By admin
Windows Registry items are one of the most important files that are crucial for proper functioning. It helps to make sure that your Windows operating system, processes, and system are performing correctly. In addition, Windows Registry items are the files containing any information regarding the changes you made to your computer.
With continuing personalization of your computer, the registry items on WIndows keep increasing. While these items are essential to help Windows work properly, they are not deleted when their work is finished. The chances of these files getting transformed into corrupted files. So, you need to find out how to fix broken registry items on your PC.
Fixing Broken Registry Items Is Essential?
After staying for a long time, registry items start to get damaged, broken, or corrupted. Some of the common causes include abrupt shutdown, power failure, malware, faulty hardware, viruses, and others that can damage the registry items.
These files can clog the storage of your PC, slow down the functions, and cause some startup issues as well. So, yes, it is necessary to fix broken registry items. This is why it is essential to learn how to fix broken registry items on a PC. Here are some of the fixes given below that you can try.
Different Methods To Fix Broken Registry Items
Before we jump to know the methods, here are some things that you need to know. Make sure to take a backup of the settings and files of the Windows registry before making any changes. Damaging sensitive files might cause issues in the Windows OS and malfunction the computer. That being said, here are the common fixes are given below.
1. Disk Cleanup
When thinking about fixing broken registry items, the first thing that comes to mind is the disk cleanup tool. Windows provide a tool that can help to remove all the unnecessary files from the computer, including broken registry items. This is the best solution of how to fix broken registry items for free. To use this tool, you have to type the disk cleanup in the search box and select the application from the result.
After opening the app, you will need to choose the drive that you want to clean. Then, tick both temporary internet files and downloaded program files. Next, click on “Clean up system files” to select different types of files. If you are not sure what it does, then check the description to learn more. When you are done selecting them, click on ok to delete them.
You will get a pop-up asking you to confirm the action. Then, click on “delete files” to permanently delete the selected items.
2. Use DISM Tool
You might have heard about the DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management) tool that helps repair the broken registry files. This command helps repair the registry files even when the System File Checker does not find any broken registry items to fix.
To use this tool, you have to visit the start menu and select Command Prompt. Then, paste or type DISM/Online/Cleanup-Image/RestoreHealth in the console. Finally, press the enter button on the keyboard to start the scan using the DISM tool.
It will look for any broken and corrupt files on your computer. You will need to check the results very carefully to make sure any file was not replaced. Although most people question how to fix broken registry items Windows 10, find this process as an easy solution.
3. System File Checker
SFC is another tool similar to disk cleanup that Windows offers to their customers with the operating system. Using this tool, you will be able to replace or repair the broken registry files. It scans the whole device to find any broken or corrupted registry files.
If any corrupted files appear, the tool replaces them with a fresh copy of the file. Just like the last one, you have to use the command prompt in Admin mode to use this tool. Here is how to fix broken registry items easily using the SFC tool. Here are the steps are given below in detail.
Step 1: Just like before, open the Command Prompt Admin mode from the start menu.
Step 2: Paste or type sfc /scannow and click on enter.
This process can take as long as 30 minutes but lets you know when the files are scanned. If there are any corrupted or broken files, the tool will help you know with an alert. If the setting is set to automatic repair, then the tool will automatically repair the corrupted files.
There are times when the message pop up as “Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.” In that case, you will need to run it again. However, if the issue is still there, then try restarting your computer and try again. If it is not working for you, then here are some other methods that will help you to know how to fix broken registry items on Windows 10.
4. Windows Repair Install
This is another very effective way to fix the broken registry items that you can try. You have to reinstall Windows from scratch and preserve all the installed applications, personal files, and other system settings. This is how to fix broken registry items in Windows 10 very fast and easily.
The whole process is very well known as repair upgrade or repair install. To begin with this process, you will need to download an ISO file Windows 10 Disc Image from the official website of Windows. After the download is completed, you have to double-click on the downloaded disc image to start the repair installation process.
Then, you have to follow the prompts during the installation and agree to all the necessary usage terms and licenses. The important part is to check the presence of “Keep Windows settings, personal files, and apps” on the “Ready to install” page. If it is not there, then you will need to click on the option “Change what to keep”
From there, you will be able to select the “Keep Windows settings, personal files, and apps” manually. When the installation process is complete, all the corrupted files will be free from your PC. Make sure to follow instructions in every step to find out how to fix broken registry items on PC.
5. Use The Registry Scanner
If all of the above-mentioned methods are not working, you can try using the third-party registry scanner. They are also very well known as registry optimizers. It is one of the easiest answers you can get to the question of how to fix broken registry items. This third-party software will help to reshape the registry and replace or remove all the missing or corrupted files.
There are plenty of reliable and trusted cleaning programs available that you can choose to fix the broken registry files. However, one of the most common issues of these cleaners is that they sometimes do not replace or restore the registry files after scanning. On the other hand, a malicious registry cleaner can ruin the registry of your PC and slow down the speed.
So, you need to ensure that the application works very well and comes from a trusted source. It is best to check all the reviews in detail before choosing a third-party cleaner. If you feel any lag or issues after installing the cleaner, immediately uninstall it and remove it from the PC.
Although the process is very easy, it is hard to find a good cleaner. This is why this method appears in the fifth spot among all the answers on how to fix broken registry items.
6. Run Automated Repair
If you are looking for other methods to find out how to fix broken registry items, then this is the one that you can try. The automated repair is a great utility to fix issues related to startup on Windows 10 PCs. This tool is also used often to scan the registry settings and fix the issues that affect it and other configurations or files. Here are the steps that you need to follow to run this tool.
Step 1: First, you will need to go to the settings and “Updates & Security” section. There, you will find a tab, “Recovery,” you have to click on the “Restart Now” option from the “Advanced startup” section.
Step 2: It will reboot the PC in the Advanced Startup Options Menu. You will find the option “Troubleshoot” Click on it and choose advanced options. Once you are in the advanced options, click on the “Startup Repair” to begin the repair process.
Step 3: You will need to provide the profile password to start the process. However, if the account is not protected with a password, you do not have to worry about this step.
7. Reset The Windows 10
If any of these methods are not working, then the last thing that you can try is resetting the Windows. This is also the preferred option if the registry is heavily corrupted, which is beyond repair. In addition, it helps to restore all Windows default settings after installation, which makes it far better than reinstalling Windows.
While this one is the most common answer of how to fix broken registry items Windows 7 or 10, many people try to use other methods. The reason behind this is resetting causes you to lose settings, previously installed data and apps, personalization, and many more. Try to back up all your files before you start.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. How do I fix registry errors in Windows 10?
There are more than one ways available that you can apply to fix the registry errors in Windows 10. Some common fixes include performing DISM scans, performing SFC scans, performing automatic startup repair, resetting the Windows 10, Windows 10 upgrade repair, performing a system restore, and others.
Q2. How do I remove a broken registry in Windows 7?
You can use the disk cleanup option from Windows 7 to remove the broken registry. All you have to do is search for the disk cleanup option in the search bar and click on Next, select the drive where Windows is installed, select clean up system files and temporary internet files, then click ok. Apart from that, you can also use two other ways to remove the broken registry in Windows 7 such as running DISM and refreshing the computer.
Q3. How do I clean and repair registry?
It is a very easy process that you can initiate with the help of two clicks. There are many tools available to clean the registry and repair it. In most cleaners, you have to visit the registry tab and click on scan to identify the issues. When they are detected, click on fix selected issues, and you are good to go.
Q4. How do I fix missing registry files?
You can perform more than one fixes such as Using the CHKDSK utility to check the disk file system, reboot the PC into the time when the configuration was good, use easy recovery essentials to restore the corrupted registry, and manually restore the registry.
Conclusion
Broken registry items are one of the parts of the computer that keeps the system running and stable. So, if these files get corrupted, they can cause many complications on the performance and stability.
Apart from that, they can also clog the storage of your computer. So, you need to find out how to fix broken registry items to keep your system smooth and healthy. Here are some of the most popular and common ways to fix the broken registry items.
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