When checking for issues with the registry, it finds 512 entries. When I click to proceed, it asks if I want to save a copy of the files being deleted, yet it only creates a 1KB (actually 42 bytes) file. That seems rather impossible to me. Surely it would create a larger file? I don't want to delete files that I can't access again, if needed.
I have personally long ago stopped using the "Issues" thingy, so I wouldn't know what CC currently does as a backup. In the past it has created a .REG file that contained all to-delete registry entries, so they could easily be restored if something goes wrong. Maybe another "Issues" user can comment on this?
What I recommend before using any registry cleaner is to take a full registry backup; ERUNT is one (free) tool that does this very effectively.
Indeed! And that's also a good practice before installing new software as well.
However; CCleaner does not have a destructive registry cleaner in it, in fact it's very safe to use.
I guess the question remains, however. How confident can I feel that it is creating a .reg file backup of the 512 issues to be deleted, if the file size is only 42 bytes? When I do a Run... "Regedit" and export the entire registry, I get an 88mb file. I realize I'm backing up the entire registry there, but still ponder how 512 issues, even if it is only text, results in only a 42 byte (1KB) file? What size file do you end up with when it backs up your issues?
The backup created by CCleaner does not back up the entire registry. It only creates a backup for the entries it is about to remove, therefore making it easy for those entries to be restored. That is why the file size is so small.
If you want to be sure it backed it up, just open the backup*.reg file in notepad (just don't save any changes when closing) and it should contain your entries.
If you want to be sure it backed it up, just open the backup*.reg file in notepad (just don't save any changes when closing) and it should contain your entries.
The problem with that is there's nothing in the .reg file until after you Fix the issues.
If you absolutely need to know you have a backup, use ERUNT or the like.
Ok I must have missed their intentions, so they wanted to be sure the backup actually backed up, before fixing the issues?
Yes, that is correct. I assumed it would backup the "issues" before actually fixing them. I switched to jv16PowerTools and they ask if you want to backup before fixing the problems - that seemed to make sense.