as safe to delete, or you can select Expert, which will scan the entire registry using all available scan methods and then lists all the results.

    Under the Having Problems? section, you can click the Restore Now link and essentially undo any changes that may have caused problems.

    If you click the Option on the toolbar, you can specify registry entries that you want to exclude from the scan.

    To begin a registry cleaning operation, just click the Clean Now button

  • Performing a scan

    While the scan is running, RegCleaner displays a very detailed progress window that shows you what registry keys and values are currently being scanned as well as a summary of the problems found. Each problem category is identified in the legend.

  • Beginner User Mode scan

    As I mentioned, the Beginner User Mode excludes several complex registry keys during the scan process and only lists results that are rated as safe to delete. As you can see, the Scan Complete window only indicates that 2 problems were found when RegCleaner is run in Beginner User Mode.

  • Expert Mode User scan

    Running the scan again in Expert Mode, which scans the entire registry using all available scan methods, the Scan Complete window indicates that a total of 77 problems were found—76 safe to delete and 1 unknown.

  • The Result window

    After using the Expert Mode User and clicking the View Result button, you’ll see the Result window. The tree pane on the left indicates each one of the main registry sections and indicates how many problems were found in each section. The path pane on the right indicates the exact path to the registry key with a problem. As you can see, by default all the problems marked as Safe To Delete are selected.

    Note that the Problem Details pane contains more information about the selected problem. As such, you should take time to scroll through the list and examine every problem.

  • The Result window

    When you’re ready to clean up all the problems marked as Safe to Delete, you can just click the Delete button on the toolbar. When you do so, RegCleaner will make a backup copy of each marked registry value and then delete it. In this example, when the delete operation was complete you’ll see that the only thing remaining in the Result window is the item marked as Unknown.

    If you feel that it is safe to delete any unknown items, just select the check box and click the Delete button.

  • Warning

    When you attempt to delete an unknown item, you’ll see a stark Warning dialog box, and may want to reconsider.

  • Exclusion List

    If you discover any valid registry entry that RegCleaner marked as either Safe to Delete or Unknown, you can add it to the Exclusion list by selecting the entry’s check box and clicking the Add Into Exclusion List button on the Result window’s toolbar. When you do, RegCleaner will prompt you to confirm the operation.

  • Options

    When you return to the main RegCleaner interface, you can click the Options button on the toolbar to check on the existing Exclusion list. You can all use the buttons in the Options window to add, edit, or delete registry entries from the Exclusion list.

  • New

    If you click the New button in the Options window, you’ll see the New dialog box and can manually add a registry entry to the Exclusion list.

  • Restoring

    If after you run RegCleaner and clean up your registry, you discover that something is not functioning as it should, you can use the Restore Now feature to essentially undo all the changes that you just made.

  • Restore complete

    TweakNow RegCleaner will alert you when the Restore operation is complete.

  • Custom Scan

    If at some point in time, you encounter a problem with the operating system that you suspect is being caused by a problem entry in a specific section of the registry, you can use RegCleaner’s Custom Scan feature. Doing so will allow you to zero in on the problem without having to scan the entire registry.

    When you select the Custom option and then click the Edit Custom Mode in the Scan Mode section of RegCleaner’s main interface, you’ll see the Custom Scan dialog box and can select the checkbox next to those sections on which you want to focus your registry scan.

  • Restart

    While RegCleaner does note require or prompt you to restart your system after a registry clean operation, I recommend that you restart your system after any type of drastic registry alteration.

  • Other version

    If you feel that TweakNow RegCleaner Standard Edition is a great tool, you may want to investigate the Professional Edition, which costs $26.95 and includes such extra features as the Track Cleaner, the Registry Defragmenter, and the 1-Click Windows Optimization feature.

    TweakNow RegCleaner Standard Edition is compatible with Windows 2000 Professional Windows XP Professional/x64/Home, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista

    You can download TweakNow RegCleaner from TechRepublic's Software Library and learn more about TweakNow RegCleaner Standard Edition and the Professional Edition on the TweakNow site.

By Greg Shultz

As you know, the registry is basically a database of all the configuration settings in the operating system and if the registry becomes clogged up with bogus or outdated entries, it can bog down your system. To keep the registry in tiptop shape, you need to investigate TweakNow RegCleaner Standard Edition. It’s a very easy to use tool and does a nice job of cleaning the deadwood out of your registry.

TweakNow RegCleaner Standard Edition is FREE to download and use.

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About Greg Shultz

Greg Shultz is a freelance Technical Writer. Previously, he has worked as Documentation Specialist in the software industry, a Technical Support Specialist in educational industry, and a Technical Journalist in the computer publishing industry.