82. How to edit the windows registry

Editing the Windows registry can most easily be accomplished through the REGEDIT program built into Windows. This can be accessed by going to start\run\ and typing 'regedit.'

Due to the nature of the registry, any changes you make here do not have to be saved. All changes are applied upon restarting the system. This also means that there is no 'cancel' button for undoing accidental changes, so make sure you keep careful note of the values you intend to edit.

Registry values are stored in keys which appear as folders in the REGEDIT window. Most of the following instructions will have you add or edit values inside these keys.

When you highlight a key in the left pane, the values stored in it appear in the right pane. To edit a value, right click it and select 'modify.'

To add a new value, navigate to the key in which you wish to add the value, right clock it and select 'new' then the type of value you wish to create. Generally this will be either a string or DWORD value. Once you have created the value, name it, then right click on it to 'modify' its properties.

Note that the naming convention for the registry, which we stick to in the following tips, is no spaces, separate words indicated by using capital letters. For example: EnableBalloonTips