Registry Key won't delete

Question

Hello,

I have been trying to delete a registry key associated with a FranklinCovey product.  I know I have to delete the keys from the inside out and get permission to do so.  However, when I click on permissions on the the very inside key I get this message: *"The requested security information is either unavailable or can't be displayed."*Some other work has indicated that the file is no longer in the registry.  How can I delete a file that isn't there.  I have run the recursive regdelnull program suggested by knowlege base.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  And yes I'm running as an administrator.  An additional message has come up: "filename" cannot be opened.  An erro is preventing this key from being opened.  Details: the system cannot find the file specified."

Answer 1

[I shall request a Moderator to move this thread to the Vista-specific forum.]

Is Vista SP1 or SP2 installed?

Assuming the NIS free trial did not expire before you upgraded to NIS 2010 and that your subscription is still current...

Norton (and McAfee) applications are notorious for not upgrading (or uninstalling) cleanly.

1. Download the Norton Removal Tool, saving it to your desktop: ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english\_us\_canada/removal\_tools/Norton\_Removal\_Tool.exe
2. Close any open applications (i.e., anything with an icon on the taskbar).
3. After making certain you have a copy of your Product Key handy, uninstall NIS 2010, LiveUpdate and any Norton Add-ons) via Control Panel | Programs | Uninstall a program (or Control Panel | Programs and Features, if using Classic view).
4. IMPORTANT! => Enable the Windows Firewall immediately after rebooting.

NB: You're "working without a net" now: Don't to ANYTHING else online (e.g., browsing; reading email; chatting) until you've completed Step #7 below!

5. Right-click on the file you saved in Step #1 above and select Run as Administrator.  Don't TOUCH your keyboard until the run completes, then reboot.

6. Do a clean install of NIS 2010 using your Product ID & reboot: http://www.symantec.com/norton/support/kb/web\_view.jsp?wv\_type=public\_web&docurl=20080514162318EN 

NB: Do not enable or install any Norton Add-ons (e.g., Norton Anti-Phishing) just yet.

7. Manually and repeatedly run (Norton) LiveUpdate until you get a "no more updates" prompt.

8a. Reset Internet Explorer per http://support.microsoft.com/kb/923737

8b. Also reset Windows Update per: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/971058

   [Access the page using IE (32-bit) only; Run the Fix It in Default and Aggressive modes]

9. Reboot once more & test.

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~Robear Dyer (PA Bear) ~ MS MVP (IE, Mail, Security, Windows & Update Services) since 2002 ~ Disclaimer: MS MVPs neither represent nor work for Microsoft

Answer 2

You were right.  CCleaner failed to do the trick.  At this point I am at a loss about what to do.  I've renamed the initial key so hopefull my program will install correctly and write a new, uncorrupted registry entry.  My concern is that if it corrupts again, I would have 2 keys that are essentially dead.

Thank you very much for you thoughts and helps.  I really appreciate it.

Answer 3

Take a look at CCleaner as a tool to remove the specific key.

After installing click on the 'Registry' icon of the left.

The 'Analyze' button allows you preview (without actually deleting) the list of reg keys that can be deleted. Now "Remove" the check marks from all the boxes except for the key you want to delete. Then click 'Run Cleaner'.

Warning: Do not use this utility to delete/clean all the listed registry keys as it may cause other issues. Just remove the target key you need to get rid of.

Note: Since you can not display the permissions on this key I suspect it requires 'System' permission in which case CCleaner may also fail to do the trick.

http://www.ccleaner.com/

JS

http://www.pagestart.com

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Never be afraid to ask. This forum has some of the best people in the world available to help.

Answer 4

Thanks for the help, however I still get the same error messages as before.  Neither safe boot nor clean boot allowed me to delete the key.  Any other ideas?

Answer 5

Try either a "Clean Boot" mode or "Safe Mode".

How to troubleshoot a problem by performing a clean boot in Windows Vista or in Windows 7

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135

Start your computer in safe mode

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/Start-your-computer-in-safe-mode

JS

http://www.pagestart.com

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Never be afraid to ask. This forum has some of the best people in the world available to help.