Cannot Edit the Registry

Sometimes when a virus infects a computer it will over write the settings to allow for a user to edit the registry.

When you go to Start > Run > Regedit you will recieve and error stating:

"Registry editing has been disabled by your administrator"

This is very frustrating especially when you are doing tasks under the administrator account.

Before you begin the work around for this I recommend unplugging the computer from the network so that it does not have an internet connection. I had this policy overwritten after it was changed because the virus was reactivated via internet communication. It gets very frustrating.

Method 1:

For Windows XP machines go to Start > Run > gpedit.msc

This will bring up the Group Policy Editing MMC snap in console. Here you will have to drill down to:

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System

Look on the left side panel and scroll down until you see:

Prevent access to registry editing tools

Double click it and set it as Not Configured. OK your way out of the set up and Log Off or Restart the computer.

Method 2:

A much easier way to do this, is to run a Visual Basic Script that Doug Knox a MVP for Microsoft created. This script will give you the ability to enable or disable the Registry Editor function on a Windows machine. If you are using Vista you may want to right click the file and run it as Administrator.

Download the .vbs script from here.... It's the regtools.vbs script in the upper right hand corner. Double click it to start the auto run sequence. Click the OK's then reboot your computer. Logging off will not help you very much at this point so make sure you reboot.

I had to do all of this when a virus overwrote the ability to see hidden files and folders.

It was a mess, but that is for another day.

JS