RegCOPA Registry Editor - Main Window | Top Previous Next |
This will be mostly self-explanatory to experienced computer maintainers. If this is all new to you, be very cautious that you do not make dangerous changes to your Registry - see the Welcome Page. On this page A more sophisticated systems of Views was introduced with Version 2 of RegCOPA. A Windows option is available From the Views menu, to display or hide the panes individually, and the Keys and Values panes have small icons at their top right:
These are the five major 'containers' for the data, divided into functional units. The files containing them are not directly user-accessible, except through a suitable Registry Editor like RegCOPA. Each contains a hierarchy of keys and sub-keys, which can be opened by either double-clicking or clicking on the little + to the left. Right-clicking displays a context menu. HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT HKEY_CURRENT_USER HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE HKEY_USERS HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG This shows the hierarchical structure of keys in each hive. This can be extremely complex with many similar keys, so be very careful you are working with the correct key! When a key or sub-key is selected in the left-hand pane, the values stored in that key are displayed here. Each key may have any number of values under different names. For instance if you use MailCOPA email client, there is a key called Paths that holds values showing the paths to
Keys can store data in three fields: Name - Just a name given to this entry Type - the data format for the information Data - the actual contents of this information Comment - A text field used for noting, for instance, the meaning or use of this key. (eg "Fred put this here on 1st March just to see what happens" !). This information is not stored in the registry itself, but forms one of RegCOPA's Registry Extensions.
A right-click on the Keys or Values panes produces a context menu with options appropriate to that pane. Keys Context Menu New Key - Create a new key under this one Delete - Delete this key Rename - Rename this key Add Bookmark - Add a bookmark to the RegCOPA Bookmarks tab Copy Key Name - Copy the key name to the clipboard Create Windows Shortcut - When run this shortcut will open RegCOPA at this key. A quick and easy way to access frequently used keys. Export Key - Export this key as a .reg file, in which form it can be re-imported. Windows NT introduced the concept of permissions for accessing registry keys, the idea being that Windows users (or software running under a username) may be limited in their ability to carry out various changes to the registry. This is a complex area, and unless you have the necessary knowledge and experience, do not make changes in this area as you may cause irreparable damage to the registry, and/or could lose all ability to access the registry.
Key Values Context Menu Obtained by right-clicking on a key value. Modify - Modify the contents of this key value New - Create a new key value. Ensure you use the appropriate data type. Delete - Delete this key value. Rename - Rename this key value Create Windows Quickedit Shortcut - When run, this shortcut will open a small window enabling quick editing of this key value. Very useful if you frequently modify particular values by hand. Importing, Exporting and Editing .REG Files A key, together with its sub-keys may be exported as a .REG using the option on the Keys Pane Context Menu (see above). You can save it anywhere you choose on your file system. A key (either one previously exported or one obtained from elsewhere) may be imported from File Import. A .REG file may be opened for editing and re-saving from File Open. Click a Hot Spot on the image below for more details:
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