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#106
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 12:11:44 -0700, Ken Blake
wrote: On Tue, 19 Sep 2017 17:05:26 -0000 (UTC), Blake Snyder wrote: I have been using the CCleaner registry cleaner for so long that I can't even say how many years it has been. Probably since I first heard about Ccleaner, and never once have I see it be a problem that I could attribute to me cleaning the registry. Four points: 1. As registry cleaners go, CCleaner's is perhaps the safest. 2. "Safest" doesn't mean it's completely safe. There is still a risk in using it. 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. Read the section "Beware the Registry Cleaner" in http://www.howtogeek.com/113382/how-...9-tips-tricks/ Note that it says "The Windows registry contains hundreds of thousands of entries; removing a few hundred (at most) won't give you an increase in performance. Registry cleaners can accidentally remove important registry values, however, so there’s risk with little reward." Maybe 10% (if that) are "important". The rest are completely irrelevant entries that would make a forensic expert's field day. Sht, it would probably make an incompetent psychotic stalker want to party. Can you explain why after you install all your drivers and all your software the registry is under 20MB (which includes mostly trash), and two or three years later, same drivers, same software it's grown to 45MB even after running a cleaner and compacting the database ? It's why more and more people prefer portable apps, they keep relevant data in tiny ini or cfg files inside the program's folder. I've been running registry cleaners for over 15 years now. Never had a problem. As to CCleaner, no one has explained yet how the malware was planted in it. Or which government was behind the backdoor. "Amazingly" the US government still recommends Avast, but not Kaspersky. Duh. []'s -- Don't be evil - Google 2004 We have a new policy - Google 2012 |
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#107
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 20:49:51 -0200, Shadow wrote:
Can you explain why after you install all your drivers and all your software the registry is under 20MB (which includes mostly trash), and two or three years later, same drivers, same software it's grown to 45MB even after running a cleaner and compacting the database Yer 'aving me on. Right? C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hkcr Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 280335 Keys: 183779 Size: 27,667,106 bytes C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hkcu Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 141057 Keys: 40818 Size: 12,312,255 bytes C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hklm Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 1103322 Keys: 443601 Size: 133,047,025 bytes C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hku Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 251288 Keys: 82490 Size: 21,025,435 bytes Sent from my iFurryUnderbelly. -- p-0.0-h the cat Internet Terrorist, Mass sock puppeteer, Agent provocateur, Gutter rat, Devil incarnate, Linux user#666, ******* hacker, Resident evil, Monkey Boy, Certifiable criminal, Spineless cowardly scum, textbook Psychopath, the SCOURGE, l33t p00h d3 tr0ll, p00h == lam3r, p00h == tr0ll, troll infâme, the OVERCAT [The BEARPAIR are dead, and we are its murderers], lowlife troll, shyster [pending approval by STATE_TERROR], cripple, sociopath, kook, smug prick, smartarse, arsehole, moron, idiot, imbecile, snittish scumbag, liar, total ******* retard, shill, pooh-seur, scouringerer, jumped up chav, lycanthropic schizotypal lesbian, the most complete ignoid, joker, and furball. NewsGroups Numbrer One Terrorist Honorary SHYSTER and FRAUD awarded for services to Haberdashery. By Appointment to God Frank-Lin. Signature integrity check md5 Checksum: be0b2a8c486d83ce7db9a459b26c4896 I mark any message from »Q« the troll as stinky |
#108
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On Fri, 20 Oct 2017 01:45:02 +0100, "p-0''0-h the cat (coder)"
wrote: On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 20:49:51 -0200, Shadow wrote: Can you explain why after you install all your drivers and all your software the registry is under 20MB (which includes mostly trash), and two or three years later, same drivers, same software it's grown to 45MB even after running a cleaner and compacting the database Yer 'aving me on. Right? C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hkcr Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 280335 Keys: 183779 Size: 27,667,106 bytes C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hkcu Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 141057 Keys: 40818 Size: 12,312,255 bytes C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hklm Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 1103322 Keys: 443601 Size: 133,047,025 bytes C:\Users\pooh\Desktop\RUru64 hku Ru v1.2 - Registry size usage reporter Copyright (C) 2013-2016 Mark Russinovich Sysinternals - www.sysinternals.com Values: 251288 Keys: 82490 Size: 21,025,435 bytes 194 million bytes. Kudos !!! Nice size "ini" file. If you have 200 drivers/programs installed, that's almost a million bytes per item. Don't suppose you clean it , IOW, remove the profiling and datamining stuff once a week ? Or compact it ? If you delete an entry, M$ still keeps an "invisible" copy, which is only removed by "compacting". Give it a try. You can always roll over, I mean, install a backup if something goes south. []'s -- Don't be evil - Google 2004 We have a new policy - Google 2012 |
#109
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
Ken Blake wrote in : 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. Not quite true. The registry amongst other things stores device IDs of every USB device plugged in (privacy implications). An ordinary registry edit can't remove these IDs even though you would think plugin devices, being temporary, would only create read-write entries in the registry. I use Uwe Sieber's programs such as driver clean to delete these protected entries. As the registry is a binary file, it is not possible to be sure there are no recoverable "deleted" entries in it. The only way to really clean the registry is a program that can reconstruct the entire registry skipping over invalid, deleted or hidden entries. Of course deleting hidden entries may cause a lot of problems. That's not an argument against registry cleaners. Its an argument for a better registry that gives users the final say on its contents. |
#110
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
Shadow wrote in : Can you explain why after you install all your drivers and all your software the registry is under 20MB (which includes mostly trash), and two or three years later, same drivers, same software it's grown to 45MB even after running a cleaner and compacting the database ? It's why more and more people prefer portable apps, they keep relevant data in tiny ini or cfg files inside the program's folder. I've been running registry cleaners for over 15 years now. Never had a problem. The logic of a registry is to have a central repository for information that is common to all, or a number, of programs being run on that system. For example a machine's hardware information. So it wouldn't make sense for every program install to create an INI file with your graphics card information. That would mean lots of INI files needing changes if updating your graphics card. That however in my view does not invalidate the use of INI or CFG files for settings specific or unique to a single program. I don't see an advantage of a registry for that, particularly a binary registry. Having a central registry containing settings for every and each program also helps certain "installers" (small EXE programs that will download a program so nice and easy for you) to scan and phone home if any rival program on your system and much other information besides. They could still do it scanning for INI files - it would take longer and may flash the hard drive activity LEDs something that could be noticed. Under Linux's WINE Windows compatability layer, the registry files are in plaintext. Under WINE I've run Xnews, various versions of Firefox, Opera, Libre Office, Notepads, PDF viewers, Irfanview, Faststone Viewer, The Gimp, etc and the total size of the registry is 1.2 Megabytes. I can see with a plaintext editor what is going on. Re the discussion on XXCOPY/XXCLONE, I could see pixielab's program creating a key at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Pixelab\XXCOPY and view the entry in plaintext. Portablefreeware.com frequently flags programs regarding their stealth attribute. "Stealth" in this case meaning whether a program leaves traces of its presence in the registry. |
#111
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On 10/19/2017 12:11 PM, Ken Blake wrote:
On Tue, 19 Sep 2017 17:05:26 -0000 (UTC), Blake Snyder wrote: I have been using the CCleaner registry cleaner for so long that I can't even say how many years it has been. Probably since I first heard about Ccleaner, and never once have I see it be a problem that I could attribute to me cleaning the registry. Four points: 1. As registry cleaners go, CCleaner's is perhaps the safest. 2. "Safest" doesn't mean it's completely safe. There is still a risk in using it. 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. snip #4, don't use any registry cleaner that doesn't allow you to undo the changes you make. How do I restore (ccleaner) registry backups? Right-click on the .REG file created and select 'Merge'. By default these files will be saved into your 'My Documents' folder. https://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/fa...gistry-backups |
#112
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
Per Ken Blake:
removing a few hundred (at most) won't give you an increase in performance. Registry cleaners can accidentally remove important registry values, however, so there’s risk with little reward." To me, the ultimate registry cleaner is having an image of a known "Good" system, keeping a log of changes, and re-imaging from the "Good" image/applying changes if/when the situation warrants. Implicit in that, of course, is the discipline of not keeping Data on the System partition... -- Pete Cresswell |
#113
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On 20-Oct-17 3:31 PM, (PeteCresswell) wrote:
Per Ken Blake: removing a few hundred (at most) won't give you an increase in performance. Registry cleaners can accidentally remove important registry values, however, so there’s risk with little reward." To me, the ultimate registry cleaner is having an image of a known "Good" system, keeping a log of changes, and re-imaging from the "Good" image/applying changes if/when the situation warrants. Implicit in that, of course, is the discipline of not keeping Data on the System partition... "PC MightyMax 2016 is an award winning Registry Cleaner and error repair tool trusted by over 8,000,000 users worldwide. PC MightyMax 2016 is the safest and most advanced registry cleaner available, and will thoroughly scan your computer for problems in about four minutes. PC MightyMax 2016 can then create a system restore point and repair all of the problems found." http://www.pcmightymax.net/ I tried it back in 2004. I have a deep suspicion that it was/is a scam. -- David B. |
#114
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 23:08:45 -0700, Mike S wrote:
On 10/19/2017 12:11 PM, Ken Blake wrote: On Tue, 19 Sep 2017 17:05:26 -0000 (UTC), Blake Snyder wrote: I have been using the CCleaner registry cleaner for so long that I can't even say how many years it has been. Probably since I first heard about Ccleaner, and never once have I see it be a problem that I could attribute to me cleaning the registry. Four points: 1. As registry cleaners go, CCleaner's is perhaps the safest. 2. "Safest" doesn't mean it's completely safe. There is still a risk in using it. 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. snip #4, don't use any registry cleaner that doesn't allow you to undo the changes you make. Although I'm against using any registry cleaner, if you must use one, I agree with your point. However, note that if a registry cleaner's result is bad enough, you won't be able to boot, and a backup you have won't be of much use. |
#115
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
Ken Blake wrote:
On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 23:08:45 -0700, Mike S wrote: On 10/19/2017 12:11 PM, Ken Blake wrote: On Tue, 19 Sep 2017 17:05:26 -0000 (UTC), Blake Snyder wrote: I have been using the CCleaner registry cleaner for so long that I can't even say how many years it has been. Probably since I first heard about Ccleaner, and never once have I see it be a problem that I could attribute to me cleaning the registry. Four points: 1. As registry cleaners go, CCleaner's is perhaps the safest. 2. "Safest" doesn't mean it's completely safe. There is still a risk in using it. 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. snip #4, don't use any registry cleaner that doesn't allow you to undo the changes you make. Although I'm against using any registry cleaner, if you must use one, I agree with your point. However, note that if a registry cleaner's result is bad enough, you won't be able to boot, and a backup you have won't be of much use. If you backed up the actual registry files, you can put them back "offline". Simply boot your installer CD/DVD to Command Prompt, and "copy" them in. Restore Points also contain copies of the registry files. First you copy the "empty" registry files into the OS offline. That gets the OS booting again. Then you use rstrui to revert via a Restore Point, to a previous point in time, with a full set of registry files. So in principle, simply setting a Restore Point before doing something stupid, is enough. But for the people who have damaged their machines badly enough, that no Restore Point has ever worked, it would be a bad idea to rely on this method alone. If you're going to mess with the Registry, you should at least have some idea how much work it is to "fix" the mess later :-) https://support.microsoft.com/en-ca/...indows-xp-from Paul |
#116
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
In message , David_B
writes: On 20-Oct-17 3:31 PM, (PeteCresswell) wrote: Per Ken Blake: removing a few hundred (at most) won't give you an increase in performance. Registry cleaners can accidentally remove important registry values, however, so there’s risk with little reward." To me, the ultimate registry cleaner is having an image of a known "Good" system, keeping a log of changes, and re-imaging from the "Good" image/applying changes if/when the situation warrants. To be fully comprehensive, that log would have to include not only software installations, but also updates - and probably even just settings changes. Thus the maintenance of such a log becomes more or less a full-time job. Implicit in that, of course, is the discipline of not keeping Data on the System partition... Now on that, we do agree! "PC MightyMax 2016 is an award winning Registry Cleaner and error repair tool trusted by over 8,000,000 users worldwide. PC MightyMax 2016 is the safest and most advanced registry cleaner available, and will thoroughly scan your computer for problems in about four minutes. PC MightyMax 2016 can then create a system restore point and repair all of the problems found." http://www.pcmightymax.net/ I tried it back in 2004. I have a deep suspicion that it was/is a scam. Pretty much, by the sound of it: I suspect from the amount of puff that it's a paid-for product, as well. Of course, they won't have heard from any of their "over 8,000,000 users" who have broken their system to the point that it won't boot to use the restore points it has made. (Unless they have Paul's notes on how to, but then they wouldn't be daft enough to fall for it.) -- J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf This was before we knew that a laboratory rat, if experimented upon, will develop cancer. [Quoted by] Anne ), 1997-1-29 |
#117
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On 20-Oct-17 8:15 PM, J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
In message , David_B writes: On 20-Oct-17 3:31 PM, (PeteCresswell) wrote: Per Ken Blake: removing a few hundred (at most) won't give you an increase in performance. Registry cleaners can accidentally remove important registry values, however, so there’s risk with little reward." Â*To me, the ultimate registry cleaner is having an image of a known "Good" system, keeping a log of changes, and re-imaging from the "Good" image/applying changes if/when the situation warrants. To be fully comprehensive, that log would have to include not only software installations, but also updates - and probably even just settings changes. Thus the maintenance of such a log becomes more or less a full-time job. Â*Implicit in that, of course, is the discipline of not keeping Data on the System partition... Now on that, we do agree! "PC MightyMax 2016 is an award winning Registry Cleaner and error repair tool trusted by over 8,000,000 users worldwide. PC MightyMax 2016 is the safest and most advanced registry cleaner available, and will thoroughly scan your computer for problems in about four minutes. PC MightyMax 2016 can then create a system restore point and repair all of the problems found." http://www.pcmightymax.net/ I tried it back in 2004. I have a deep suspicion that it was/is a scam. Pretty much, by the sound of it: I suspect from the amount of puff that it's a paid-for product, as well. IIRC, it was quite expensive. Currently $49.95 https://pcmightymax.net/order_new/order/2k9.php Of course, they won't have heard from any of their "over 8,000,000 users" who have broken their system to the point that it won't boot to use the restore points it has made. (Unless they have Paul's notes on how to, but then they wouldn't be daft enough to fall for it.) I scraped my computer and bought another one! -- David B. |
#118
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On 10/20/2017 10:09 AM, Paul wrote:
Ken Blake wrote: On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 23:08:45 -0700, Mike S wrote: On 10/19/2017 12:11 PM, Ken Blake wrote: On Tue, 19 Sep 2017 17:05:26 -0000 (UTC), Blake Snyder wrote: I have been using the CCleaner registry cleaner for so long that I can't even say how many years it has been. Probably since I first heard about Ccleaner, and never once have I see it be a problem that I could attribute to me cleaning the registry. Four points: 1. As registry cleaners go, CCleaner's is perhaps the safest. 2. "Safest" doesn't mean it's completely safe. There is still a risk in using it. 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. snip #4, don't use any registry cleaner that doesn't allow you to undo the changes you make. Although I'm against using any registry cleaner, if you must use one, I agree with your point. However, note that if a registry cleaner's result is bad enough, you won't be able to boot, and a backup you have won't be of much use. If you backed up the actual registry files, you can put them back "offline". Simply boot your installer CD/DVD to Command Prompt, and "copy" them in. Restore Points also contain copies of the registry files. First you copy the "empty" registry files into the OS offline. That gets the OS booting again. Then you use rstrui to revert via a Restore Point, to a previous point in time, with a full set of registry files. So in principle, simply setting a Restore Point before doing something stupid, is enough. But for the people who have damaged their machines badly enough, that no Restore Point has ever worked, it would be a bad idea to rely on this method alone. If you're going to mess with the Registry, you should at least have some idea how much work it is to "fix" the mess later :-) https://support.microsoft.com/en-ca/...indows-xp-from Â*Â* Paul Very good points Paul. Linux Live CDs can also be used. e.g. (although this backup wasn't made by ccleaner it demonstrates a gui approach.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbN0eWR9HMs |
#119
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On Fri, 20 Oct 2017 16:22:21 -0700, Mike S wrote:
On 10/20/2017 10:09 AM, Paul wrote: Ken Blake wrote: On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 23:08:45 -0700, Mike S wrote: On 10/19/2017 12:11 PM, Ken Blake wrote: On Tue, 19 Sep 2017 17:05:26 -0000 (UTC), Blake Snyder wrote: I have been using the CCleaner registry cleaner for so long that I can't even say how many years it has been. Probably since I first heard about Ccleaner, and never once have I see it be a problem that I could attribute to me cleaning the registry. Four points: 1. As registry cleaners go, CCleaner's is perhaps the safest. 2. "Safest" doesn't mean it's completely safe. There is still a risk in using it. 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. snip #4, don't use any registry cleaner that doesn't allow you to undo the changes you make. Although I'm against using any registry cleaner, if you must use one, I agree with your point. However, note that if a registry cleaner's result is bad enough, you won't be able to boot, and a backup you have won't be of much use. If you backed up the actual registry files, you can put them back "offline". Simply boot your installer CD/DVD to Command Prompt, and "copy" them in. Restore Points also contain copies of the registry files. First you copy the "empty" registry files into the OS offline. That gets the OS booting again. Then you use rstrui to revert via a Restore Point, to a previous point in time, with a full set of registry files. So in principle, simply setting a Restore Point before doing something stupid, is enough. But for the people who have damaged their machines badly enough, that no Restore Point has ever worked, it would be a bad idea to rely on this method alone. If you're going to mess with the Registry, you should at least have some idea how much work it is to "fix" the mess later :-) https://support.microsoft.com/en-ca/...indows-xp-from ** Paul Very good points Paul. Linux Live CDs can also be used. e.g. (although this backup wasn't made by ccleaner it demonstrates a gui approach.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbN0eWR9HMs ERUNT creates a complete backup of the registry, and you can restore by simply executing the ERDNT.EXE in the backup folder it from a DOS prompt. (DOSBOX in Linux or a bootable DOS USB made with something like Rufus). I've used it in the past to restore unbootable systems trashed by bad M$ updates. No idea if it works on Vista or worse... []'s -- Don't be evil - Google 2004 We have a new policy - Google 2012 |
#120
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Hackers hid malware in CCleaner software
On 21-Oct-17 12:52 AM, Shadow *LIED*!!!
On Fri, 20 Oct 2017 16:22:21 -0700, Mike S wrote: On 10/20/2017 10:09 AM, Paul wrote: Ken Blake wrote: On Thu, 19 Oct 2017 23:08:45 -0700, Mike S wrote: On 10/19/2017 12:11 PM, Ken Blake wrote: On Tue, 19 Sep 2017 17:05:26 -0000 (UTC), Blake Snyder wrote: I have been using the CCleaner registry cleaner for so long that I can't even say how many years it has been. Probably since I first heard about Ccleaner, and never once have I see it be a problem that I could attribute to me cleaning the registry. Four points: 1. As registry cleaners go, CCleaner's is perhaps the safest. 2. "Safest" doesn't mean it's completely safe. There is still a risk in using it. 3. Let me point out that neither I nor anyone else who warns against the use of registry cleaners has ever said that they always cause problems. If they always caused problems, they would disappear from the market almost immediately. Many people have used a registry cleaner and never had a problem with it. 4. The problem with a registry cleaner is that it carries with it the substantial *risk* of having a problem. And since there is no benefit to using a registry cleaner, running that risk is a very bad bargain. snip #4, don't use any registry cleaner that doesn't allow you to undo the changes you make. Although I'm against using any registry cleaner, if you must use one, I agree with your point. However, note that if a registry cleaner's result is bad enough, you won't be able to boot, and a backup you have won't be of much use. If you backed up the actual registry files, you can put them back "offline". Simply boot your installer CD/DVD to Command Prompt, and "copy" them in. Restore Points also contain copies of the registry files. First you copy the "empty" registry files into the OS offline. That gets the OS booting again. Then you use rstrui to revert via a Restore Point, to a previous point in time, with a full set of registry files. So in principle, simply setting a Restore Point before doing something stupid, is enough. But for the people who have damaged their machines badly enough, that no Restore Point has ever worked, it would be a bad idea to rely on this method alone. If you're going to mess with the Registry, you should at least have some idea how much work it is to "fix" the mess later :-) https://support.microsoft.com/en-ca/...indows-xp-from Â*Â* Paul Very good points Paul. Linux Live CDs can also be used. e.g. (although this backup wasn't made by ccleaner it demonstrates a gui approach.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbN0eWR9HMs ERUNT creates a complete backup of the registry, and you can restore by simply executing the ERDNT.EXE in the backup folder it from a DOS prompt. (DOSBOX in Linux or a bootable DOS USB made with something like Rufus). I've used it in the past to restore unbootable systems trashed by bad M$ updates. No idea if it works on Vista or worse... []'s You are a Usenet Troll and a *LIAR*, Shadow! |
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