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Registry Keys: Inside the Mind of Windows

Selecting a key in the Registry Editor's left tree pane displays its contents on the right, just as in Windows Explorer or any folder window. But Registry keys do not represent folders stored on your machine. Rather, they identify collections of settings. With all icons collapsed, you see the major Registry sections: (1) HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT is where the Registry stores all file type, file association, and icon information. All settings or preferences specific to the profile you are logged in to reside in (2) HKEY_CURRENT_USER. This data is also in (3) HKEY_USERS, along with the same settings for all other profiles. As you might guess, (4) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE contains hardware and related driver settings. The hardware configuration currently in use is in (5) HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG.

Though careless changes to any of these sections can cause problems, HKEY_CURRENT_USER is the safest to work in. If you make a mistake in this part of the Registry and Windows starts behaving bizarrely, you can get around the problem by creating a new user profile and logging in to that one instead. You'll lose all your preferences and settings, of course, but at least you won't have to remember which part of HKEY_CURRENT_USER you messed up.

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