Registry Cleaners

[gregrocker]

No prob Pilgrim we are all learning here. There is just a very low tolerance for Reg Cleaners since we've seen the problems they cause.

Burdus, Perfect Disk also has a boot time defrag which gets System Files but it is harder to access than Puran's. Plus I like including Disk Check when defragging to get everything checked at once.

 

[Brds7t7]

No prob Pilgrim we are all learning here. There is just a very low tolerance for Reg Cleaners since we've seen the problems they cause.

Burdus, Perfect Disk also has a boot time defrag which gets System Files but it is harder to access than Puran's. Plus I like including Disk Check when defragging to get everything checked at once.

One thing I have noticed about PerfectDisk is when using the SmartOptimize feature it ALWAYS wipes out my System Restore Points. I've tried excluding the System Volume Information folder and changing the VSS compatible mode options but it still deletes them all.

Anyway, I'm digressing.

 

[Brds7t7]

Speaking as someone who both runs registry cleaners and installs software on a regular basis I have rarely installed a program that did not add something that was not necessary, be it registry keys or temporary files which do not get removed.
Even Microsoft programs and updates do it.

I know what you mean, I just find it strange it would pick up it's own unnecessary registry keys straight after install. Not saying it's a bad product though, I just avoid them due to bad experiences I've had myself.

 

[anaron]

Decide to run a test with one of my Granddaughters Win7 Pro laptops that had become so slow that she would no longer use it.

Installed Restart-Time.vbs & CCleaner
Set a restore point.
Ran Restart 4 times with an average of 108 sec start time.

Ran disk cleanup then Restart-Time 4 times for an average of 95 sec start time
Restored to my restore point

Ran Ccleaner system & registry with everything checked then Restart-Time 4 times for an average of 63 sec start time
Restored to my restore point

Killed all the startup programs except antivirus then Restart-Time 4 times for an average
of 88 sec start time.
Restored to my restore point

Conduct 3 of the above in exactly the same order as doing the individuals but with no restart between
then Restart-Time 4 times for an average of 49 sec start time. 59 seconds knocked off the start time.

Almost a week now, not one issue and she swears it is faster than it was when it was new!

Question for those who say there is no performance gain from cleaning – What would you attribute the 59 second decrease in start time to?

Ron Burnes

 

[marsmimar]

Question for those who say there is no performance gain from cleaning – What would you attribute the 59 second decrease in start time to?

Cleaning out temporary files, history, cookies, autocomplete form history, index.dat, etc. The cleaning module of CCleaner has been known to speed up computer performance. Unlikely that the registry module added any significant improvement to startup time or overall performance.

 

[Pilgrim]

There is just a very low tolerance for Reg Cleaners since we've seen the problems they cause.

Forgive my coming back on this but I have never questioned the reasons of people who are against the use of this type of software or the problems that can be caused by it, in fact I always emphasise extreme caution to anyone using them myself.
It is the black and white attitude that often goes with it that I take issue with.

There are many things that are 'dangerous' (?) in our daily lives, not just dangerous to the wellbeing of our computers but to life itself.
If I knock somebody down in my car or drive it into a wall is the car to blame?
If that did happen would it then be right for me to say that nobody should use a car?

 

[A Guy]

You have to remember we aren't just giving one on one advice that applies to one person and their specific situation. While the original poster is the one we are helping, the posts can be read by thousands, whose individual situations are quite different. Since the possibility is very high using a cleaner can cause damage, it is better to warn against their use, especially since they would rarely actually solve any problems. There are certainly individuals who should never drive a car. A Guy

 

[JMH]

Pilgrim,
IMHO.
With respect...

It is important for us to always remember that the people we give advice to are not always blessed with the same knowledge / ability & experience we have.

Therefore sometimes it is necessary to err on the side of caution.
Our personal experience is often irrelevant.

BTW, Well said Bill!

 

[kado897]

Absolutely.

 

[zigzag3143]

Kudo's Bill.

Let me add my voice to those espousing extreme caution.

 

[wanchoo]

The extreme caution being espoused is only necessary in the beginning when one is in the learning stage.

Once the nuances of the software being used to clean the Registry are mastered then it can be used like any other software and there is just nothing threatening about it.

 

[gregrocker]

wanchoo, can you be specific about what Registry Cleaner software you're recommending here? You are the first ranking member to do so who I can remember in serial threads which have been running since the earliest days. Most have never recommended any other than CCleaner.

Why do you feel this is useful in Win7?

 

[A Guy]

I have to disagree. I suspect at any time some of the registry cleaners could remove an important key. Even well established cleaners. Some are quite aggressive. I still say, even if it works fine 1000 times, on the 1001st, it may well do harm. We all agree that they MAY not cause any harm, but that they CAN. Also, not all are created equal. A Guy

 

[wanchoo]

Hello Greg,

Normally I would recommend that you keep using that Registry Cleaning Software that you are comfortable with like you are with cCleaner.

As for me personally I have used many Registry Cleaner over the years, starting with Microsoft's Regclean. Some of them have been crap and others good.

However after reading Langa's Letter sometimes in 2005 on Registry Cleaners, I have settled down with jv16 PowerTools. It used to be free earlier but is now shareware. I have not had any trouble with it except once when I configured it to clean the Registry in its most aggressive mode just to see what happened. As it was only an experiment I restored the Registry to its earlier state and was back to normal in a jiffy.

I strongly suggest that you try it out at various levels of aggression to see for your yourself. Its default setting (Level 2) is absolutely safe. At Level 1 it is an insipid cleaner like the cCleaner. At Level 3 you have to be bit careful and should check on the results, as you might get into trouble. Level 4 is the most aggressive and should be avoided if are you not an expert.

Trust this answers your query adequately.

Regards,

Amarnath Wanchoo

wanchoo, can you be specific about what Registry Cleaner software you're recommending here? You are the first ranking member to do so who I can remember in serial threads which have been running since the earliest days. Most have never recommended any other than CCleaner.

Why do you feel this is useful in Win7?

 

[gregrocker]

And why do you feel this is useful for Win7, by comparison with XP for example?

To be honest I do not see any difference after cleaning or defragging in Win7 except in cleanups which I do where 3-10gb of crap and hundreds of registry remnants are Ccleaned up. But these usually also have dozens of startup freeloaders and other causes which throttle the OS.

I can't even think of any performance optimizing that is required except a Clean Boot or perhaps editing Visual Effects with less than 4gb of RAM. I sometimes forget to do this with 2-4gb RAM with still no hangs. And we can't forget that hardware upgrading is the place to start in such cases.

So I cannot think of a reason in real world usage that require these. So I was hoping someone could explain it to me how they could conceivably be used productively.

 

[JMH]

I have to disagree. I suspect at any time some of the registry cleaners could remove an important key. Even well established cleaners. Some are quite aggressive. I still say, even if it works fine 1000 times, on the 1001st, it may well do harm. We all agree that they MAY not cause any harm, but that they CAN. Also, not all are created equal. A Guy

Quite a few of us agree with this sentiment /approach.
Nicely put Bill.

 

[wanchoo]

To start with your last paragraph first, as I have already explained jv16 PowerTools Registry Cleaner at Level 2 is not risky at all. I have used it for 7 years and I am in a position to comment with authority on this subject.

Now coming to the other two paras, whether in XP, Vista or 7, if you have enough RAM, cleaning of Garbage, Registry and Defragmentation hardly makes any difference at all. The degradation that has taken place on account of non-cleaning and fragmentation is easily absorbed by high levels of RAM and large hard disk capacities. (In fact there are experts who advise against ever defragmenting.) I have noticed this again and again in my friends and children's computers. They call you only when things have come to a grinding halt.

So in a real world there is no need to undertake a clean up exercise yourself. Just ask Greg, Amarnath and a host of other experts here and they shall oblige. But it does warm up the cockles of my heart somewhat, if some user wants to learn all about cleaning and defragmenting and do it himself/herself. I don't want to put the fear of God in him/her about Registry Cleaners but tell of the good ones and how to use them properly.

Its just a different point of view. Nothing else.

And why do you feel this is useful for Win7, by comparison with XP for example?

To be honest I do not see any difference in cleaning or defragging in Win7 except in cleanups which I do where 3-10gb of crap and hundreds of registry remnants are Ccleaned up. But these usually also have dozens of startup freeloaders and other causes which throttle the OS.

I can't even think of any performance optimizing that is required except a Clean Boot or perhaps editing Visual Effects with less than 4gb of RAM. I sometimes forget to do this with 2-4gb RAM with still no hangs. And we can't forget that hardware upgrading is the place to start in such cases.

So I cannot think of a reason in real world usage that require these risky methods and worry that our appearing to be divided on them will give amateur or enthusiast users a green flag to reach for the next deceptive display ad promising faster speeds.

 

[kado897]

One problem is that it is not just registry cleaners that clean the registry. Uninstallers do it too. I usually recommend Revo as do others here but I am having second thoughts after I uninstalled Opera using the default moderate mode. It identified a whole slew of registry entries to delete. Some of these were obviously Opera but others seemed more to do with MS Office. They may well have beet genuinely related to Opera but I didn't take the chance.

 

[Victor S]

Even CCleaner registry cleaner can break Windows from what I've read.
Of course you have to take some wrong actions.
Now who ever heard of a computer user taking wrong actions?
I never tested this, but just might someday, when I'm about to do an image restore. But others have done something close to it with bad results.
Uninstall some programs that call for reboot. Include some Win 7 changes that require reboot. But don't reboot. It can wait, right? I mean, there's an option. “No, I will restart my computer later.” No big deal. Besides, I want to play some Solitaire, and think about maybe uninstalling some other programs I don't want.
As I play a little Solitaire, feeling proud of "cleaning" my system, I remember CCleaner. Let's do that. So I clear off a few GB of unneeded files. Nice.
Hey, let's check the registry. Whoa, lets get rid of that stuff. Backup registry?
Nah. CCleaner is the best, and never causes problems. Delete that registry junk!
Now what did I forget? Oh, yeah, I'm supposed to reboot.
Hit restart, Win 7 shuts down, and tries to restart. Tries.
But registry entries needed by the unfinished uninstalls are missing, so Win 7 is busted. Maybe it can be fixed, maybe not.
But there's no doubt what busted it. CCleaner Registry Cleaner.
Sound far-fetched? Not to me. I read it on the internets.
The horror!

 

[A Guy]

Victor, can you share this site where this supposedly happened? Because I have yet to see any substantiated reports of CCleaner being responsible for what you described. It is always "I heard", or "I remember reading". I'm sure a lot of us would like to read for ourselves, and determine if it was indeed caused by CCleaner. A Guy