Access Registry Remotely

A registry is a unified location for system information—like what hardware is attached, what systems options have been selected, how much computer memory there is and how it’s set up, what applications are present when the operating system is started up, and much more. The registry is similar to and an improvement on the simpler INI (initialization) and configuration protocols used in older DOS-based Windows systems. First introduced with Windows 95, all Microsoft Windows operating systems now have registries.

When you install or update applications in your network, those changes are automatically reflected in the registry. In a network environment, you can keep registry information on a server, so systems policies and workgroups can be managed centrally. If you need to make manual changes to the registry, you can do so using Control Panel tools, but this isn’t the most scalable solution. This is where remote registry tools come in.

The Windows registry editor, also known as the regedit remote computer command line, is a graphical tool in the Windows operating system that lets you view the network registry and make changes. Only experienced SysAdmins should use registry editors because there is a very large margin of error when it comes to editing the network registry. If a change is made incorrectly, the computer’s entire operating system might shut down. However, the Windows registry needs editing on occasion, and using remote registry editor tools is a flexible option that allows you to act from anywhere.

Here’s a step-by-step guide for accessing a remote Windows registry:

1. Open the registry editor by executing “regedit” from any command line interface in Windows, preferably the Command Prompt or the Run dialog box.
2. Go to “File” then navigate to “Connect Network Registry.”
3. Type the hostname of the target computer into the large empty space. Most networks won’t require any change to the “Object Types” and “Locations” fields, so the editor will default to “Computer” and the existing workgroup. You can adjust these settings if you have a more complex network and the target computer system is a member of a different workgroup or domain.
4. Double-click “Check Names.” After a few seconds, depending on the respective size and speed of your network, you’ll see the remote computer’s full path shown as “LOCATION\NAME.” You might need to enter credentials for a user on the remote computer, so you can verify you’re an authorized user. If you get an error message that says, “An object with the following name cannot be found: ‘NAME.’,” make sure the remote computer you’re accessing is properly connected to the network and you have entered its hostname correctly.
5. Double-click “OK.” In a few seconds, the registry editor will connect to the remote computer’s registry. You should see your computer and the name of the other computer you’re viewing the registry for under “hostname.”

Now that you’ve accessed the registry, you can use the registry editor to make changes.

To remotely edit the registry of a client’s computer from your host computer, the computers must run the same operating system and have the same service pack installed.

Once these conditions have been met, you can edit the registry remotely using these seven easy steps:

1. Start the registry editor on the host computer.
2. Find the “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE” subtree and click on it.
3. Click on “Load Hive” in the File menu.
4. Find and click on the registry hive for the client computer you want to edit. The registry hive is in one of the following files
   1. SAM for the Sam hive
   2. SECURITY for the Security hive
   3. SOFTWARE for the Software hive
   4. SYSTEM for the System hive
5. Click “Open.”
6. In the “Load Hive” dialog box, type the name for the registry hive you want to edit into the “Key Name” box.
7. Edit the registry keys.

Remember the registry editor is a very powerful tool. You can’t undo any of the changes you make and interacting with the sensitive keys could render your remote system unbootable. The best way to avoid this is to edit carefully and make sure you constantly back up your data.

Before you use SolarWinds Dameware Remote Everywhere (DRE) to edit the registry in Windows, it helps to familiarize yourself with this tool’s organization.

The remote registry editor is divided into three main sections:

1. Registry Path: This section is displayed at the top of the screen and gives you more details about the area you’re working in.
2. Registry Key: This section is displayed on the left side of the screen and allows you to navigate using the keys and subkeys. It also provides a list of configured values to the right of the Registry key.
3. Status Area: The section is at the bottom of the screen and displays messages for the actions performed in the registry editor.

After you’ve backed up any data in the registry, you can start accessing the registry editor:

1. Click on a key in the registry tree to move through the registry structure and retrieve data from the remote device in real time.
2. Right-click a key in the list to open the Context Menu. Now, you can collapse or expand the structure, delete or rename items, and refresh the registry. You can also copy the key name to the clipboard if you want.
3. To create a new key value, just right-click a key in the registry tree, select “New” from the Context menu, and then choose the type of key value you want to add.
4. To access or modify a key value, you can double-click it or right-click it to use the corresponding option in the context menu. This will open a new window and show the name, value, and type of the selected object. From there, you can view and edit almost all key value types.

Other SolarWinds Remote Tools:

• Dameware Remote Support
• SolarWinds Patch Manager
• SolarWinds Web Help Desk^®

Other Features:

• Remote Access
• Remote Desktop
• Remote Printing
• Remote Screen Sharing
• Connect Remote Desktop With Command Line