Registry Cleaner

On 13/03/2010 15:59, Slap wrote:

>
> There is 400 million downloads of CCleaner.

But the point is, no-body NEEDS it. Waste of time and disk space.

Camper wrote:
>
> "TOM" <> wrote in message
> news:N1Wmn.18300$...
>> Dave-UK wrote:
>>>
>>> "Allen" <> wrote in message
>>> news:BZ6dneQvpq0-...
>>>
>>>> Amen. Right now I am in the process of getting ready for a complete
>>>> install-from-scratch of W7 because I trusted a purchased register
>>>> cleaner despite misgivings. Why oh why does M$ recommend some of them?
>>>> Allen
>>>
>>> Which registry cleaners does Microsoft recommend ?
>>
>> Or which firewall or anti-virus does MS recommend???
>> --
>> TOM - Vista, CA - USA
>
> I would imagine their own.
>
> Camper.

Good point... :>))
--
TOM - Vista, CA - USA

"Ken Blake, MVP" <> wrote in message
news:...
> On Sat, 13 Mar 2010 13:39:09 -0000, "Quilljar" <not@home .today>
> wrote:
>
>> Is there a reliable free Windows 7 Registry cleaner?
>
>
> A common question here, and one that usually fosters all kinds of
> disagreement.
>
> My answer is no. Not only is there not a reliable free one, there is
> not even a reliable paid-for one. Here's my standard message on the
> subject:

My answer is yes. The two I use, CCleaner (free) and CleanMyPC (Commercial)
both allow a registry backup before you let it make any changes and allow
you to review and choose which suggested changes, if any, are to be made
before anything is actually written to the registry. Of course you
shouldn't just
let the cleaner operate totally automatically just as pilots don't allow
airplanes
to takeoff, fly and land themselves even though they are fully capable of
doing
just that these days. I use the registry cleaners as a guide to cleaning,
not a
substitute for my judgment. There have been many times I've tried to reload
software but was prevented by registry remnants (how's THAT for
alliteration?)
but registry cleaners allowed me to safely clean up the leftovers and
reinstall
the software. Ken, watch out when making absolute statements about *all*
cleaners.
When you make an absolute statement, it only takes one counterexample to
prove the statement false.

Tom Lake

On Sun, 14 Mar 2010 10:18:37 -0400, "Tom Lake" <>
wrote:

>
> "Ken Blake, MVP" <> wrote in message
> news:...
> > On Sat, 13 Mar 2010 13:39:09 -0000, "Quilljar" <not@home .today>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> Is there a reliable free Windows 7 Registry cleaner?
> >
> >
> > A common question here, and one that usually fosters all kinds of
> > disagreement.
> >
> > My answer is no. Not only is there not a reliable free one, there is
> > not even a reliable paid-for one. Here's my standard message on the
> > subject:
>
> My answer is yes. The two I use, CCleaner (free) and CleanMyPC (Commercial)
> both allow a registry backup


Most of them do create registry backups. However if the result of
running the registry cleaner is an unbootable system (and that
sometimes happens), the backup isn't of great use.


> before you let it make any changes and allow
> you to review and choose which suggested changes, if any, are to be made
> before anything is actually written to the registry. Of course you
> shouldn't just
> let the cleaner operate totally automatically just as pilots don't allow
> airplanes
> to takeoff, fly and land themselves even though they are fully capable of
> doing
> just that these days. I use the registry cleaners as a guide to cleaning,
> not a
> substitute for my judgment.



Then you are very much the exception to what the enormous majority of
people using registry cleaners are. What you do is much better, and I
don't have any serious disagreement with using it that way, *if* you
have the skills to make the right judgments; but few people have such
skills.


> There have been many times I've tried to reload
> software but was prevented by registry remnants (how's THAT for
> alliteration?)
> but registry cleaners allowed me to safely clean up the leftovers and
> reinstall
> the software. Ken, watch out when making absolute statements about *all*
> cleaners.
> When you make an absolute statement, it only takes one counterexample to
> prove the statement false.


As far as I am concerned, there are no counterexamples. They are all
dangerous.

--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP (Windows Desktop Experience) since 2003
Please Reply to the Newsgroup

"Ken Blake, MVP" <> wrote in message
news:...
> On Sun, 14 Mar 2010 10:18:37 -0400, "Tom Lake" <>

[snip]

> > My answer is no. Not only is there not a reliable free one, there is
>> > not even a reliable paid-for one.
[snip]

> Most of them do create registry backups. However if the result of
> running the registry cleaner is an unbootable system (and that
> sometimes happens), the backup isn't of great use.

[snip]

> As far as I am concerned, there are no counterexamples. They are all
> dangerous.
>
> --
> Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP (Windows Desktop Experience) since 2003
> Please Reply to the Newsgroup


As you seem to have a wide experience of registry cleaners and their
problems perhaps you could tell us which registry cleaner you have
actually had experience of that caused a system to become un-bootable?

If you could provide a link to the registry cleaner's website I could
then download it and verify your claims on a test installation.
I can install XP, any flavour of Vista or Win7 to run the test.

> As far as I am concerned, there are no counterexamples. They are all
> dangerous.

Scalpels, dynamite, guns, and medicine can all be dangerous, too.
If used properly, though, they can do great good. With great power
comes great responsibility.

Tom Lake

Dave-UK

> As you seem to have a wide experience of registry cleaners and their
> problems perhaps you could tell us which registry cleaner you have
> actually had experience of that caused a system to become un-bootable?

Not that someone has experience with Registry Cleaners but experience with what they
can do. I frequent 57 different newsgroups and last week alone there was (counted
them) 8 posts where an OP used a Registry Cleaning tool and did back ups and when
they wanted to reboot then it did not go. This occurs on a weekly if not daily basis
in one or another newsgroup. The latter does not take into consideration when after
using one of those tools (CCleaner included) when some of the installed programs
cease to work.
Registry Cleaners are dangerous in the hands of people not knowing what it removes
or what it does. I am against Reg Cleaning tools and when I need something
changed,added,removed then I do it myself instead of one those snake oil ones that
are widely available. CCleaners Reg tool included.

I posted this MS KB below 8 times alone last week to help an OP that could not
boot after using the Reg tool and could not get to the back ups to correct his error
and never mind how many times over the last month alone this happens.

http://support.microsoft.com/default...;en-us;q307545

And occasionally the following
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=822705


--
Peter

Please Reply to Newsgroup for the benefit of others
Requests for assistance by email can not and will not be acknowledged.

"Dave-UK" <> wrote in message
news:...
>
> "Ken Blake, MVP" <> wrote in message
> news:...
>> On Sun, 14 Mar 2010 10:18:37 -0400, "Tom Lake" <>
>
> [snip]
>
>> > My answer is no. Not only is there not a reliable free one, there is
>>> > not even a reliable paid-for one.
> [snip]
>
>> Most of them do create registry backups. However if the result of
>> running the registry cleaner is an unbootable system (and that
>> sometimes happens), the backup isn't of great use.
>
> [snip]
>
>> As far as I am concerned, there are no counterexamples. They are all
>> dangerous.
>>
>> --
>> Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP (Windows Desktop Experience) since 2003
>> Please Reply to the Newsgroup
>
>
> As you seem to have a wide experience of registry cleaners and their
> problems perhaps you could tell us which registry cleaner you have
> actually had experience of that caused a system to become un-bootable?
>
> If you could provide a link to the registry cleaner's website I could
> then download it and verify your claims on a test installation.
> I can install XP, any flavour of Vista or Win7 to run the test.
>
>
>
>

> Not that someone has experience with Registry Cleaners but experience
> with what they can do. I frequent 57 different newsgroups and last
> week alone there was (counted them) 8 posts where an OP used a
> Registry Cleaning tool and did back ups and when they wanted to reboot
> then it did not go. This occurs on a weekly if not daily basis in one
> or another newsgroup. The latter does not take into consideration when
> after using one of those tools (CCleaner included) when some of the
> installed programs cease to work.
> Registry Cleaners are dangerous in the hands of people not knowing
> what it removes or what it does. I am against Reg Cleaning tools and
> when I need something changed,added,removed then I do it myself
> instead of one those snake oil ones that are widely available.
> CCleaners Reg tool included.
>
> I posted this MS KB below 8 times alone last week to help an OP that
> could not boot after using the Reg tool and could not get to the back
> ups to correct his error and never mind how many times over the last
> month alone this happens.
>
> http://support.microsoft.com/default...;en-us;q307545
>
> And occasionally the following
> http://support.microsoft.com/?id=822705
>
>

Allow me to contribute somewhat ... I've been working with PCs for over
twenty years, since before there even was a registry, back when DOS 2.11
was popular. I was on a help desk when Windows 3.x was popular, and have
spent many hours working with, and (attempting to) reparing every version
of windows that has come out since. I have never see a registry cleaning
tool that actually did any good, and I have seen many that did harm.
"Harm" ranges from programs that won't work anymore, to a Windows
installation that won't boot. Most of them are snake oil that do nothing
noticeble, but some will damage your Windows installation. Avoid them
like the plague. 99.9% of the things that these "tools" fix are things
that aren't doing any harm to start with, and "fixing" them accomplishes
nothing.

If you have something wrong with your Windows install and you don't know
how to fix it, don't waste time and/or money with a registry cleaner.
Wipe your Windows and reinstall it.

"milt" <> wrote in message
news:hnh399$kmt$...
> On 3/13/2010 11:39 AM, LD55ZRA wrote:
>> "Slap"<> wrote in message
>> news:AyNmn.103535$...
>>>
>>> "Quilljar"<not@home .today> wrote in message
>>> news:...
>>>> Is there a reliable free Windows 7 Registry cleaner?
>>>
>>> I use CCleaner...
>>> http://www.ccleaner.com/
>>>
>>
>> So do I.
>>
>>
>>
>
> I wish you both lucky when one day it hoses your registry and you can't
> boot up and you can't figure out why. Don't blame Windows when it does!
>
Been a while since I used CC, but IIRC it creates a backup of the registry
before hosing it, that way you can go back after getting hosed. :-D
Serious about the backup part.
Dave

On Sun, 14 Mar 2010 15:01:31 -0500, "Dave" <>
wrote:

>
>
> "milt" <> wrote in message
> news:hnh399$kmt$...
> > On 3/13/2010 11:39 AM, LD55ZRA wrote:
> >> "Slap"<> wrote in message
> >> news:AyNmn.103535$...
> >>>
> >>> "Quilljar"<not@home .today> wrote in message
> >>> news:...
> >>>> Is there a reliable free Windows 7 Registry cleaner?
> >>>
> >>> I use CCleaner...
> >>> http://www.ccleaner.com/
> >>>
> >>
> >> So do I.
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> > I wish you both lucky when one day it hoses your registry and you can't
> > boot up and you can't figure out why. Don't blame Windows when it does!
> >
> Been a while since I used CC, but IIRC it creates a backup of the registry
> before hosing it, that way you can go back after getting hosed. :-D


You can get back *if* "getting hosed" does not include destroying your
ability to boot.


--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP (Windows Desktop Experience) since 2003
Please Reply to the Newsgroup