Microsoft® Windows 7 Your Way: Speed Up and Customize Windows

27. Tweaking the Windows Registry

Here’s something that’s pretty obvious to any computer user: Windows is a complex and sophisticated piece of computer software. The operating system itself encompasses literally tens of thousands of individual system files—all of which have to be managed and monitored, as do all the devices that Windows is tasked with managing. It’s a lot of information to manage.

Windows tracks all these thousands of individual configuration settings via a big database file called the Windows Registry. If you can gain control over the Registry, you take a big step in managing Windows your way—and, not coincidentally, speeding up your system’s performance.

Understanding the Windows Registry

The Windows Registry is where Windows ...