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The Registry is a hierarchical database
that is an efficient management system for all of the information
needed by the Windows operating system. Older versions of Windows
stored system and user data in INI files, which were usually scattered
across multiple directories and could easily be edited by programs or
the end user. The Registry takes all of those files and stores them in
a considerably more secure location.
The Registry is made up of the System.dat and User.dat files. The system.dat file contains information about the hardware in the system. The user.dat file contains user specific information. Windows 98 can still use the System.ini and Win.ini files in order to run applications designed for Windows 3.x. Since the release of Windows 98, the registry consists of four files. These include the System.dat, User.dat, System.ini, and Win.ini. The function of the System.dat and User.dat files remains the same. The Registry is more thoroughly discussed in a later chapter. |