How to Connect to a Remote Registry
Remotely connecting to another computer’s Windows Registry isn’t something you’ll do regularly, if ever, but Registry Editor does let you do it, assuming a number of things are in order. Regardless of the reason, accessing a registry over your local network at home or at work is really simple. Time Required: It should only take a minute or two, assuming the remote computer is working, connected to your network, and is running the necessary service (more on that below).
Why Am I Seeing an “Access Denied” Message?
As you’re working in whatever remote registry you’re connected to, you may notice two things: significantly fewer registry hives than on your computer, and a number of “Access is denied” messages when navigating around. After several seconds or more, depending on the speed and size of your network and computer, you’ll see the remote computer’s full path, shown as LOCATION\NAME. In what will probably only take seconds, Registry Editor will connect to the remote computer’s registry. You’ll see Computer (your computer), as well as the other computer you’re viewing the registry for, under [hostname]. While your computer probably has at least five individual registry hives, you’ll notice immediately that the registry you’re connected to remotely only shows HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and HKEY_USERS. The three remaining keys, HKEY_CLASSESS_ROOT, HKEY_CURRENT_USER, and HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG, while not appearing like you may be used to, are all included in various subkeys within the two hives you do see. The “Access is denied” messages that you’re probably getting on HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and various keys under the HKEY_USERS hive are likely due to the fact that you don’t have administrator privileges on the remote computer. Give your account administrator access on the remote computer and then try again.
How to Enable the Remote Registry Service in Windows
The RemoteRegistry Windows Service must be enabled on the remote computer you wish to view or edit the registry on. Most Windows installations disable this service by default, so don’t be surprised if you run into this problem. Here’s how to enable it: Now that the RemoteRegistry service is started on the remote computer you want to edit the registry on, head back to your computer and try connecting again. You can also open Services via the Run dialog box with the services.msc command.
Why Would You Edit the Windows Registry Remotely?
Remote registry editing is a much more common task for tech support and IT groups than the average computer user, but there are times when remotely editing a key or value can come in handy. Maybe it’s something simple like faking a BSOD on April Fool’s Day without ever visiting the other computer, or maybe a task with a bit more value like checking the BIOS version on a PC two floors down.
