ANOTHER person asking Registry questions
mdu...@ibm.net
First I should probably say that I'm running on a 64M Gateway 2000 PC that's
about 6 months old and with which (knock on wood) I've had NO problems, so
it's possible that an answer to my question is "Why would you be so crazy as
to do ANYTHING?"
That said:
I'm running OSR2 and lots of software (38 line items in the Add/Remove
folder). My SYSTEM.DAT file is 2.6M. I've been reading some of the posts
about backing up and export/importing the Registry files, and I have some
questions.
1) I have just a regular floppy drive and a tape drive. Obviously I can't
backup the system.dat file to the floppy. Does it make sense just to backup
the file (and user.dat) to a different directory and give them a unique
extension so I know what they are?
2) If I decide to try Regedit to export/import my system.dat and user.dat, I
see references to "Roy's instructions". By this are you referring to the
information in KB article Q131431, or are "Roy's instructions" located
elsewhere? Are there any changes to these instructions for OSR2?
3) In KB article Q132064 "Regedit may not be able to import registry with
Large Keys", it seems to say that using Regedit in "protected mode" (does
that mean rather than Real Mode?) will bypass any such import problems. Is
my reading of that correct? If so, is "protected mode" just another option
on the boot screen?
Sorry for the long post, but as you see, I'm quite confused! Thanks.
Maggie
Tom Porterfield
If you use a zip utility to compress the registry files, they may then fit
on a floppy. Your idea of copying them to another folder will also work
fine. To restore the backed up files, the best way would be to shut down to
DOS and then copy them back to where they belong and reset their attributes.
When you reboot, Windows will use your restored registry.
--
Tom Porterfield - t...@m9.sprynet.com
mdu...@ibm.net wrote in message
<#wnjMXxR...@uppssnewspub04.moswest.msn.net>...
Joseph Holeton
make a temp Folder on your c or d drive, name it Toms Temp, copy your files into
there. save that folder, and when you save something or want to transfer
something, put it in that fold. by using your first name, you will always
remember where to look.
Lee Chapelle
Protected mode regedit is the Windows version, and is great for backing up
the registry (Registry/Export from the toolbar)
Real mode just means real dos (not in a box). It used to be broken, but
Regedit in OSR2 is fixed so that exporting and importing the registry in
real mode (from dos) actually will work and not hang. As a big bonus, the
end result is usually a slimmed down registry. Unfortunately it still can
crap out certain registry keys:+AD4-( +ACo-Fortunately+ACo- we have Ben Jos :+AD4-) Have a
look here for Fixreg 2.03 and an explanation and a program to help get this
done with minimum worries. http://207.211.212.46/walbeehm/mrcode.html
--
Lee Chapelle
MS-MVP DTS
http://www.webdev.net/orca/
http://support.microsoft.com/support
mdunbar+AEA-ibm.net wrote in message
+ADwAIw-wnjMXxR9GA.271+AEA-uppssnewspub04.moswest.msn.net+AD4-...
+AD4-First I should probably say that I'm running on a 64M Gateway 2000 PC
that's
+AD4-about 6 months old and with which (knock on wood) I've had NO problems, so
+AD4-it's possible that an answer to my question is +ACI-Why would you be so crazy
as
+AD4-to do ANYTHING?+ACI-
+AD4-
+AD4-That said:
+AD4-
+AD4-I'm running OSR2 and lots of software (38 line items in the Add/Remove
+AD4-folder). My SYSTEM.DAT file is 2.6M. I've been reading some of the posts
+AD4-about backing up and export/importing the Registry files, and I have some
+AD4-questions.
+AD4-
+AD4-1) I have just a regular floppy drive and a tape drive. Obviously I can't
+AD4-backup the system.dat file to the floppy. Does it make sense just to
backup
+AD4-the file (and user.dat) to a different directory and give them a unique
+AD4-extension so I know what they are?
+AD4-
+AD4-2) If I decide to try Regedit to export/import my system.dat and user.dat,
I
+AD4-see references to +ACI-Roy's instructions+ACI-. By this are you referring to the
+AD4-information in KB article Q131431, or are +ACI-Roy's instructions+ACI- located
+AD4-elsewhere? Are there any changes to these instructions for OSR2?
+AD4-
+AD4-3) In KB article Q132064 +ACI-Regedit may not be able to import registry with
+AD4-Large Keys+ACI-, it seems to say that using Regedit in +ACI-protected mode+ACI- (does
+AD4-that mean rather than Real Mode?) will bypass any such import problems. Is
+AD4-my reading of that correct? If so, is +ACI-protected mode+ACI- just another option
+AD4-on the boot screen?
+AD4-
+AD4-Sorry for the long post, but as you see, I'm quite confused+ACE- Thanks.
+AD4-
+AD4-Maggie
+AD4-
+AD4-
Bill James
2.6M for System.dat is really large. Learning how to compress the Registry
has done more to improve the efficiency of my system than any other single
thing I have done (and it's free - just some learning time). If you have
Installed/Uninstalled a lot of programs, you probably have a lot of orphan
entries in Registry also. RegClean will clean up some of this.
Beyond that, manual editing of the Registry is about the only way to
completely clean it (or a reinstall of Windows to a new directory, then
remove the old Win after the new one is running good). Manual editing is
not something to be taken lightly, but taken a step at a time (small steps),
with good backups, and testing for several days between edits, can
streamline the Registry and improve performance.
Even with all the programs you are running, I think you can shrink
System.dat to below 2MEG. If you have got to this point in just 6 months, I
hate to think what it will look like in another 6 or 12 months - eventually
you will notice a slow down (it might already be happening, but so gradually
you have not noticed). Better to start working at it a little now - it's
kind of like waiting till all the dishes are dirty before starting to wash
them.
Bill James
mdu...@ibm.net wrote in message
<#wnjMXxR...@uppssnewspub04.moswest.msn.net>...
|First I should probably say that I'm running on a 64M Gateway 2000 PC
that's
|about 6 months old and with which (knock on wood) I've had NO problems, so
|it's possible that an answer to my question is "Why would you be so crazy
as
|to do ANYTHING?"
|
|That said:
|
|I'm running OSR2 and lots of software (38 line items in the Add/Remove
|folder). My SYSTEM.DAT file is 2.6M. I've been reading some of the posts
|about backing up and export/importing the Registry files, and I have some
|questions.
|
|1) I have just a regular floppy drive and a tape drive. Obviously I can't
|backup the system.dat file to the floppy. Does it make sense just to
backup
|the file (and user.dat) to a different directory and give them a unique
|extension so I know what they are?
|
|2) If I decide to try Regedit to export/import my system.dat and user.dat,
I
|see references to "Roy's instructions". By this are you referring to the
|information in KB article Q131431, or are "Roy's instructions" located
|elsewhere? Are there any changes to these instructions for OSR2?
|
|3) In KB article Q132064 "Regedit may not be able to import registry with
|Large Keys", it seems to say that using Regedit in "protected mode" (does
|that mean rather than Real Mode?) will bypass any such import problems. Is
|my reading of that correct? If so, is "protected mode" just another option
|on the boot screen?
|
|Sorry for the long post, but as you see, I'm quite confused! Thanks.
|
|Maggie
|
|
Ben Jos Walbeehm
Lee Chapelle wrote:
>
> Unfortunately it still can
> look here for Fixreg 2.03 and an explanation and a program to help get this
> done with minimum worries. http://207.211.212.46/walbeehm/mrcode.html
Heh. Thanks, Lee. It seems like the problem that FixReg fixes has finally
come to Microsoft's attention: I recently installed Windows 98 RC-0 (Release
Candidate 0; build 1691), and I found that Microsoft has finally fixed the
problem with CR/LF characters not being imported correctly by RegEdit.
Instead of putting CR characters in the exported file literally, and putting
LF characters as CR LF combinations, RegEdit now uses escape codes identical
to those used in C/C++. To wit: Instead of putting a CR literally, RegEdit
replaces it by \r (so a backslash followed by an "r"), and instead of LF the
new RegEdit puts \n (backslash "n"). RegEdit already did this (again
identical to what's used in C/C++) with the double quote; double quotes in
values were (and still are) escaped: \" (backslash double-quote).
For instance, here's an entry exported with Windows 98-RC-0's RegEdit. It's
the familiar "DirtyData" entry:
REGEDIT4
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\PerfStats\Enum\VFAT\DirtyData]
"Name"="Dirty data"
"Description"="The number of bytes waiting to be written to the disk. Note
that \r\ndirty data is kept on a per cache block basis, and so a number
\r\nhigher than the actual number of bytes written may be reported."
"Differentiate"="FALSE"
Of course this also means that exported (parts of) registries are no longer
fully compatible between Windows 95 and Windows 98. And of course it also
means that my FixReg program will have very limited use in Windows 98. Its
use is basically restricted to importing entries containing CR and/or LF
characters into Windows 98 that have been exported in Windows 95.
FWIW...
Cheers,
Ben Jos.
--
Ben Jos Walbeehm (My first name is "Ben Jos")
To reply by e-mail, remove the "---" from my addresses
walb...@tampabay.rr.---com walbeehm@gorillacorp.---com
http://home.tampabay.rr.com/walbeehm
Bill James
So, what new tool are you creating for us to overcome whatever new bug MS
overlooked? Your app has been a huge help to lots of user's, and I thank
you for it.
Bill James
Ben Jos Walbeehm wrote in message <34FD6679...@tampabay.rr.---com>...
Kevin Myers
On Tue, 3 Mar 1998 21:35:10 -0500, <mdu...@ibm.net> wrote:
>1) I have just a regular floppy drive and a tape drive. Obviously I can't
>backup the system.dat file to the floppy. Does it make sense just to backup
>the file (and user.dat) to a different directory and give them a unique
>extension so I know what they are?
It is nice to have a backup of the registry. Back the files up on to the tape,
or copy them to a separate dir, or both.
>2) If I decide to try Regedit to export/import my system.dat and user.dat, I
>see references to "Roy's instructions". By this are you referring to the
>information in KB article Q131431, or are "Roy's instructions" located
>elsewhere? Are there any changes to these instructions for OSR2?
Q131431 is the registry errors article. I'm not sure about 'Roy's
Instructions'. You might like to have a look at this site:
Compact the registry
http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~flibble/regsmall.html
(I hope it hasn't changed, I haven't looked recently)
Some of it won't apply to you as you have OSR2 and the newer, slightly debugged
regedit.
>3) In KB article Q132064 "Regedit may not be able to import registry with
>Large Keys", it seems to say that using Regedit in "protected mode" (does
>that mean rather than Real Mode?) will bypass any such import problems. Is
>my reading of that correct? If so, is "protected mode" just another option
>on the boot screen?
That is protected mode (under W95) as opposed to real mode (under just plain
dos) You shouldn't have this problem anyway, because you should have the
updated regedit. If anything goes wrong you will have the two .dat files that
you copied earlier to fall back on.
--
Kevin Myers, Sisaket, Thailand
kevin...@unforgettable.com - http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Bay/7554/
Real men EAT spam!
Bill James
I would just add to Kevin's info that you don't need to rename system.dat
and user.dat if you move them to a different directory. It is probably
easier to restore them if you don't - if you are down and have to restore
them from DOS you will have enough commands to make to restore them anyway
(removing and restoring the hidden, system, and read only attributes),
without having to do a rename at the same time.
Bill James
Kevin Myers wrote in message <350a4582...@207.68.144.14>...