How do I Open and Edit the Windows Registry

In this article, we will discuss how to open and edit the window registry.

Users may occasionally need to alter the Windows registry to resolve Windows issues, tweak Windows features, or entirely uninstall a program. This article offers guidance on viewing, editing, and deleting registry values and opening and examining the Windows registry. Experts advise that to create a registry backup before making any changes or modifying the Windows registry.

Methods for accessing the Windows registry

Follow the instructions listed below for the particular version of Windows to open the Windows registry.

Point to remember that we might be unable to view the Windows registry if we have restricted access to the Windows machine to which we are now signed in.

Windows 11

1. Select the magnifying glass(search) icon on the Windows taskbar to open it.
   
2. Enter regedit into the text box at the top of the search field in the window.
3. Select Yes if User Account Control asks to open the Registry Editor.
4. The Windows Registry Editor window needs to launch and have the appearance in the following example.

Windows 10

1. Enter the word regedit into the taskbar's Windows search box.
2. Select Yes if User Account Control asks to open the Registry Editor.
3. The Windows Registry Editor window needs to launch and have the appearance in the following example.

Windows 8

1. Choose the regedit option from the search results after typing regedit into the Start screen's search box.
2. Select Yes if User Account Control asks us to open the Registry Editor.
3. The Windows Registry Editor window needs to launch and have the appearance in the following example.

Previous versions of Windows 7

1. Either select Start or hit the Windows key.
2. Regedit can be found in the Start menu's Run or Search boxes. Type it there and hit Enter. On the Start screen of Windows 8, you can type regedit and choose the regedit option from the search results. In Windows 10, enter regedit into the search field on the taskbar.
3. Select Yes if User Account Control asks us to open the Registry Editor.
4. The Windows Registry Editor window must launch and have the appearance in the following example.

How to go through the Windows registry

Most users obtain the location or path of the registry value and the desired change when they edit their registry. An instance path for a frequently used registry subkey is shown below. The HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE key (folder) must first be opened in order to access this location. We can see the SOFTWARE folder, Microsoft, Windows, CurrentVersion, and then the Run folder in this key.

Recommendation: An additional registry folder is represented by a backslash ("\") in a path, with the name of the additional folder appearing after the backslash.

We get a window like the one in the example above after choosing the registry path mentioned above. We are able to observe four different string value keys in this example directing to the four different starting or restart programs.

How to change a value in a Windows registry

Double-click on the name of the registry value we wish to update to edit it. For instance, a new window would open if we double-click the "RtkAudUService" value from the previous example, allowing us to alter the data value. In this instance, we might alter the file path that directs to the location of the RtkAudUService driver's "ipoint.exe" file.

How to remove a value from the Windows registry

Simply select any registry name RtkAudUService and press the Del key on the keyboard to remove a registry value. For instance, we may choose and press Del to prevent it from loading every time Windows starts.

Abbreviations and shorthand for the Windows registry

The registry values may be shortened in some documentation and online discussion boards. For instance, it is simpler to pronounce and write "HKLM" than