IT support for the Home User & Small Business

Backing up the Registry

regback.zip

winMEregback.zip

Registry Backup Utility

This applies to Windows 95/98/ME and does not apply to Windows NT/2000/XP

The Windows Registry is compiled of two main .dat files and two files used for backwards compatibility with older software and earlier versions of Windows. The four registry files are:

system.dat user.dat system.ini win.ini

These are the four most important files on your hard drive! Without them, Windows will not work.

All four files live in the C:\Windows folder and are automatically backed up by Windows 98 using the scanregw program, which is set to run automatically when you boot your computer. Under Windows ME, the Registry is backed up using the system restore function. Under Windows 95A/B/C, the Registry is not backed up automatically - unless you perform a backup of it yourself.

If you are using Windows ME recovering from a Registry corruption or failure can be straightforward using the system restore functionality from within Safe Mode. However, it is not failsafe - if the registry is so corrupted that you cannot even get into Safe Mode, then you will not be able to use it. In such cases, it is wise to have a further backup of the registry - which can be done using winMEregback. You will need to have a Windows ME emergency boot disc to be able to use this, so make sure you have already made one of these!

Under Windows 98/98SE, although the Registry is backed up, recovering from a corrupted Registry is quite complex and involves a certain amount of knowledge of DOS and a knowledge of the right switches to activate the registry recovery utility. Moreover, it has been my experience that this method is not foolproof and has, on several occasions, not actually worked!

Under Windows 95A/B/C, although it is not impossible to recover the Registry using the system.da0 and user.da0 files, for the home user, this is an even more complex task than under Windows 98! For these reasons, I have written some simple DOS batch files that will do the task, and do the task very easily. All you need to know is how to use a mouse and how to type one word....

Registry Recovery

First, download the three files regback.bat, recovery.bat and regback.pif by right-clicking on the link and choosing 'Save Target As...'.

Regback.bat is the file you need to automatically copy the four registry files and store them in the folder at C:\Backup

Recovery.bat is the file you will need to restore your registry should it become corrupted.

Both these files should be placed in the root of the C:\ drive
[If you don't know where that is, it is the same folder as autoexec.bat and config.sys - the top of the folder hierarchy in Windows]

The other file [regback.pif] is a shortcut to be placed in your 'Tool Kit' or on the desktop. Double-click on this file and you will run Regback.bat and back up your registry. You can do this anytime you like!

How to Protect Yourself against Windows errors

The purpose of these batch files is so you can be sure that you have a backup copy of the essential files you need to get Windows going again if the Operating System should fail. The time to use the regback.bat file is:

- if you have never backed up the registry before
- before you install any new hardware
- before you install any new software
- before you make any 'tweaky' system changes
- before you go into and do any editing of the Registry

Have you ever had the experience of installing new software and then it crashes the whole system and nothing works the same as it did before? Has a member of your family installed some software that has dramatically affected the performance of your computer? These little batch files will protect you from the worst effects of such scenarios!

How to Restore Windows back to as it was

So, you have tried to install PerfectApp v 6.3 and it failed, crashing Windows and destroying your Registry in the process. That'll teach you to try and install dodgy beta shareware off a magazine cd or a burnt copy of someone else's 'Age of Empires'....
You are faced with a system that won't boot into Windows and the prospect of having to re-install the whole thing at great cost.
But wait.......

1) Boot up to a DOS command line
2) Ensure you are are the C:\> prompt and then type recovery
3) Re-start you computer and you will re-boot back into the Windows you had before it was destroyed by PerfectApp 6.3 !!!

To boot up to a Command line prompt:

a) when the message 'Starting Windows 9x' appears on the boot-up screen, press the F8 key on the keyboard at 1 second intervals until the machine beeps at you ('yeah, yeah, I got the message....') and the Windows Start-Up Menu appears.
Choose (5): Safe Mode Command Prompt Only. At the C:\>, type recovery

b) Alternately, boot up from an Emergency Boot Floppy and at the A:\> prompt, type C:\recovery

 

Regback for Windows ME

Although Windows ME has the System Restore function built in, it can also be useful to have a further back up of the registry - especially if System Restore has become corrupted or if it has been switched off. The files within winMEregback.zip can only be used on Windows ME and should not be used for Windows 95/98. The registry is structured slightly differently within Windows ME and includes an additional file (classes.dat) in addition to system.dat and user.dat. Otherwise, it can be used in excatly the same way as Regback for Windows 95 and Windows 98.

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Contents of regback.bat (Win95/98):

@echo off
set path=c:\windows\command
md c:\backup
cls
cd c:\windows
attrib -r -h -s -a system.dat
attrib -r -h -s -a user.dat
copy system.dat c:\backup
copy user.dat c:\backup
copy system.ini c:\backup
copy win.ini c:\backup
attrib +r +s +h +a system.dat
attrib +r +s +h +a user.dat
cd\
cls
echo.
echo Your Registry has been successfully backed up
echo Use ALT + F4 to close and return to Windows
echo.

Contents of recovery.bat (Win95/98) :

@echo off
set path= c:\windows\command
cd c:\windows
attrib -r -s -h -a system.dat
attrib -r -s -h -a user.dat
cd c:\backup
copy system.dat c:\windows
copy user.dat c:\windows
copy system.ini c:\windows
copy win.ini c:\windows
cd c:\windows
attrib +r +s +h +a system.dat
attrib +r +s +h +a user.dat
cd\
cls
echo.
echo The backup of your Registry files have been restored
echo Press CTRL + ALT + DEL to restart your computer
echo.

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Download the files from the link below. Right-click on
the filename and choose 'Save Target As...'

regback.zip

winMEregback.zip

The file is less than 1kb in size, so it will be with you in an instant :-)