Every computer user has gone through his or her share of computer errors.

It is indeed an unpleasant experience when your computer freezes frequently constantly due to computer errors, or when you face computer errors like the error 1603, which is raised when there is a problem with the Windows installer; or the stop c000021a error, which is raised by the kernel when it finds some critical system process is no longer operating and halts the system.

Without sounding too far-fetched, it is our intention to show you that you can contain most of these nuisances by following the methods suggested below:

Maintain A Clean And Compact Registry

The registry is a very important part of every Windows system. It houses a master index for all settings required for everything that runs on your computer. Such a mammoth and complicated component is bound to develop a few cracks with time, and surely it does.

Older program entries that are no more valid put a strain on the system resources, and come in conflict with many of the other newer programs.

Therefore, it is necessary that you invest in a good, professional-quality, registry cleaner. You will see that in just a few clicks, your registry will be scanned for problems, fixed, cleaned and optimized for better as well as high speed performance.

Ensure A Virus Free PC

Even after the evolution of protective software, the anti-virus remains central to the life of a Windows computer user.

The reason is simple: viruses are still the most rampant, most disruptive of all malicious agents; and once a decent-strength virus has found its way into your system, the only option left is formatting.

Therefore, you absolutely must have a strong anti-virus solution installed on your computer, and you must take care to update it regularly and scan your system for possible viruses and root kits. Don’t forget that an anti-virus works as the first line of defense for your system, and as such its importance can’t be overlooked.

Implement a Firewall

While an anti-virus programs will save you from possible file infections, what about the ever-increasing hacking attempts that are made on systems across the world?

Unfortunately, an anti-virus program doesn’t provide network protection and for this you need to turn to the services of a firewall. A firewall is a complex defense software that shields your computer’s ports from external manipulation by filtering all incoming and outgoing data traffic of your computer.

It might be a little tricky to set up a firewall, but it’s well worth the effort, for it certainly fortifies your security by manifold. But don’t rely on the default Windows firewall, instead you should opt for a better, more trustworthy firewall.

It is not hard to keep Windows errors at bay, especially when you have the right protective software and a little time and patience! In fact, over time you will find that the intellectual joy of figuring things out and finding how your Windows system works is quite a rewarding experience in itself.

In order to see how cleaning the computer registry helps fix computer errors, it is important to know what the Windows registry is and why it is a crucial part of your Windows operating system.

Understanding The Computer Registry

In all Windows operating systems prior to Windows 95, all hardware, software and system configuration was saved in INI files.

These files were not only spread all over the hard disk, but also took up a lot of storage space—which was quite expensive years back. To resolve this issue and to centralize the storage of all configuration information, Microsoft took a giant leap by introducing the Windows registry with the Windows 95 operating system.

The computer registry provided a central location in which all configuration information was stored in the form of a hierarchical database. This not only helped in getting rid of unwanted clutter of INI files but also helped in saving a lot of disk space.

Your Computer Registry Is Constantly Being Refined

Although the computer registry has since undergone a lot of improvements, there are certain problems that have yet to be resolved.

Because all applications, devices, and configuration changes on your system are performed through the registry, it has a great affinity to attract a large amount of unwanted information—obsolete entries not required after programs are updated, invalid entries created due to incorrect program installation, and malicious entries added by Malware programs, such as virus and spyware.

Accumulation of all this unwanted information unnecessarily increases the size of the registry and causes it to grow at an uncontrollable rate. A large registry easily gets damaged and fragmented and starts generating errors on your PC. This is the reason why, in order to avoid Windows errors, it is important for you to clean your registry.

Windows XP and Windows Vista operating systems comprise the Registry Editor tool that you can use to view the registry tree, make a few edits, and backup the registry. However, this tool is not equipped with options that you can use to perform a thorough scan and repair of the registry.

This is the reason why, experts recommend that you use a reliable and efficient Windows Vista or XP registry cleaner tool for the purpose.

There are many different types of registry cleaner tools available in the market and you can download the one that best meets your requirements.

Given below are some of the key benefits of advanced registry cleaner tools.

• Automate the process of scanning and repairing registry errors.
• Use advanced and complex algorithms to weed out unwanted and malicious information from deep within the registry.
• Get rid of malicious embedded—non-removable—registry keys added by spyware programs to ensure complete removal of these programs.
• Remove orphan keys left behind when programs are uninstalled to ensure complete removal.
• Easily fix computer errors, such as fix runtime errors, fix DLL errors, and fix driver errors.
• Defrag the registry to consolidate its files and remove unwanted empty registry keys to reduce the size of the registry, improve the registry access speed and as a result, enhance the performance of your PC.
• Easily create regular registry backups that you can restore in case your current registry fails.
• Perform other system maintenance tasks such as manage start up programs, get rid of unwanted Internet files, and clear your privacy information.

The computer registry is critical for your Windows operating system. Regular registry maintenance helps you avoid PC errors and also enables you to ensure optimal PC performance.