| The registry replaced much of the function of .ini files in earlier versions of Windows, allowing |
| configuration information to be stored in one central hierarchical database that is relatively easy to |
| search and navigate. The database is divided into five hives, or keys. Keys are represented as |
| folders, and each has a number of subkeys, which appear as folders under the hive key. A subkey |
| can have multiple entries. An entry represents a configuration item, and each entry is assigned a |
| value. For example, in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE key in the |
| SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsCurrentVersion\Run subkey, you’ll find an entry for each program |
| scheduled by the registry to run at startup. The value assigned to each entry consists of the path to |
| that program’s executable file. |
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