Does microsoft have a software that cleans, repairs and fix errors on registry for free?

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Clean and fix registry errors for free

Does microsoft have a software that cleans, repairs and fix errors on registry for free

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quietman7 MVP Alumni 19,830 Volunteer Moderator

This topic keeps getting resurrected because many folks are uninformed, younger users who have entered the world of computing and others are looking for some magic cure for various system problems. If you have been using such a program routinely or followed the advice of some so-called technician...there is no telling what damage it has already done to your registry and other areas it purports to clean. I suspect that is the reason for your registry error messages unless it it is the program you are currently using which is giving the errors.

There are numerous programs which purport to improve system performance, make repairs and tune up a computer. Many of them include such features as a registry cleaner, registry optimizer, disk optimizer, etc. These registry cleaners and optimizers claim to speed up your computer by finding and removing orphaned and corrupt registry entries that are responsible for slowing down system performance. There is no statistical evidence to back such claims. Advertisements to do so are a marketing ploy intended to goad users into using an unnecessary and potential dangerous product. I would not trust any results such programs detect as problematic or needing repair nor recommend using the options to fix them.

Further, these types of junk optimization programs are often bundled with other software you download and most are considered Potentially Unwanted Programs (PUPs) so they may be detected or even removed by some security scanners which specifically look for PUPs and adware.

Official Microsoft support policy for the use of registry cleaning utilities (KB2563254)

Quote

"This article describes the Microsoft support policy for customers who use registry cleaning utilities that rely on unsupported methods to extract or modify the contents of a Windows Registry...Windows continually references the registry in the background and it is not designed to be accessed or edited. Some products such as registry cleaning utilities suggest that the registry needs regular maintenance or cleaning. However, serious issues can occur when you modify the registry incorrectly using these types of utilities. These issues might require users to reinstall the operating system due to instability. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved without a reinstallation of the Operating System as the extent of the changes made by registry cleaning utilities varies from application to application...Microsoft does not support the use of registry cleaners..."

Why you should not use Registry Cleaners and Optimization Tools

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Anonymous

On Tue, 18 Jan 2011 20:38:14 +0000, Tinaya wrote:

Does microsoft have a software that cleans, repairs and fix errors on registry for free

No. And stay far away from all such programs.

Registry cleaning programs are all snake oil. Cleaning of the

registry isn't needed and is dangerous. Leave the registry alone and

don't use any registry cleaner. Despite what many people think, and

what vendors of registry cleaning software try to convince you of,

having unused registry entries doesn't really hurt you.

The risk of a serious problem caused by a registry cleaner erroneously

removing an entry you need is far greater than any potential benefit

it may have.

Read http://www.edbott.com/weblog/archives/000643.html

and http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?t=28099

and also

http://blogs.technet.com/markrussinovich/archive/2005/10/02/registry-junk-a-windows-fact-of-life.aspx

Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the

use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause

problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from

the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry

cleaner and never had a problem with it.

Rather, the problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it

the substantial risk of having a problem. And since there is no

benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad

bargain.

Ken Blake (MS MVP)

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quietman7 MVP Alumni 19,830 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2013-08-24T12:03:05+00:00

Regardless of one's experience with registry cleaners and how well they may have worked, this is Microsoft's support policy for the use of registry cleaning utilities

Quote:

...Windows continually references the registry in the background and it is not designed to be accessed or edited. Some products such as registry cleaning utilities suggest that the registry needs regular maintenance or cleaning. However, serious issues can occur when you modify the registry incorrectly using these types of utilities. These issues might require users to reinstall the operating system due to instability. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved without a reinstallation of the Operating System as the extent of the changes made by registry cleaning utilities varies from application to application...Microsoft does not support the use of registry cleaners..."
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Anonymous

2013-08-24T06:03:57+00:00

That is NOT a microsoft-aprorved or MS-written registry cleaner - it is purest snake-oil.

MS does not create registry cleaners - for one very good reason. There is NEVER a good reason for using such things.

Mr. Paton,

I would like to see how you would argue with my experience:

Since the earlier days of XP Im using Nortons Products for maintan my computer(s) - mostly their SpeedDisk and Reg Optimizers (thru the years, I think that only SpeedDisk kept its original name). Everytime Im using Registry Cleaners I did mention a tremendeous speed raise which, combined with SpeedDisk produced probably 30-50% higher speed. That is what actually keeping me using such software, preferable by some known companies.

Let me go further - all people seriously using computers knows, that everytime you install whatever software in most of the cases add a lots of registry keys. On deinstall - most of that keys are still there. I saw computers after 3 or 5 years of using without reinstall of OS, how slow they are. Quick fix of registry and Defrag reduced that problem. So, in my understanding, you, representing MS, advising me, to use my computer on half of it`s abilities? Is that the best solution that MS could offer their customers?

And in order not to be iTroll, would like to share, that from all RegCleaners I have used thru the years (I do have like 15+ years as system administrator) Norton prooved to be one of, if not the best for this case. I also had chance to use some "FREE" software, but almost every time that leaded to OS reinstall.
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quietman7 MVP Alumni 19,830 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2013-03-16T20:54:01+00:00

FYI: mvps.org is no longer recommending Spybot S&D due to poor testing results. See here - (scroll down and read under Freeware Antispyware Products). Further, most people don't understand how to use Spybot's Tea-Timer and that feature can cause more problems than it's worth. TeaTimer monitors changes to certain critical keys in Windows registry but does not indicate if the change is normal or a modification made by a malware infection. The user must have an understanding of the registry and how TeaTimer works in order to make informed decisions to allow or deny the detected changes. If you don't have understanding how a particular security tool works, then you probably should not be using it. Additionally, TeaTimer may conflict with other security tools which do a much better job of protecting your computer and in some cases it will even prevent disinfection of malware by those tools.

But now we are getting off topic.
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