Are Registry Cleaners Still Needed on Windows 10? Microsoft Says They're Not

[Exterminator]

Content source

http://news.softpedia.com/news/are-registry-cleaners-still-needed-on-windows-10-microsoft-says-they-re-not-498103.shtml

They could impact OS reliability and performance, it adds
Registry cleaners and system optimization tools have been around for a while and millions of users turned to them to boost performance of their Windows computers.

But with the arrival of Windows 10, fewer users are actually interested in such apps, as it seems that Microsoft has more or less improved the operating system up to a level when third-party optimization solutions are no longer needed.

A long discussion on reddit questions the performance of CCleaner on Windows 10, as the app has been intensively criticized lately, with a Microsoft employee who posted in the thread explaining that bugs and compatibility issues were the ones responsible for the “new” bad reputation of this tool.

The CCleaner saga
CCleaner is generally considered one of the best apps of its kind, as it provides a rich set of tools to keep a Windows computer in tip-top shape. But with the arrival of Windows 10, CCleaner was originally flagged as incompatible and removed during the upgrade process from Windows 7 and 8.1 computers.

An update to CCleaner fixed the problem and made it fully compatible with Windows 10, but then a number of users reported issues with Cortana and other OS features after installing the app. So is CCleaner no longer an app that can improve system performance? Is there an issue with its registry cleaner that's causing issues on Windows 10?

“This seems like a great question to ask of the CCleaner team, as they should be aware of the bugs/problems their software has or has not introduced over time,” Microsoft employee DrPeppy explained.

Microsoft itself doesn't seem to like CCleaner either. A company executive recently had an unexpected reaction when asked about the app:

“CCleaner is… how do I put it mildly… Don’t… let’s just move on!”

In fact, Microsoft itself is now recommending users to stay away not only from CCleaner, but from any other registry cleaner on their Windows 10 devices, explaining that they could impact system performance and reliability.

“Some products such as registry cleaning utilities suggest that the registry needs regular maintenance or cleaning. However, serious issues can occur when you modify the registry incorrectly using these types of utilities. These issues might require users to reinstall the operating system due to instability. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved without a reinstallation of the Operating System as the extent of the changes made by registry cleaning utilities varies from application to application.”

In the end, it's up to users to decide whether such apps are helpful or not, but with so many bugs occurring even when running the best of them, creating backups should be a priority.

 

[frogboy]

Thanks for this as a Windows 10 user.

 

[Kiwimike]

The only thing I think causes registry issues are programs that have an uninstaller that doesn't remove anything. But either way, most registry keys left behind by most programs won't cause any problems.
Most good antivirus software have nailed this too, they rarely leave registry keys behind I find. All the big avs I have used don't really leave anything of any concern behind.

Although, I think good registry cleaners don't hurt. But they are totally useless unless you have a specific reason for having one. Same with tuneup software. I admit I like the cleaner in CCleaner for cleaning all my browsers and temp files out with one click.
But generally it's a better habit to avoid using them all together. I don't use CCleaner and use Disk Cleanup.

 

[LabZero]

I think the registry cleaners (paid) are useful to the ... pockets of manufacturers.

 

[Ink]

Registry Cleaners aren't really optimised for Windows. Registry Cleaners are the same for Windows 10, as they were with Windows XP (or prior).

You can read what's said about them:
Are registry cleaners necessary? - Windows Help

The Windows‌ registry is a database that lists all of the configuration settings that determine how Windows looks and behaves. Sometimes, settings that are no longer needed will remain in the registry in case they are ever needed again. There's nothing unusual about this, and this data, while unused, is small in size.

Some products available for free on the Internet suggest the registry needs regular maintenance or cleaning. Occasionally, a registry setting can become corrupt but, in general, the registry is self-sufficient.

We strongly recommend that you only change values in the registry that you understand or have been instructed to change by a source you trust. Be sure to back up the registry before making any changes.

Registry Cleaning - Windows 10 Forums

You don't have to uninstall CCleaner, though, because it has a great disk cleaning tool that is superior to the one built into Windows. Just avoid the Registry Cleaner. Registry cleaners can delete critical registry keys by accident and render your computer completely useless, and they don't actually increase performance (have you ever run a registry cleaner, and did it improve performance for you?).

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...registry/9f5d7a0b-d882-4d6f-accd-7dcd68317685

Here's my advice. Ignore what Registry Mechanic tells you, and get rid of that program.

Registry cleaning programs are all snake oil. Cleaning of the registry isn't needed and is dangerous. Leave the registry alone and don't use any registry cleaner. Despite what many people think, and what vendors of registry cleaning software try to convince you of, having unused registry entries doesn't really hurt you. The risk of a serious problem caused by a registry cleaner erroneously removing an entry you need is far greater than any potential benefit it may have.

Using Registry Cleaner: Does Is It Really Make a Difference?

Registry cleaners scan your registry for these outdated entries and offer to remove them. Because there are so many registry entries to go through, they’ll sometimes also remove useful registry entries, causing you problems. The Web is full of stories from people who have run a registry cleaner and encountered problems.

In a best case scenario, a registry cleaner will remove a few hundred unnecessary entries and reduce the size of your registry by a few kilobytes. This makes no different in perceptible performance.

 

[Crystal_Lake_Camper]

I only use ccleaner after uninstalling a program together With autoruns and a nifty program called search everything ( recommended / mentioned by @Huracan once ) to Find possible left overs...its all one realy needs!!

 

[enaph]

I have never experienced any issues with CCleaner so I am still using it on my W10.

 

[Hangtooth]

I have run registry cleaners since the early 90s, and only recently changed my mind on using them due to problems that came up with recent clean installs and the use of Revo Uninstall Pro which, IMHO, cleans a little too deeply on stronger modes. Sure it cautions you, but I did it anyway. I ended up screwing up the networking and firewall portions so badly I just reinstalled when tweaking.com's repair tool couldn't fix the problem.

In my current build, I am trying the experiment of not running any registry cleaners at all, with the exception of geek uninstaller which makes extremely safe and conservative judgements in removing registry entries. Ccleaner I'd deem safe as well, but after the Revo debacle I am just not using it atm.

So far so good, time will tell if the registry gets filled with needless crap and actually slows down. I don't think it will, if what they say in this article at How-To Geek is right:

"No legitimate benchmarks showing a performance increase as a result of a registry cleaner have ever been released. If a registry cleaner offered boosted performance, we would have some benchmarks by now. It’s anecdotal evidence, but the majority of our readers didn’t find that registry cleaners helped improve their performance on modern computers, either."

Why Using a Registry Cleaner Won’t Speed Up Your PC or Fix Crashes

 

[Azure]

I do recall having some issues with a program that was solved by Wise Care 365 registry cleaner, though this was on Windows 8.1

As for Windows 10, I have Kerish Doctor, and its registry cleaner hasn't cause any issue so far perhaps mostly for its extensive "ignore list"

 

[Deleted member 178]

there is no problem using CCleaner to clean the registry since you can make a backup before...

 

[Hangtooth]

As for Windows 10, I have Kerish Doctor, and its registry cleaner hasn't cause any issue so far perhaps mostly for its extensive "ignore list"

I have been curious about Kerish Doctor. The folks at Wilders brought up a few concerns with its compatibility with Macrium and HMPA as well as the fact that all the shareware awards it has won are from unknown sites. It *is* from Russian developers, I think, but it has been around for almost a decade. You'd think there'd be more reviews out there. All I can find is anecdotal about how it either saved their system or trashed it. Makes it hard to decide how much to trust it.

I think I'll start a thread asking for reviews/info. Thanks for reminding me about this one.

 

[darko999]

Ccleaner one's works like a charm

 

[Exterminator]

Well first of all Microsoft is so concerned about registry cleaners,especially CCleaner, however they cannot put out an update without a problem to save their life I think I will be OK on my own but thanks anyway Microsoft.
Out of all the years I have used CCleaner only once have I had to restore from a back up which worked flawlessly.Making a backup when cleaning the registry is always recommended.That comes to about 6 less times than I have had to do a clean install because of a Windows update.
Noteworthy because it is an interesting topic however more so since it is coming from Microsoft!

 

[DracusNarcrym]

I have always used tools such as CCleaner for cleaning up temporary files and the like. Never got to use a registry cleaner. (I cleanup the registry myself, mostly some redundant file extensions and leftover registry entries of uninstalled programs)

 

[Smith83]

It is good practice to use a program like revo uninstaller to remove any programs that you uninstall. Then check for file remnants with everything search engine and delete them. Also use Registrar Registry Manager, to finalize the cleanup. Might seem like a bit of work, but these programs are safe, if you follow through with each of these programs, every time you uninstall something, you will never have to worry about a cluttered registry.

Now if someone could combine the three of these tools, we might have something.....

 

[DracusNarcrym]

It is good practice to use a program like revo uninstaller to remove any programs that you uninstall. Then check for file remnants with everything search engine and delete them. Also use Registrar Registry Manager, to finalize the cleanup. Might seem like a bit of work, but these programs are safe, if you follow through with each of these programs, every time you uninstall something, you will never have to worry about a cluttered registry.

Now if someone could combine the three of these tools, we might have something.....

This is indeed true. Actually I have purchased Revo Uninstaller Pro a while ago but that was only to ensure that installations of VERY messy applications like Autodesk Creation Suite Ultimate (there are literally GIGABYTES of leftover files after their uninstallation) are monitored, since, most of the times, I prefer to uninstall the software packages in order to install the next version, instead of just upgrading existing versions.
Still, after a lot of practice, one can manually cleanup the system of leftover files.
The hard part is un-registering the modules and handles of formerly uninstalled applications, in cases where they were not uninstalled properly, which can usually only be properly done by the software's uninstaller.
Registry and file system cleanup (basically deleting "dormant" or "residing" files and registry entries) can be manually performed by the user.

 

[Smith83]

The hard part is un-registering the modules and handles of formerly uninstalled applications, when they were not installed properly, which can usually only be properly done by the software's uninstaller.

That is where the everything all in one tool comes into play, combine that with unlocker. Say you installed program a. You unisntall program a but it is not all gone, use the everything tool and search for program a. Click edit select all, right click selected items select unlocker then delete.... Work very well, I actually wrote a guide on how to use the combo....

 

[Azure]

It is good practice to use a program like revo uninstaller to remove any programs that you uninstall. Then check for file remnants with everything search engine and delete them. Also use Registrar Registry Manager, to finalize the cleanup. Might seem like a bit of work, but these programs are safe, if you follow through with each of these programs, every time you uninstall something, you will never have to worry about a cluttered registry.

Now if someone could combine the three of these tools, we might have something.....

Soft Organizer does a pretty good job completely uninstalling applications.It's not free though You can right click an installation and pick "trace with Soft Organizer" it takes time to finish. When you select a program to uninstall, it launches that program's own uninstaller, after ward you are given the option to search deeply doing so will give you the option to remove all remnants of the program that were "traced".

 

[SloppyMcFloppy]

I don't use any registry cleaner at all because i don't want to turn my superb gaming PC into potato PC. Also, not a lot of users know what the heck is these keys use for and why does it require to clean.

 

[jamescv7]

Actually registry cleaners are not design to speed up, but rather to clean any unnecessary keys to avoid for future issues. Of course Microsoft will thoroughly explain where its a myth which is technically correct however not insist to pinpoint those products to be not recommended where majority of users use without issues though.