Windows Registry Scan Is A Must If These Problems Sound Familiar

If you surf the web, you've probably seen dozens of advertisements for registry cleaning programs. How do you know if you need one? Luckily, a troubled computer does show "symptoms" of registry problems. If your computer shows any of these signs, you'll want to run a registry cleaning program on it right away.
System Slowdowns

A computer that once zipped along that is now agonizingly slow could be a sign of a bloated registry. Other warning signs are the computer taking forever to boot up or open programs.

When you first buy your computer, the registry is clean and streamlined, lean and mean, containing only the information it needs. Your computer is able to find the registry entries, or "keys", it needs fast, and your computer performs quickly.

Unfortunately, the registry slowly grows over time. Every time you install or uninstall new programs and software, add users to the computer, or add or remove hardware, new registry keys are created. After several years, your registry could be huge.

The problem with this is that with such a large registry, it takes your computer much longer to sift through all those entries to find the right one it needs. These longer search times ultimately slow down your computer's overall performance.

Cleaning the registry of unused, unnecessary, obsolete, or duplicate entries will shrink the size of your registry. This will lead to quicker search times and faster computer performance.

Slow Internet Browsing

These symptoms take the form of web pages taking an unreasonably long time to open. Downloading even small files can take hours. Music and video takes forever and a day to play in your browser, and plays back choppy-if it plays at all.

These internet slowdowns are caused by the same problems as system slowdowns-a bloated registry. Likewise, cleaning the registry will speed up your browser for the same reasons it speeds up your computer.

Programs Crashes

If some of your programs won't start, freeze up, or crash altogether, this could also be a sign of registry errors. Another warning sign are error messages saying that certain files (usually DLL files) are missing, corrupt, or can't be found.

There are two reasons the registry may be responsible. First, when you move files around in your computer, registry keys linked to specific files in specific locations may be broken, or "orphaned". Second, over time, crucial program files may be come corrupted. Hey, it happens. Together, these types of registry errors can cause your programs to freeze, crash, or not even start in the first place.

Registry cleaning programs look for broken links and repair them. They also fix corrupted files. Simply cleaning your registry could fix the problems you're having with your misbehaving programs.

If this is happening, you'll also want to clean and repair the registry before the next symptom occurs:

System Crashes

A system crash can take many forms. Your computer may freeze up and have to be rebooted. Alternatively, it my shut down or reboot itself suddenly and unexpectedly, for not apparent reason. Finally, there is the infamous Blue Screen of Death-a blue screen with a cryptic error message in white text. When the Blue Screen appears, you pretty much have to reboot the computer.

Computer crashes are caused by much the same problems as program crashes. In this case, the files that are missing, broken, or corrupted in the registry are not program files, but crucial system files your computer needs to operate. Frequently, system freezes and crashes occur when the registry gives the computer conflicting or contradictory information, and the computer locks up or shuts down to prevent further damage to the operating system.

If you are having system crashes, this is very serious. It could mean your computer is on its last legs. Clean and repair the registry as soon as possible, before your computer stops working altogether.