Editing the Windows 8 registry. Three ways to open the Windows Registry Editor

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Windows 8 is widely popular among PC users. But not everyone knows how to open the Registry Editor. There are several simple and effective ways to start editing it.

detailed instructions

Option 1

A shortcut using the Win+R key combination will open the Run window.

Write the regedit command there and confirm the action with OK.

Option 2

We call the Task Manager with the well-known combination Ctrl+Alt+Del.

At the end of the procedure, enter the already familiar regedit request and confirm the action.

Option 3

If you hold the mouse cursor on the right side of the screen, the so-called Curtain will appear, which we will need. On it we look for the Search line.

Under the Applications item there is a Search line, where we write the word regedit.

All that remains is to activate the application.

Option 4

In the upper right corner of the My Computer window there is a Search line, which is what we will need. There you need to write the regedit command.

Among several shortcuts, you need to select the one that is saved in the C:\Windows directory.

Option 5

Go back to My Computer and open drive C.

Among the abundance of shortcuts, you need to find regedit with the Application type. Open it by double clicking.

These are the methods available to clearly see how to launch the registry. These instructions also apply to Windows 8.1. Each option only takes a few minutes.

In my articles, tips and notes, I often refer the reader to the Windows Registry Editor. Many of them involve intensive work with registry keys and values. I suddenly realized that not all of my readers had gotten their teeth into working with this program, and some had never even launched Registry Editor. Therefore, I decided to write a small guide to this program.

Table of contents:

What is Registry Editor

Registry Editor was historically created as a tool for users who needed to change Windows settings that were not visible in the user interface. The main function of this program is to view and change settings in the system registry, that is, a set of special binary files that contain information about the Windows configuration and about almost all programs that are installed on your computer. Windows OS, and many programs (with the exception of those that are so-called “portable”, portable, in other words, do not require installation) store their settings in the registry.

How to launch Registry Editor

Method 1
Regardless of the version of Windows installed on your computer, this method will work:

Method 2
The Registry Editor executable is located in C:\Windows, which means you can open this folder in Explorer and run the regedit.exe file with a mouse click.

Alternatively, you can create a shortcut for Regedit.exe and place it in the Windows 8.x Start menu/application list, in the folder

%ProgramData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs

This will make Registry Editor visible in Windows search results, and also allow you to launch the application with one click.

General view of the Registry Editor

The Registry Editor looks like this:

As you can see in the picture above, it consists of two panels:

the left one displays a hierarchical representation of the data structure, it is called sections (or keys);
the right panel displays options. They are name = data pairs and are stored inside keys.

What the Registry Editor shows

As I mentioned above, the editor shows us sections and options.

Sections are a virtual representation of data from several files that form registry database. You can see which files represent the registry on your computer if you go to this section:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\hivelist

Here you can see a list of files on your hard drive that store registry data. The data inside them, as mentioned above, has a hierarchical structure, and the Registry Editor shows it in the form of a “tree”. The roots of the tree (master keys) generally represent a specific file, the data of which is accessed.

However, there are also virtual keys that appear in the Registry Editor as regular files, but in reality they are a representation of several files or even individual registry branches. They exist generally for backward compatibility. For example, HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG is a virtual view, HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT is also a virtual view that combines the current user's registry keys and the system keys.

Please note that some registry files do not appear in the Registry Editor window. For example, you will never see what is stored inside the SAM (Security Accounts Manager) file. In the registry editor it is represented by the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SAM\SAM branch and it is supposedly empty there. This is done for security reasons.

Registry Settings used by Windows and many third-party applications to store various configuration settings and some user data. Parameter values come in various types, but in general they are text/string values, numeric values, or binary values.

How to create a new registry key

To create a new key, right-click on the parent partition in the left pane and select New -> Section from the context menu.

You must name the created partition according to the requirements of the program for which you are creating it.

How to create a new parameter

To create a new parameter, you need to right-click

on the current section on the left
or
in the empty space in the right panel.

Select the appropriate type for the new parameter and enter its name. Double-click the parameter name to set its value.

How to become the owner of a section and get full access to it

Just as the concepts of permissions and owner apply to files and folders in the NTFS file system, they also apply to registry keys. From the Windows Vista era to the present day, most registry keys that store OS settings are protected by restricted access rights so that they cannot be easily deleted or changed by the user. Sometimes you may need to change data in such partitions, and to do this you need to be able to change the owner of the partition and gain full access to it. This is quite easy to do.

How to restore TrustedInstaller as partition owner

Almost all system registry keys in Windows Vista, 7 and 8 have the TrustedInstaller account as their owner. After editing partition permissions, you must return ownership rights to this account, otherwise the operating system may not work correctly. To restore the TrustedInstaller property in Windows Vista, 7 and 8, enter NT Service\TrustedInstaller in the "Enter the names of the selected objects" field. Click OK.

How to change permissions on a registry key

After changing the owner of a registry key, you almost always have to change the access rights, otherwise you won't be able to change the parameter values. To do this, you must switch to the Permissions tab in the Advanced Security Settings dialog box.

Subsections may have so-called inherited permissions from its parent section. Alternatively, subkeys can also have explicit permissions that are different from the parent key.

In the first case, that is, if the permissions are inherited from the parent key, you must disable inheritance and copy the parent section's permissions to the current key in order to be able to change them. To do this in Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows XP, uncheck the "Add permissions that are inherited from parents" option and click the Add button in the confirmation dialog box.

After disabling inheritance, select the appropriate user account and click Change to change access rights.

Windows 8 has a special button to disable inheritance:

Permissions can be set in two ways: after disabling inheritance, you can set them only on the current key, or you can set permissions on the current key, and then apply them to all its subkeys. To do this, check the box Replace all permission entries of a child object with those inherited from this object. This action will push the permissions you set down the key hierarchy for all subkeys.

Registry Editor command line switches

Go to the desired registry section with one click

Option #1

Some time ago I created a utility called RegOwnershipEx, which allows you to gain full access to a registry key with one click. In addition, it allows you to go to the desired registry section. I recommend that you familiarize yourself with it.

RegOwnershipEx allows the following:

become the owner and gain full access to the selected registry section. There is a registry overview window for easy selection of a section.
Favorites - for quick access to your favorite registry section. It is integrated with the Registry Editor's Favorites menu.
restore the permissions and ownership that you changed earlier. those. The program allows you to return rights to their original state.
"open in regedit" function - you can open the selected key in the registry editor. This is a very convenient option to quickly jump to a section by simply copying its name.
shortcuts for root partitions - you can use HKCU instead of HKEY_CURRENT_USER, HKLM instead of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and so on.
getting the registry path from the Windows clipboard.
"/j" command line argument to retrieve the path to a registry key from the Windows clipboard and quickly jump to the Registry Editor.

All this is damn convenient!

Option 2

I have sketched out a simple script that will receive the contents of the clipboard, write it to the registry and open the registry editor. The following scenario is assumed: You are reading an article, it says “go to the registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion”. You select the path to the section, press CTRL+C and run the script. The Registry Editor opens in the desired location. .

The registry is a repository of all parameters and settings of the operating system. Editing the registry of windows 7, 8, etc. carried out when you need to quickly change something in the system settings.
But you should only do this if you are confident of success, otherwise you may cause a software or operating system failure

Quick opening

This method is universal for all versions of operating systems, from “seven” and higher. In addition, this method will be the fastest to open 7. It is carried out through the window for entering Execute commands. For some users, it is placed on the main start menu or start screen. If it is not there, then you will have to call the window additionally. To call the console in this way, repeat the algorithm:

Press and hold the Win button and the R button at the same time;
Regardless of the OS type, a small window will appear with the title “Run” and a line for entering a command;

Enter regedit in the field

Press OK or Enter;
The required window will open.

The desired window may not open immediately. First, the system may require you to confirm your administrative rights. Click confirm permissions and start using the console. This method is the simplest and fastest, and therefore it is better to remember the command.

The editor itself looks like this

Launch via Search

In order to call the registry in Windows 7, you can use the search in folders and system files of the computer. To perform a search, do the following:

Open the Start menu by left-clicking on the button in the lower left corner of the screen;
At the bottom of the expanded list, in the left block, there is a line for entering text (search query);
Type regedit into it and press Search or Enter.

You won't get many results.

Most often this is one required file

But if there are several results with the same name in the search results, choose the one that has the exe format and is marked with a blue cube icon. This method of entering the Windows 7 registry editor is popular among users.

How to open Registry Editor in Windows 8.1

The menu and entire design of Windows 8.1 differs significantly from Windows 7. Of course, for those users who did not configure the function of saving the old menu for convenience using special utilities. Therefore, you won’t be able to get into the Windows 8 registry through Search in the same way as on the “seven”.

To find the search query input line, go to the start screen of the operating system;
Start typing the required command on the keyboard. There is no need to place the mouse pointer in any specific place;
When you enter from the keyboard, a search window will automatically open with what you typed;

Enter regedit in the field and press Enter or the magnifying glass image to the right of what you wrote

The results will show you the same program as in the previous case. By clicking on it, you can enter the Windows 8 registry. The registry opens in the same way on the new “top ten”. But sometimes the search does not work on it and you need to use other methods.

Manually opening a file

This method of entering the registry for Windows xp, 7, 8, 8.1, 10 is universal, as it works on any version of the OS, even old ones. It is understandable even for inexperienced users, but it takes a lot of time. To do this, go to the shortcut to open the registry by clicking from folder to folder or through Explorer.

The location of the shortcut varies depending on the OS version and settings. More often, you can find the registry in Windows 8 by following the path Computer – Disk C – Windows – System32.

You open the same file as when launched from the search, but instead of an automated search in the OS, you go through the path to the program manually.

If the OS is 64-bit, then the path changes, it looks like My Computer - Disk C - Windows - SysWOW64. Another reason for possible differences is the presence or absence of disk partitioning, etc. So the path varies, but regedit.exe is in the main system files folder. Sometimes it’s even the Windows folder itself on drive C.
In addition, if you did not use the search in Windows 7 as in the second method, but opened the folder containing the program, you can see that it contains regedt32.exe. This is also a registry available on 64-bit OSes. You can edit either of the two registers.
In extremely rare cases, the registry does not open in Windows 7 when it is located at this address. Or it may not be in the folder at all. It's on the computer, but you need to find it. An alternative storage location is the WinSxS folder in the Windows directory. Sometimes there are other alternative storage locations for the editor open shortcut.
The contents of such folders are numerous, and therefore, in order to open the registry in Windows XP or another version of the OS in this way, you will need to spend time searching. Apply sorting, although this is unlikely to speed up the process. Therefore, this method is an alternative and is used only when search does not work in Windows 7.

The change in the familiar working environment in Windows 8 and 8.1 has led to the fact that some actions that were never difficult in Windows 7 and XP began to cause difficulties for users. So, due to the lack of the usual “Start” menu, not everyone understands how to open the system registry. However, there are no fewer ways to launch the registry editor in G8 - there are even more of them than there were in G7. Here are five of the simplest ones.

Five ways to open Registry Editor in Windows 8

Using the Run app

There are two ways to launch the Run program:

through the context menu of the “Start” button in Windows 8.1;

by pressing the Windows + R key combination.

In the “Open” line of the window that appears, enter the command regedit and click OK.

The result of its execution will be the launch of the registry editor:

Using the command line

In Windows 8.1, Command Prompt can also be opened from the context menu of the Start button.

Let's enter the already familiar command into the console window regedit and press Enter.

The Registry Editor will open.

Via Windows Explorer

You can open the Registry Editor in the same way as any other program - simply by launching its file.

While on your desktop, open any folder, go to the C:Windows directory and double-click on the file regedit.exe.

Through search

You can access search in Windows 8 and 8.1 from the following places:

context menu of the “Start” button (item “Find”);

Charms sidebar, which appears on the screen if you move the cursor to the lower or upper right corner and move it a little.

start screen (magnifying glass icon in the upper right corner).

Enter in the search bar regedit, press Enter and launch the found application.

Using a shortcut

If you frequently make changes to the registry, you will find it convenient to launch regedit.exe using a shortcut. To create a shortcut on the desktop, enter the directory where the program is located (C: Windows), open the context menu of this file and select “Create shortcut”.

Confirm that you agree to place it on your desktop.

Now the registry editor will be launched by double-clicking on the shortcut.

Using the Start screen tile

From the same context menu that we called to create the shortcut, select the “Pin to Start Screen” command.

After this, a regedit.exe tile will be created on the start screen, clicking on which will open the program we need.

Third-party programs for working with the registry

There are a lot of applications for editing the system registry. They differ from the regedit utility built into Windows 8 with registry optimization functions that are necessary to maintain high system performance. And this is the main purpose of such programs. Let's look at some of them.

Reg Organizer

Reg Organizer is a multifunctional operating system maintenance utility. Allows you to clean and defragment the system registry, manage startup programs, remove applications along with their remains in the registry and on disks, apply various fine-tuning settings, etc.

One of the Reg Organizer sections resembles the regedit system utility - through it you can edit the registry manually.

This application can be used as a replacement for the built-in registry editor, but some of its features may break the functionality of your system and programs if used incorrectly. Therefore, Reg Organizer should be recommended only to experienced users.

Registry Booster

Registry Booster is another application that allows you to optimize the system registry to speed up the startup and operation of Windows. The program has only three main functions - checking, cleaning and defragmenting the registry, but everything except checking works only after purchasing a license.

Registry Booster is designed for any user, including beginners. Corrects detected problems automatically and does not allow you to manage this process manually.

RegScanner

The RegScanner utility from Nir Soft is a convenient replacement for the built-in registry editor, aimed exclusively at experienced users. Designed to search for data in the registry using a variety of parameters, including length and date of last change. Found entries can be immediately deleted by first making a backup copy of them.

RegScanner is convenient to use for cleaning the system after a virus infection and searching for remnants of deleted programs. Available in 32- and 64-bit versions. Free.

Registrar Registry Manager

Registrar Registry Manager is an application that resembles the built-in Windows registry editor, but significantly exceeds its capabilities. It allows you to keep the registry in order on local and remote machines throughout the network. It has the functions of backing up and restoring data (both individual branches and the entire registry), cleaning, defragmenting, comparing registry keys with each other and monitoring all changes.

Designed for advanced users and system administrators.

Today's topic is about the eight. As is already known, the graphical interface of this OS was greatly changed, and even experienced users found it difficult to find familiar elements. For example, due to the redesign of the start menu, not everyone could, and many such situations arose. To make it easier for users, let’s take a closer look at how to enter the registry in Windows 8 in several ways.

Remember, any changes made through the registry editor may negatively affect the stable operation of your computer. Before editing, make a system restore point, through which, in case of an error, you will return the PC to a working state. You can also make a copy of the registry section that you are editing. After all the preparations, you can start running regedit.

Ways to open the Registry Editor in Windows 8

The first method uses search. Click "start" and you will be taken to the start screen. In this area, move all the way to the right, then click the magnifying glass icon located next to the power control (shutdown) button.

Note: You don't have to go to the start screen, just press Win + W where you are now.

A panel with a search form will appear in front of you, where you will need to enter regedit.exe. After successful entry, click the Enter key or select Registry Editor from the list that appears below.

If you see a UAC window, click “yes”. This way you can access the registry on Windows 8.

In order not to enter the name of the editor file each time, I suggest placing the regedit file shortcut in a visible place. While typing the file name, when regedit appears in the list, right-click on it and select one of the following options:

Pin to Start Screen - Pins the Windows 8 Registry Editor as a tile to the work area of the Start screen.
Pin to taskbar - The most productive of these two methods, a registry shortcut is placed on the taskbar.

The second method is to click on the context menu item. Windows 7 does not provide this function, so in the previous article we added this item manually. Right-click on an empty space on your desktop. In the open menu, select the item called “registry editor”.

In the third method it is necessary. This is done by pressing the Windows + R key combination, after which the familiar construction regedit.exe is entered into the line, then Enter or OK is pressed.

By following 1 of 3 recommendations, you can enter the Windows 8 registry in a way convenient for you. All the described recommendations can be used equally, and there is no clear leader here. Sometimes a picture emerges that after trying all the steps, the Windows 8 Registry Editor does not open, showing an error that, follow the link to fix the problem.