Giant Windows Registry Hacks List

By | 2012-06-23

Looking to change the behavior of your Windows 7 computer? Maybe you need to enable or disable some functionality, make it run faster, lock it down from prying eyes? This post contains a pile of great registry hacks. If you have been around for a bit, you’ve probably seen a lot of these. However, there might be a few that you haven’t seen. These are just a few that I keep handy for those special times when I have to script something, or GPO is not available.

I hope you find these modifications useful! As always, edit the registry at your risk and peril. I won’t be held responsible for typos or mistakes that you make, including fitness to purpose, express or implied. That said, explore. It’s what helps you on your journey to enlightenment.

Enable Verbose Logging
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System] "VerboseStatus"=dword:00000001

Enable System Icons
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoDriveTypeAutoRun"=dword:00000091
"HideSCAVolume"=dword:00000000
"HideSCAPower"=dword:00000000
"HideSCANetwork"=dword:00000000
"HideSCAHealth"=dword:00000000

Enable Logon Screensaver
[HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop]
"ScreenSaveActive"="1"
"ScreensaveTimeOut"="60"
"SCRNSAVE.EXE"="C:\\Windows\\Sytem32\\Bubbles.scr"

Enable NTLM Responses
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa]
"LmCompatibilityLevel"=dword:00000000

Enable Auto Reboot
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\CrashControl]
"AutoReboot"=dword:00000001

Enable AHCI
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\msahci]
"Start"=dword:00000003

Enable Aero
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM]
"UseMachineCheck"=dword:00000000
"Blur"=dword:00000000
"Animations"=dword:00000000

Don’t Display Last Username
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System]
"dontdisplaylastusername"=dword:00000001

DNS Cache TTL
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\Dnscache\Parameters]
"MaxCacheTtl"=dword:00000001
"MaxNegativeCacheTtl"=dword:00000000

Disable Windows Security Center
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\wscsvc]
"Start"=dword:00000004

Disable Auto Update for WMP
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\WindowsMediaPlayer]
"DisableAutoUpdate"=dword:00000001

Disable Windows Live Mail Splash Screen
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Mail]
"NoSplash"=dword:00000001

Disable Select Suspend
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\USB]
"DisableSelectiveSuspend"=dword:00000001

Disable MRT Reporting
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\MRT]
"DontReportInfectionInformation"=dword:00000001

Disable Low Disk Space Checks
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies]
"NoLowDiskSpaceChecks"=dword:00000000

Disable NTFS Last Access Time Stamp
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem]
"NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate"=dword:00000001

Disable IPv6
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\TCPIP6\Parameters]
"DisabledComponents"=dword:ffffffff

Disable Encryption
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem]
"NtfsDisableEncryption"=dword:00000001

Disable “Do You Want To Run This?” Prompting
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Download]
"CheckExeSignatures"="no"
"RunInvalidSignatures"=dword:00000001
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Attachments]
"SaveZoneInformation"=dword:00000001
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Associations]
"LowRiskFileTypes"=".zip;.rar;.nfo;.txt;.exe;.bat;.com;.cmd;.reg;.msi;.htm;.html;.gif;.bmp;.jpg;.avi;.mpg;.mpeg;.mov;.mp3;.m3u;.wav;"

Disable Compression
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem]
"NtfsDisableCompression"=dword:00000001

Disable close Programs
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\WDI\DiagnosticModules\{5EE64AFB-398D-4edb-AF71-3B830219ABF7}]
"IsReentrant"=-
"ImagePath"=-
"NeverUnload"=-

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\WDI\DiagnosticModules\{45DE1EA9-10BC-4f96-9B21-4B6B83DBF476}]
"ExecutionContext"=-
"ImagePath"=-
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\WDI\DiagnosticModules\{C0F51D84-11B9-4e74-B083-99F11BA2DB0A}]
"ExecutionContext"=-
"ImagePath"=-
"NeverUnload"=-
"NeverLowerPagePriority"=-

Disable Built-in QOS in Windows 7 Home Premium
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Psched]
"NonBestEfforLimit"=dword:00000000

Disable Balloon Tips
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
"ShowInfoTip"=dword:00000000
"FolderContentsInfoTip"=dword:00000000
"StartButtonBalloonTip"=dword:00000000
"EnableBalloonTips"=dword:00000000

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
"ShowInfoTip"=dword:00000000
"EnableBalloonTips"=dword:00000000
"StartButtonBalloonTip"=dword:00000000
"FolderContentsInfoTip"=dword:00000000

Disable Auto Reboot
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\CrashControl]
"AutoReboot"=dword:00000000

Disable Auto Restart after BSOD
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU] "NoAutoRebootWithLoggedOnUsers"=dword:00000001

Delete Upper Filters
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}]
"UpperFilters"=-

Delete Lower Filters
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}]
"LowerFilters"=-

Tweak Aero for Best Performance
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\VisualEffects]
"VisualFXSetting"=dword:00000002

Tweak Aero for Best Appearance
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\VisualEffects]
"VisualFXSetting"=dword:00000001

Fix Themes Service
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Themes]
"Start"=dword:00000002
"DisplayName"="@%SystemRoot%\\System32\\themeservice.dll,-8192"
"ErrorControl"=dword:00000001
"Group"="ProfSvc_Group"
"ImagePath"=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,\
74,00,25,00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,73,\
00,76,00,63,00,68,00,6f,00,73,00,74,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,2d,00,\
6b,00,20,00,6e,00,65,00,74,00,73,00,76,00,63,00,73,00,00,00
"Type"=dword:00000020
"Description"="@%SystemRoot%\\System32\\themeservice.dll,-8193"
"ObjectName"="LocalSystem"
"RequiredPrivileges"=hex(7):53,00,65,00,41,00,73,00,73,00,69,00,67,00,6e,00,50,\
00,72,00,69,00,6d,00,61,00,72,00,79,00,54,00,6f,00,6b,00,65,00,6e,00,50,00,\
72,00,69,00,76,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,67,00,65,00,00,00,53,00,65,00,44,00,65,\
00,62,00,75,00,67,00,50,00,72,00,69,00,76,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,67,00,65,00,\
00,00,53,00,65,00,49,00,6d,00,70,00,65,00,72,00,73,00,6f,00,6e,00,61,00,74,\
00,65,00,50,00,72,00,69,00,76,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,67,00,65,00,00,00,00,00
"FailureActions"=hex:80,51,01,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,03,00,00,00,14,00,00,\
00,01,00,00,00,60,ea,00,00,01,00,00,00,60,ea,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Themes\Parameters]
"ServiceDllUnloadOnStop"=dword:00000001
"ServiceMain"="ThemeServiceMain"
"ServiceDll"=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,\
00,74,00,25,00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,\
74,00,68,00,65,00,6d,00,65,00,73,00,65,00,72,00,76,00,69,00,63,00,65,00,2e,\
00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,00,00

Max Connections Tweak
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings]
"MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server"=dword:00000012
"MaxConnectionsPerServer"=dword:00000012

Change Number of files on the MRU
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies]
"MaxRecentDocs"=dword:00000019
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"MaxRecentDocs"=dword:00000000

PAE Switch for RAM usage
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\RRamdisk\Parameters]
"UsePAE"=dword:00000001

Remove Arrow on Shortcuts
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer\Shell Icons]
"29"="%SystemRoot%\\Blank.ico,0"

Replace Notepad with Notepad 2
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\notepad.exe]
"Debugger"="C:\\Notepad2\\Notepad2.exe\" /z"

Change Taskbar Preview Size
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Taskband]
"MinThumbSizePx"=dword:00000500

Show Drive Letters First
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer]
"ShowDriveLettersFirst"=dword:00000004

Show Drive Letters Last
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer]
"ShowDriveLettersFirst"=-

Add “Open command prompt here” to right-click menu
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell\cmd]
"Extended"=""

Remove “Open command prompt here” from right-click menu
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell\cmd]
"Extended"=-

Add “Take Ownership” to Right-Click Menu
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shell\runas]
@="Take Ownership"
"NoWorkingDirectory"=""
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shell\runas\command]
@="cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F"
"IsolatedCommand"="cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell\runas]
@="Take Ownership"
"NoWorkingDirectory"=""
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell\runas\command]
@="cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" /r /d y && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F /t"
"IsolatedCommand"="cmd.exe /c takeown /f \"%1\" /r /d y && icacls \"%1\" /grant administrators:F /t"

Remove “Shortcut to” from shortcuts
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer]
"link"=hex:00,00,00,00

Remove “Map Network Drive” Command
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoNetConnectDisconnect"=dword:00000001

Add “Open with Notepad” to right-click menu
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shell\Open with Notepad]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shell\Open with Notepad\command]
@="notepad.exe %1"

Change Caps Lock to Scroll Lock
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Keyboard Layout]
"Scancode Map"=hex:00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,02,00,00,00,00,00,3a,00,3A,00,46,00,00,00,00,00

Disable Caps Lock
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Keyboard Layout]
"Scancode Map"=hex:00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,02,00,00,00,00,00,3a,00,00,00,00,00

Disable Keyboard Remapping
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Keyboard Layout]
"Scancode Map"=-

Make Caps Lock act like the Shift key
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Keyboard Layout]
"Scancode Map"=hex:00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,02,00,00,00,2a,00,3a,00,00,00,00,00

Make Caps Lock act like the Control key
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Keyboard Layout]
"Scancode Map"=hex:00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,02,00,00,00,1d,00,3a,00,00,00,00,00

Make Aero Peek Instantaneous
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
"DesktopLivePreviewHoverTime"=dword:00000000

Restore Default Aero Peek Behavior
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
"DesktopLivePreviewHoverTime"=dword:000001f4

Disable Window Key
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoWinKeys"=dword:00000001

Disable “Send To”
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\Send To]
@=""

Restore “Send To”
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\Send To]
@="{7BA4C740-9E81-11CF-99D3-00AA004AE837}"

Disable Mobility
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\MobilityCenter]
"NoMobilityCenter"=dword:00000001

Disable “Open With”
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoInternetOpenWith"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoInternetOpenWith"=dword:00000001

Disable Aero Shake
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer]
"NoWindowMinimizingShortcuts"=dword:00000001

Copy text file to clipboard
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\txtfile\shell\copytoclip]
@="Copy to Clipboard"
"Extended"=""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\txtfile\shell\copytoclip\command]
@="cmd /c clip < \"%1\""

Remove Control Panel Icon
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}]

Remove Libraries Icon from Desktop
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\HideDesktopIcons\NewStartPanel]
"{031E4825-7B94-4dc3-B131-E946B44C8DD5}"=-

Access Encryption from Context Menu
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
"EncryptionContextMenu"=dword:00000001

Add Defrag to Drive Menu
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\runas]
@="Defragment"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell\runas\command]
@="defrag %1 -v"

Author: dwirch

Derek Wirch is a seasoned IT professional with an impressive career dating back to 1986. He brings a wealth of knowledge and hands-on experience that is invaluable to those embarking on their journey in the tech industry.

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