The new interface doesn’t add much, but this is a consistently strong performer. At the core of Registry Mechanic is a registry scan and repair engine which has worked well since Registry Mechanic 5.

As in previous versions, the registry scan is extremely fast and thorough. Unlike some free registry cleaners, it doesn’t detect an array of unimportant registry fluff and flag it as highly dangerous; instead its danger ratings are modest and suitable. A scan on a well-used machine produced more than 200 errors, but rated only six of high importance.

Registry Mechanic repaired errors without alarms or problems, and creates a system restore point anything is fixed, so we had no trepidation letting it sort everything out. The result was a slightly faster system, both for booting and for application loading.

On a new system, with a fresh Windows XP install, Registry Mechanic found 64 problems, which gives credence to the idea registry cleaners are voodoo products. On an older system, we were warned about low system health even after rebooting and cleaning several times. Seven persistent low-threat errors were enough to keep system health low.

The registry compacting tool reduces the size of your registry, which in itself is enough to improve boot and application startup times somewhat. The Optimise My System tool should help keep it that way, but for us clicking the
button did very little.

A new addition is the Registry Monitor, which tracks the most recent 300 registry modifications. It sits in the system tray when you minimise the program: when you select Monitor my Registry you automatically minimise the program, so avoid it until you’re ready. Sadly, it doesn’t track registry changes between sessions, and only monitors once you activate it, but, switched on at the start of an internet session, it’s the sort of thing that could spot something untoward happening, such as a dropper or other malicious attack creating havoc in your registry.

Once you stray from the home screen of the interface, however, you could be forgiven for thinking Registry Mechanic is trying a little too hard. Of the six screens of links, only three are of interest – optimise my system, registry monitor and the registry scan are the core of the program. The remainders act as a front end to existing Windows services and functions, This may be useful for some people – especially the convenient gathering of policy settings – others may find it confusing or unnecessary. Less helpful still is the shortcut to the System Defragmenter within Registry Mechanic: it hides the standard Windows defrag display, removing progress reports to leave merely the cheery line that the defrag “may take minutes or hours”.

The one-stop Windows tune-up concept could have been a winning formula if navigating around Registry Mechanic wasn’t so clunky, using forward and back buttons as a primary device. The only place you can really go once you’re several clicks into the help section is back to the homepage via a single link at the bottom of the screen. We’d recommend avoiding all but the home page and the settings, where you can view logs generated by the registry monitor and other components.

As a refresh of a longstanding utility, Registry Mechanic 8 is solid, but if you’re not upgrading from version 7, it’s better value to go for Desktop Maestro, which contains registry cleaning and other tools for just $10 more.