A rchive Date
[ 11-06-2000 ]
Category
[ Information Technologies ]
sub-Categoy
[ Microsoft ]
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[An essential utility: the Registry Checker
Windows 98 provides many utilities that allow you to keep your system in tip-top condition. For example, ScanDisk keeps your hard drive error-free, Disk Defragmenter keeps your files organized, and Disk Cleanup reduces the amount of unnecessary clutter on your hard drive. Chances are, you're familiar with these utilities and use them all the time. However, there are several other Windows 98 utilities that are extremely beneficial to the survival of your system yet are relatively unknown to the average Windows 98 user. One of these utilities is the Registry Checker.
As you know, the registry is the heart and soul of the operating system, and if it becomes unstable, your system may not function normally. With this in mind, we feel that everyone should know more about the Registry Checker utility as it can help you to quickly revive your operating system from a potentially fatal condition.
In this article, we'll introduce you to the Registry Checker and explain how it works. As we do, we'll show you how to use it to back up and, more importantly, restore your registry.
It works in the background
While you never see it performing its primary job, once each day, the Registry Checker goes to work behind the scenes and scans the registry for errors. Once the registry gets a clean bill of health, the Registry Checker automatically creates a backup copy of the registry.
On the other hand, if the Registry Checker finds a significant problem with the registry, it automatically restores the registry from the most recent, clean backup.
The Registry Checker stores the registry backups in the hidden \Windows\Sysbckup folder. If you investigate that folder, you'll discover that the Registry Checker actually keeps five backup copies of the registry in compressed format. The backups are stored in files named rb000.cab, rb001.cab, and so on.
Performing a manual backup
While the backup procedure is automated and occurs daily, you can manually back up the registry anytime you want extra protection. To do so, begin by loading the System Information utility from the Start/Programs/Accessories/System Tools menu. Once the System Information utility is up and running, select Tools/Registry Checker from the menu bar.
When you do, the Registry Checker scans the registry for errors and then prompts you to make a backup. Click Yes to replace the oldest backup file with a new one.
Why perform a manual backup?
Since the Registry Checker automatically backs up the registry on a daily basis, you may be wondering why you should even bother to perform a manual backup. The answer to this question depends on how safety conscious you are. For example, we feel that an extremely sensible time to perform a manual backup is right before you install new hardware or software. That way, if something goes wrong and the registry becomes damaged, you can restore it to the state that it was right before the problem occurred.
As you can imagine, being able to avert such a disaster with a simple restoration procedure can spare you hours of wasted time and frustration. With this in mind, let's take a look at how you go about restoring the registry.
Manually restoring the registry
As we mentioned earlier, if the Registry Checker discovers a problem with the registry, it automatically restores the last known clean backup. However, there are certain situations in which you might need or want to manually restore the registry.
For example, the registry may become so damaged that you're unable to start Windows 98. On the other hand, there may be situations where Windows 98 starts fine but all of a sudden begins acting strange. The origin of this type of problem can be the result of installing something, or it can be completely unknown. In each of these cases, manually restoring the registry should solve your problem. Keep in mind that for this restoration procedure to be successful, you need to perform it as soon as you discover the problem.
To manually restore the registry, boot your system to an MS-DOS prompt. (For more information, see the tip "Booting to an MS-DOS prompt.") At the MS-DOS prompt, type Scanreg/restore on the command line and press [Enter]. Doing so launches the DOS version of the Registry Checker, called Microsoft Registry Checker.
As you can see, the Microsoft Registry Checker displays the backups in a scrolling list box along with information about the backups, including the date the backup was made and whether or not the backup has been used to successfully start Windows 98. As a general rule, you should use the backup that was most recently used to start the system. However, if you manually created a registry backup just prior to the problem occurrence, you'll want to select that backup; even though it hasn't been used to start the system, it's based on a clean copy of the registry.
To restore the registry, simple select the backup file you want to restore from the list, then press [Enter]. When you do, the Microsoft Registry Checker restores the registry and prompts you to restart your system. ]
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