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CCleaner pinpointing specific registry entries

Discussion in 'Other PC Software' started by Christer, 2017/08/31.

  1. 2017/08/31
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    I have never used registry cleaners but it seems like I will try one in the near future. Well, that's a half-truth. Years ago, I have scanned and checked but never actually cleaned.

    In relation to the problem discussed in Adobe Acrobat 9 not connecting to activation server, after uninstalling Acrobat 9 and having cleaned using Adobes tool, I think that I will do a registry scan using CCleaner.

    I'm aware of the pros an cons using registry cleaners and have been safely lodged on the "cons side" but would it be possible to pinpoint registry entries from a specific program?

    In addition to Acrobat, my friend also has Photoshop from Adobe installed which might make it more complicated.
     
  2. 2017/08/31
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    I forgot to mention that I have checked out CCleaner (the portable version) on my own system but there were no issues with Adobe-stuff. There were, however, a load of other issues that I years ago decided to ignore!
     

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  4. 2017/08/31
    Bill

    Bill SuperGeek WindowsBBS Team Member

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    Not all Registry cleaners (and "optimizers") are the same and I think it is a shame that many automatically lump them all together as something evil because of a few bad apples - especially those people who have never used CCleaner. Medicines are drugs. Some drugs are bad. Does that mean I should not take my medicines? Of course not. Does that mean my medicines are 100% safe? Of course not. But if used properly, they can cure me, or for the sake of the analogy with CCleaner, my medicines can keep me healthy.

    I note CCleaner and Piriform have been around since 2003 and is one of the most popular Windows utilities ever! The developers at Piriform are not stupid or careless. They know what they are doing. If CCleaner's Registry cleaner were the evil monster many make it out to be, it makes no sense Piriform would keep that feature in there. Plus, because there are millions and millions of users, the forums would be flooded with complaints that CCleaner broke my machine.

    For the record, I have used CCleaner and its Registry cleaner for many many years on literally 100s of computers with no problems whatsoever. I do NOT, however, use it to "fix" a broken Windows, only to "maintain" Windows. It is not meant to be nor is it marketed to be a utility that "makes Windows run better than ever!" So if Windows is not working properly, fix it first before dinking with the Registry. It is however, fine to run CCleaner's clutter cleaner. The one exception to this "fix" rule is with stubborn drivers. I will run CCleaner to fix stubborn driver problems.

    This is the only Registry tool I use or recommend because (1) it is not overly aggressive, (2) it always prompts the user to backup the Registry before making changes. And (3) restoring from the backup actually works - or at least did when I tested it years ago.

    I generally recommend you start using CCleaner's Registry cleaner right from the beginning on a new system (or new Windows installation) and regularly after that. "Regularly" is variable - depending on how many changes (different hardware, major OS and application updates, etc.) you make to your system. After major upgrades, I run it. If I swap out major hardware (like switching from NVIDIA to AMD graphics, or HP to Epson printer) I run it. Otherwise, it is once a month or so.

    When you run the Registry cleaner, it always lists what it finds without making any changes. I let it fix whatever it finds and as noted above, it has never broken anything. If you have never run it on this system, it is likely to find a lot and I admit, that can be unnerving. But subsequent scans will find less entries.

    The problem is many programs insert entries in the Registry that are not very descriptive so no guarantee you will see every Adobe entry. Note it is usually necessary to scan for and fix issues 2 or 3 times until it reports, "No issues were found" (I only backup the first time).

    FTR, I do not argue that CCleaner's Registry cleaner makes Windows run better than ever. And I would never claim it is 100% safe. Any time the Registry is touched, there is a possibility something might go wrong. But I don't let extreme "what if" scenarios run my life. If I did, I would never cross a street, use my seatbelt, or flash a BIOS. So I do argue that CCleaner is the safest out there when used properly.
     
    Bill,
    #3
  5. 2017/08/31
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Bill, I was actually waiting for a response from you. When googling the subject, I found a guy (?) over at The Windows Club by the username Digerati who has an avatar very similar to yours here at the WindowsBBS. The subject was the same and the response similar ... :eek: ... but that may be a coincidence.

    On my friends system, I'll start dealing with the Adobe entries and hopefully, it will distinguish Acrobat from Photoshop and from entries common to the two. If not, there's a risk messing up Photoshop while trying to clean out anything Acrobat.

    Since I manage his computer, there's a (quite recent) Ghost Image that serves as backup.
     
  6. 2017/08/31
    Bill

    Bill SuperGeek WindowsBBS Team Member

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    Nope - if you mean this good looking Darkwing Duck, that's me too. ;) I just have not updated my avatar everywhere yet.
    Why? If one program could mess up the other, it would happen just by running either of those programs in Windows. If Windows is not confusing Photoshop with Acrobat, there is no reason CCleaner would.
     
    Bill,
    #5
  7. 2017/08/31
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    I can't view that page since I have not registered over there but as you can see ... :D ... there's no place to hide!

    Okey, I don't know when I'll find the time to visit my friend but I'll report back with the outcome.
     
  8. 2017/08/31
    Bill

    Bill SuperGeek WindowsBBS Team Member

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    Sorry. Well this is me too.
     
    Bill,
    #7
  9. 2017/08/31
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    That's the one I saw ... ;) ... !
     
  10. 2017/09/10
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    A quote from the thread about "Adobe Acrobat 9 not connecting to activation server":

    Maybe it would have been safe to clean everything it found in the registry but I chickened out and left that decision for another day!
     
  11. 2017/09/10
    Bill

    Bill SuperGeek WindowsBBS Team Member

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    Well, frankly, if you don't need Acrobat, uninstall it, and uninsall all Adobe products. They are notorious for new security vulnerabilities being discovered all the time. So I recommend users get rid of them. I did years ago and have never looked back. I also recommend signing up to receive those bulletins too.

    I use and recommend Foxit Reader. Others I trust use and recommend Sumatra PDF. Whichever one you choose, as with any download and install, make sure you select the custom install option so you can opt out of any extras they might offer by default.

    Then you can run CCleaner again and remove all Adobe entries without worries.
     
  12. 2017/09/10
    Christer

    Christer Geek Member Staff Thread Starter

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    Bill, you misunderstood. In the other thread I say that he needs Acrobat but has never used Distiller. He also uses Photoshop and can't/won't rid himself of them. I'll look into the programs you recommend as alternatives to Acrobat Reader.
     
  13. 2017/09/11
    Bill

    Bill SuperGeek WindowsBBS Team Member

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    Photoshop, fortunately, is not plagued by security issues like other Adobe products.
     

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