Back Up and Restore the Windows Registry

Back Up and Restore the Windows Registry: The Registry is a very important part of Windows.  It stores all of Windows settings and configurations and with out it Windows just would not operate.  So as you see its critical that the registry stays in good shape, that means keeping it clean and free from any dead or corrupt registry keys. try and stay clear of registry cleaners, these can sometimes do more harm than good. Malware can also cause nasty changes to the registry, blocking you from using common tools like regedit, task manager and cmd.  Its a good idea to create a backup before making changes to the registry.

Registry

How To Backup The Registry In Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8 / 8.1

1. Click the Windows Start button and then Type regedit into the search box.  then  Press Enter.

Note: we are using a Windows 7 machine here.

regedit

2. Once in Registry Editor Click File > Export.

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3. Next Type in a file name for your backup, I like to add today’s date in the file name, this is good for future reference.  On the bottom you will see Export Range.

  • All: Will backup the ENTIRE registry.
  • Selected Branch: This option will backup a single registry key and all sub-keys within it.

Once you have select your option, Click Save.

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4. It can take few minutes to backup your registry.  “Not Responding” error may show up while backing up registry, don’t worry, this is normal, just be patient.

location

That’s it, you have now backed up your registry, lets take a look how to restore our registry backup.

How To Restore A Registry Backup

Option 1. Navigate to the registry file you backed up, then Right-Click the registry file and Select Merge. or Double-Click the registry file to merge it.

restore registry

Next Click Yes.

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That’s it, you have just restored your registry from your backup.

Option 2. Open up regedit like before  and then Click File > Import.

import-registry

Now Select the registry backup file you want to restore from and then Click Open.

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All done, you just backed up your registry and restore your registry, this will come in handy if you ever get a corrupt registry and you want to restore it to a well known good registry backup. Remember to make a backup of registry on regular basis to keep up to date. If you find this guide useful, please share using buttons below.

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