Registry Editing with Caution

This is a disclaimer post for anybody attempting to edit the registry and how you can be safe doing so. If you are inexperienced at changing the registry or changing massive things, it is recommended that you back up the registry. Backing up the registry is synonymous with creating a restore point in Windows. This is the info about creating and using restore points from Microsoft.

Backing up the Registry

1. Click Start, type systempropertiesprotection in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.
   If you are prompted for an administrator password or for a confirmation, type the password, or click Allow.
2. Wait for Windows to search for available disks and most recent restore points. In the System Properties dialog box, on the System Protection tab, click Create,
3. Type a name for the restore point and then click Create.
4. After the restore point has been created successfully, click OK two times.

Restoring the Registry

1. Click Start, type systempropertiesprotection in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER. If you are prompted for an administrator password or for a confirmation, type the password, or click Allow.
2. In the System Properties dialog box, on the System Protection tab, click System Restore,
3. In the System Restore dialog box select Choose a different restore point, and then click Next
4. Select the restore point that you want to use, and then click Next.
5. Confirm your restore point, and then click Finish System restore restores the selected Windows Vista configuration and then restarts the computer.
6. Log on to the computer. When the System Restore confirmation page appears, click OK.

Credit: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/322756