Preparation

• 1). Back up all important data onto CDs, DVDs or an external hard drive.
  
  
• 2). Reinstall your operating system. In most cases you can use the custom installation method and reformat the hard drive. If your computer came with a manufacturer's recovery image disk, use that disk. This will remove all other software programs and personal data from your computer.
  
  
• 3). Reinstall any trusted, necessary software and data backed up prior to the re-installation. Do not install any software you may suspect makes unnecessary changes to your system settings or registry edits.
  
  
• 4). Download and install any of the several registry and process monitoring utilities available for free online.
  
  

Detecting Registry Changes

• 1). Backup your registry settings by using your computer's registry editor. You can find this by clicking on your "Start" button and typing "regedit" into the search box.
  
  
• 2). In the registry editor click on "File" and then click on "Export" to save a copy of your registry settings.
  
  
• 3). Reduce the output to only display registry events. Many of the registry and process monitoring utilities are rich in features and can generate a substantial amount of data that may be confusing to new users.
  
  
• 4). Install new software while running your process monitor utility. It will scan and record any changes made to your registry during installation.
  
  
• 5). Run the software program as you normally would, while running the process monitor utility. It will detect and record any changes made to your registry during the operation of the software.