reg edit

hi i need to get norton and mc afee completely out of my pc i ran the removal tools but they are still in the registry ive heard of reg edit but have not downloaded or used it. i read you can crash your pc if you mess up the reg any help would be great.

 

I haven't used that one. I use RegSeeker because it has a "find in registery" feature. Like, I could put in Norton and it will find all references to Norton. Even then you have to make sure it is not something you don't want to remove.
You do have to be careful when changing the registery. Always, back up before making changes.
You could use CCleaner. It is safe and easy to use if you are not comfortable with changing your registery.

 

I use regcleaner:
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=460
can create backups of single entries removed, or single file of entire listing removed. Can manually remove entries after scan or have them automatically cleaned. Choice of three options to clean or to do all three. Do a little reading before use it and you'll be ok. Freeware from the Geeks, MajorGeeks that is.
Bug

 

I would also search for "Symantec", just in case.

I also use Advanced Windows Care from MG at
Advanced WindowsCare v2 Personal 2.51.798
http://majorgeeks.com/Advanced_WindowsCare_v2_Personal_d4991.html
Advanced WindowsCare v2 Personal is a comprehensive PC care utility that takes an one-click approach to help protect, repair and optimize your computer. It provides an all-in-one and super convenient solution for PC maintenance and protection. This fantastic program is available free of charge. Compared with its nearest competitor, Advanced WindowsCare 2 Personal provides the more essential and practical formula for Windows.

Bazza's note: First time you run this it will find 30,000+ "errors". Don't worry, this is just setting up its' own database. It is always a good idea to backup your Registry before using this program the first time, as it is quite powerful. I have used it now for ages and it is an Essential for any PC that I have to tweak.

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RegScanner is another good utility for finding registry entries.

 

my pc came with norton out of the box mc afee i added i can still see them in the registry will my pc crash if i remove them all? also by back up do you mean restore point im a liitle dumb at this i want avg freeware but i even still have spysweeper in registry although the is no file i want mc afee and norton gone without crashing my pc the removal tool for mcafee wont get it out of the registry.:cry

 

If you remove them your system shouldn't crash.

Go here to download ERUNT (freeware): http://www.majorgeeks.com/download1267.html

It's a great utility to backup your registry before you make any changes. Should you make a mistake, you can always restore the registry with ERUNT.

If you wish to make a change to say one key in the registry, in regedit go to "File">>"Export".

In the box that opens give the file a name and save it to a folder of your choice. I have a folder in My Documents named Regedit Exports, you can name the folder anything you want.

Click on "Save" and the reg key will be saved to that folder. Should you make a mistake editing that key, you can go to the folder you exported the key to, right click on the .reg file you saved and select "Merge". This will put the key back in the registry in it's original form.