What do you guys think of registry cleaners?

jimmypapas · Aug 31, 2014

I use both CCLEANER and ADVANCED SYSTEM CLEANERS to maintain my computer.

However I heard that these Registry Cleaning software may ruin your computer.

You guys think its true? and is it better not to use registry programs?

ignatzatsonic · Aug 31, 2014

This has been discussed dozens of times here. Probably hundreds of times.

Here's what you'll find:

Many, perhaps most, don't use registry cleaners and don't use any of them. Or at least they don't recommend them or won't admit to using them.

Some do use registry cleaners. Occasionally because they are having problems, but mostly because they personally feel better afterward. Using the cleaner relieves the anxiety associated with being unclean. Some will tell you that their PC actually performs better after the cleansing, but they offer little proof. I'm certainly willing to assume they feel better. Just as I would after I take a shower.

The most often (by far) recommended application is CCleaner, because it is conservative and has been around a long time.

If you run CCleaner and completely clean the registry, you'll feel clean. If you then immediately run another registry cleaner, it will find a list of stuff to clean. So you're dirty again even though you haven't done anything since you ran CCleaner. If you just can't stand being dirty, I'd guess you'd run the second registry cleaner too.

But you'll be dirty again soon enough. If that bothers you, you'll continue to run the cleaners. If not, you won't.

I use CCleaner and try to NOT use the registry cleaner portion of it. But I'm somewhat obsesso-compulso, so I do use it. Sparingly. Right now, it shows exactly 10 "problems". I continue to resist the urge to do something about it. If that list were to grow to 30 or 50 items, I probably would fix at least some of them.

But I acknowledge it would have no measurable effect on my PC. The effect would be on my emotional state. I'd feel better for doing it. I'm foolish at times. I have played with fire, touched hot stoves, opened overheated car radiators, and a bunch of other stuff--all either shameful, stupid, or illegal.

ThrashZone · Aug 31, 2014

Good post,
If I feel dirty

I simply use windows built in features,
Disk Cleanup
System Cleanup
The only third party tool I use is this one is as safe as it gets and I use it often to get rid of java crap

http://www.geekstogo.com/forum/files/file/187-tfc-temp-file-cleaner-by-oldtimer/

I might add your only as dirty as your security lets you get

Plus I delete everything on exit on my browser

LMiller7 · Aug 31, 2014

Registry cleaners generally cause more problems than they solve and should be avoided. They do have some value when used by an expert to solve a specific problem. In the hands of the inexperienced (anyone who has to ask) they are potentially dangerous.

fireberd · Aug 31, 2014

I use CCleaner but only to occasionally clean out selected items in the "Cleaner" part of the program. But NO registry "cleaning".

whs · Aug 31, 2014

Registry cleners are useless in 7 and 8.1.

AddRAM · Aug 31, 2014

I use Ccleaner, never had an issue with it.

windude99 · Aug 31, 2014

whs said:
Registry cleners are useless in 7 and 8.1.

Agreed. If someone has a problem with Windows or a program installed on their computer, they should make a thread here instead of trying to "fix" their computer with some junk software.

Hydranix · Sep 3, 2014

While registry cleaners in general do nothing of any value. There is some (very miniscule) validity to a very select few.

First off, the registry hives for windows (%WinDir%\system32\config\{COMPONENTS,DEFAULT,SAM,SECURITY,SOFTWARE,SYSTEM}) are all read into memory and synced to disk as they change. Memory reads are several orders of magnitude faster than disk reads, so you won't gain any performance from a cleaner.

Invalid entries in the registry that can be detected programmatically and safely deleted by such a cleaner aren't going to gain any performance or reliability as Windows NT is coded specifically to handle invalid entries very gracefully. Any entries that could actually impede performance or reliability are far to dangerous to remove/edit for any registry cleaner (with respect to target userbase) to manage.

Now where there is validity, is in the hypothetical situation where a professional, or savvy amateur utilizes the tool to find misconfigured keys that cause problems. This situation is purely hypothetical though because there are far more useful tools that such would employ.

I however have found a registry "cleaner", actually not their "cleaner" but their "registry defragger', which is also misleading terminology, as registry hives can't become fragmented. (Fragmentation is an issue at a much lower level than the registry, the filesystem and physical layer)

This tool is found in the "Windows 7 Manager" and "Windows 8 Manager" by yamicsoft.

The "defragger" essentially locks down the gui of the computer, and from what I understand rebuilds the entire registry. Something I feel could just be deceitful misleading terminology again, but it's my best interpretation of their explanation.

I benchmarked both a windows 7, and windows 8.1 machine after running the tool, and actually found a bit of a performance increase in some minor but key areas that would benefit from such a procedure.

The benefits were however short lived as they disappeared within a day or so of light use, so as all have said, stay away from registry cleaners and the like. Only a learned individual can manipulate the registry properly.

windude99 · Sep 3, 2014

Hydranix said:
While registry cleaners in general do nothing of any value. There is some (very miniscule) validity to a very select few.

First off, the registry hives for windows (%WinDir%\system32\config\{COMPONENTS,DEFAULT,SAM,SECURITY,SOFTWARE,SYSTEM}) are all read into memory and synced to disk as they change. Memory reads are several orders of magnitude faster than disk reads, so you won't gain any performance from a cleaner.

Invalid entries in the registry that can be detected programmatically and safely deleted by such a cleaner aren't going to gain any performance or reliability as Windows NT is coded specifically to handle invalid entries very gracefully. Any entries that could actually impede performance or reliability are far to dangerous to remove/edit for any registry cleaner (with respect to target userbase) to manage.

Now where there is validity, is in the hypothetical situation where a professional, or savvy amateur utilizes the tool to find misconfigured keys that cause problems. This situation is purely hypothetical though because there are far more useful tools that such would employ.

I however have found a registry "cleaner", actually not their "cleaner" but their "registry defragger', which is also misleading terminology, as registry hives can't become fragmented. (Fragmentation is an issue at a much lower level than the registry, the filesystem and physical layer)

This tool is found in the "Windows 7 Manager" and "Windows 8 Manager" by yamicsoft.

The "defragger" essentially locks down the gui of the computer, and from what I understand rebuilds the entire registry. Something I feel could just be deceitful misleading terminology again, but it's my best interpretation of their explanation.

I benchmarked both a windows 7, and windows 8.1 machine after running the tool, and actually found a bit of a performance increase in some minor but key areas that would benefit from such a procedure.

The benefits were however short lived as they disappeared within a day or so of light use, so as all have said, stay away from registry cleaners and the like. Only a learned individual can manipulate the registry properly.

I doubt you will see much of a performance gain from defragmenting your registry. If your computer is slow, reformat it and reinstall Windows OR buy a new computer if the other one is super low end or old.

LMiller7 · Sep 3, 2014

When a registry entry is deleted the space it consumed is marked as free but still takes up space in the registry. When a new entry is created it fills in the holes. Removing these holes would have a serious hit on performance if done at run time.

A registry defrag utility would rewrite the registry files, removing the holes as it goes. I would consider this relatively harmless but equally useless.

A registry cleaner can be considered as a tool. It is a powerful tool but like all such it requires considerable knowledge and skill to be used safely and effectively. That means experts only. But most people who use registry cleaners have only a vague understanding of what the registry even is. A registry cleaner in such hands is dangerous.

What do you guys think of registry cleaners?

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