Windows Vista: find information in the registry

The registry is the database of system settings that Windows Vista refers to as it loads and as it operates. The registry is a very important database that you must take the utmost care in editing. But before you consider making any modifications, you need to know how to find info. In this demonstration, you'll see how to find info in the registry. Before you move on from finding info to making edits, it's very important that you create a reliable backup and you know the consequences of the changes you're considering.

Let's start by opening the Registry Editor. You can do this in several ways. One method is to type regedit, R-E-G-E-D-I-T, in the Start Search box, then press Enter. If prompted for permission, click Continue.

At the left is a tree structure, similar to the file system directory on a disk drive. On the right is a pane that contains the settings for the item selected on the tree. In the tree to the left, select Computer.

Next go to the Edit menu and select Find from the drop-down menu that appears. This will allow you to find a text string in a key, value or data.

A dialog box opens. Notice the options allow you to restrict your search to only matching the whole string and also gives you the option to look at the keys, values or data, or some combination.

In the text area of the dialog box, enter a search term and click Find Next. For this demo, we'll use "run" as an example.

A small dialog box appears to show the search status.

And after a few moments, the results are displayed in the right pane.

Notice the expanded tree in the left pane and the results displayed in the right pane.

You can use the scroll bar at the bottom of the right pane to see more of the pane, including the entire Data column.

Now you know how to find information in the registry. This is a useful first step to making modifications to your registry. Remember: Before you make edits, make sure you're informed about the issues related to the specific keys.