How-To

How to Backup and Restore Specific Windows Registry Keys

By Brian Burgess

Published June 4, 2023

Before modifying the Windows Registry, it’s important to back it up first, just in case. You can do so using the steps in this guide.

The Registry is the lifeblood of your Windows operating system, storing thousands of important settings keys that Windows and installed applications need to be able to run. Before making changes to a specific key, you can back up and restore specific Windows registry keys.

If you want to modify the Registry on Windows, it’s essential to back up the entire Registry first so you can restore it if something goes wrong. We’ll show you how to backup specific Registry keys instead of the entire database below.

Why Should You Back Up the Windows Registry?

There are several configurations you can make to Windows via the Registry. It’s also where users of Home editions of Windows can make edits to achieve features Pro users can easily handle via Group Policy.

However, before tinkering around in the Windows Registry, knowing what you’re doing and doing it right is important. For example, the Registry is a database that contains all app, hardware, and system configuration settings.

It stores information about hardware devices, user preferences, apps, system settings, etc. All the data stored in the Registry is necessary, and deleting an incorrect value or modifying a key can damage your PC.

Because of its importance, creating a backup of your current Registry is necessary before modifying it. In addition to backing the entire system database up, you can back up and restore specific keys, too.

How to Backup Specific Registry Keys on Windows

Once you have a complete backup of the Registry, you can back up a specific key or keys before modifying them. After that, if something isn’t working after a modification, you can restore the specific key(s).

Note: This process works the same on Windows 10 and 11.

To backup a specific Windows Registry key:

1. Press Windows key + R to launch the Run dialog window.
2. Type regedit and click OK or press Enter.
3. When Registry Editor launches, browse to the path of the key you want to backup.
4. Click File from the top toolbar and select Export from the menu.
5. In the Export Registry File window, select your backup location.
6. Type in an easy-to-remember name for the file and ensure the file type is set to “.reg” for the Registration Files type.
7. Under the Export range section, click the Selected branch option to confirm it’s the specific key you want.
8. Click the Save button.

The .reg file will be saved to your backup location, and you can use it to revert changes or replicate the setting on a different computer. It’s also important to note that you can export keys such as folder, DWORD values, and Strings. When you select a folder, everything in it will be backed up.

How to Restore Specific Windows Registry Keys

If you need to restore the backed-up Registry key, you can do so from the backup file you created.

To restore a specific key:

1. Press Windows key + R.
2. Type regedit and click OK.
3. When Registry Editor launches, click File > Import.
4. Navigate to the location of the Registry key backup.
5. Highlight the .reg file you need and click the Open button.
6. When the successful import notification message appears, click OK.

The contents of the .reg backup file will be merged into the Registry database. Typically, the changes take place immediately; however, in some instances, you may need to restart your PC.

Backing Up Your Windows System

It’s always essential to back up the Registry before modifying it. And if you only want to backup and restore specific keys, you can do that too. Of course, restoring a specific key will only affect the key you exported and won’t remove any other modifications you made to the Registry.

In addition to manually backing up the Windows Registry, you’ll want to ensure to create a complete system backup. That will allow you to reset and recover your PC from a system image. Also note that when it comes to recovering your PC, you want to create a Restore Point regularly.

Also, if you are a power user, you might be interested in how to back up PowerToys. And if your PC is experiencing problems with missing or corrupt registry items, you can fix broken registry items on Windows 10.