I accidentally opened a .reg file with regedit and I'm pretty sure it overwritten my entire registry with an old version from over a year ago. After that, my apps started giving side-by-side errors, and upon restarting, my computer got stuck on the boot screen. Now, I can only access the BIOS and recovery options. I tried to output the .reg file's contents in CMD, but it went on for ages—I'm worried it was a full clone of my registry from a backup made on 5/7/24. I decided to reset my computer while keeping my user files, but it's been hours and the screen is stuck on the Windows icon with a loading circle. I'm anxious about potentially bricking my computer, and I'm not sure if the reset was the right move. Any advice? By the way, I'm using Windows 11.
1 Answer
You might want to consider a full backup of your files, then wipe the drive and do a fresh Windows installation. Unfortunately, it sounds like recovering from this might be tough. Make sure you have all essential files saved before proceeding with a wipe.
I have an external drive. Can I wipe the drive using CMD? Do I need two drives, one for the data and another for the Windows ISO, or can I manage with just one?