A vital part of the Windows operating system, Windows system registry, is that area or database of your computer which contains critical instructions, settings, configurations, changes and options related to all the programs and hardware. When your system registry gets clogged, you are required to edit it but it is advisable that you do it with the help of an expert or software meant for it as incorrect editing may lead to serious implications.
Windows creates backup of your system registry as you boot your computer. A number of methods are used by the windows to restore the system registry.
• The system registry can be restored till the system is bootable. It can also be restored from the Windows recovery environment.
• The Recovery Console can also restore the information. Operating Systems based on Windows NT also creates the backup of the registry structure.
• Data of device driver and hardware can be restored by the Last Known Good Configuration option in case of Windows NT based systems.
• To scan and fix the system registry, Windows Me and Windows 98 have checker tool, which creates back up of the system registry by default.