Microsoft Windows Registry Guide, Second Edition

Chapter 1

Learning the Basics

The registry has a subtle but important role in Microsoft Windows XP and Microsoft Windows Server 2003 (both referred to throughout this book as Windows). On one hand, the registry is passive—it's just a big collection of settings sitting on your hard disk, and you probably don't think much about it while you're editing a document, browsing the Internet, or searching for a file. On the other hand, it plays a key role in all those activities. The registry settings determine how Windows appears and behaves. They even control applications running on your computer. This gives the registry great potential as a tool for power users or IT professionals, enabling them to customize settings that aren't available in the user interface.

This chapter introduces the registry. First you learn about the registry's role and how it fits into your computing world. Then some important terminology is explained, and you learn how Windows organizes the registry. Next you learn about the tools used to edit the registry. And finally, you see how Windows stores the registry on the hard disk. Throughout this chapter, you'll find information that is useful even outside of a discussion of the registry. For example, you learn about the two different architectures for storing numbers in memory; IT professionals run into these architectures outside the registry as much as they do inside it.

This is all basic information, but don't skip this chapter. Read it once, and you'll be ready for the rest of this book.