What is Registry Editor?

Registry Editor is a tool intended for advanced users. It is used to view and change settings in the system registry, which contains information about how your computer runs. Windows refers to this information and updates it when you make changes to your computer, such as installing a new program, creating a user profile, or adding new hardware. Registry Editor lets you view registry folders, files, and the settings for each registry file.

Ordinarily, you do not need to make changes to the registry. The registry contains complex system information that is vital to your computer, and an incorrect change to your computer's registry could render your computer inoperable. However, a corrupt registry file might require changes. We strongly recommended that you back up the registry before making any changes and that you only change values in the registry that you understand or have been instructed to change.