Finding a Key in the Registry

The location of a Registry key may be different in the tree structure from what is described in this Resource Guide, depending on whether a computer is running Windows NT as a workstation or a server, and other factors.

You can search for a specific key name in the Registry tree. Key names appear in the left pane of the Registry Editor windows. The search begins from the currently selected key. Searching from a predefined key will search all its descendant keys.

Each search is local to the tree where the search begins. That is, if you are searching in the windows for HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, the search will not include keys found under HKEY_CURRENT_USER.

To search for a key in Registry Editor

  1. From the View menu, choose the Find Key command.
  2. In the Find What box of the Find Key dialog box, type the name of the key that you want to find.
    • If you want to restrict the scope of the search or define the search direction, select the Match Whole Word Only box, the Match Case option, or select Up or Down in the Direction box.
    • To see the next occurrence of the key name you specified, choose the Find Next button.
  3. Choose the Find button.

    Because key names are not unique, it's a good idea to search for additional occurrences of a specific key name, to be sure you find the key you want.

Tip Some key names include spaces (such as Session Manager), while others use underscores (such as Ntfs_rec) or a continuous string (such as EventLog). To ensure that you find the key you want, search for a portion of the name, and make sure that the Match Whole Word Only check box is cleared in the Find dialog box.

You can also use the Registry database provided in the Resource Guide disk to find specific keys or value entries related to specific topics.

To use the Windows NT Registry Entries database