Registry overview
The Registry is a central database that is created by Windows during installation. The entries in that database consist of the hardware,software, users, and preferences data for a single PC, or any PC on a network. Whenever the user makes changes to the Control Panel settings, File Associations, System Policies, or installed software, the changes are reflected in the Registry.
These Registry settings can be viewed with the Registry Editor (REGEDIT.EXE), which is installed into the Windows folder when Windows is installed.
By default, REGEDIT.EXE will NOT appear on any of the system's menus, or the Start button. So you will have to add your own shortcut, or you can click on the START button, select RUN and in the OPEN:command line type REGEDIT and press ENTER. If the Registry Editor is installed on your system, it will appear on your Desktop, ready to use.
The Registry replaces the dreaded .INI files from Windows 3.1, and because the information is presented in hierarchical form, the Registry supports nested folders, which .INI files do not support. One of the many benefits of this is that in a network environment, users can log onto any PC in the network, just as it were the very same PC on their desk! In addition, several users can store configuration data on a single machine.
Registry Editor displays the contents of the Registry in six subtrees called Keys. Keys can contain data strings, as well as SubKeys. Each of these six Keys begins with HKEY_ which indicates that it can be used by program to access resources.
When you first look at the Registry Editor, this structure looks extremely complicated. Think of the Registry Editor as another type of Windows Explorer, only this explorer ventures into the uncharted waters of your system's configuration!