Corrupt registry repair

Hi my daughter's computer 'cannot load the hive (file)
\systemroot\system32\config\SOFTWARE...' and has been unable to repair itself.

I have tried system restore and I cannot remember the exact message but
basically there appear to be no restore points to go back to.

Can I do anything e.g. edit or repair or restore the registry using the
command prompt? And if so how?

Is there any solution?

Hello Mike,
There are backup copies of the registry in the
\windows\system32\config\regback folder
You can try replacing the ones in the config folder with the ones from the
regback folder.
Rename the ones in the \windows\system32\config folder first
Change directory so you are in the \windows\system32 folder
ren system system.bak
ren software software.bak
ren sam sam.bak
ren security security.bak

Then
copy c:\windows\system32\config\regback\system
copy c:\windows\system32\config\regback\software
copy c:\windows\system32\config\regback\sam
copy c:\windows\system32\config\regback\security

All four registry hives should be replaced at the same time even though you
are only having issues with one of the hives, they are a unit, they are not
intended to be replaced individually, there may be issues later if one of
the hives is rolled back and not the others.

I'm not quite as computer savvy as I may sound: if I get the command prompt
up do I firstly type

Also I am having difficulty getting the command prompt at the moment as the
last option in the recovery module (I think it was the recovery module, from
memory: it seems to come up when the self repair fails) is not to load the
command prompt, although that option has appeared once or twice before. So
I'm not sure if I can get back to the command prompt or not at the moment.

I have now managed to follow your instructions, with a little help from my
son....but the same error 'cannot load the hive' etc has recurred.

What is the size of the software file in c:\windows\system32\config folder?
If the registry file is corrupted and the backup registry files are
corrupted, the options are limited.
You may need to backup your data and reinstall Windows or you have a backup
of the OS, restore that backup.

I just built a computer this night, and when i booted it up, it ran
smooth for about 10 minutes. i just remember getting comfortable then
looking up and the screen was black. i left it alone for a minute but
eventually reset it. now it ALWAYS takes me to the "Windows failed to
boot..." blah blah you know start windows normal, safe mode, etc. i have
tried all those, but it always loads for a minute and then says
something about not loading the "hive" file and dumping physical memory.
but the screen flashes so fast i cant read it. then it reboots and does
the whole thing over and over. now keep in mind, i built this so i used
Windows Vista Basic for Builders. i tried to start my computer with the
system disk in it, but it did nothing. im getting rather frustrated...

So you havn't done much customization on that machine, right? I suggest you
to boot with the installation CD and perform a system repair. If that does
not work, you can reinstall it. It will be done in about thirty minutes
anyways and save you a lot of headache. If the problem happens again, you
may need to check the BIOS firmware and ensure it is the updated one (you
can try to use the manufacture applications to flash your BIOS firmware) and
run some hardware test (memory and hard disk, etc) to see whether they are
in good condition and compatible with Vista. It is always good to have a
backup of registry so you can restore it with any sort of startup.

How to automatically repair Windows Vista using Startup Repair

For hardware testing, you can download memtest to check your memory and use
some manufacture testing tool to check your hard disk. There are some
software specifically designed for testing all your hardware.

The first thing I would do is unplug and totally reseat all cards and
memory. UnPlug and reseat all cables, do NOT just snug them up.

Then try startup repair.

You can use windows registry repair software to repair the registry. The program is powerful but simple to use. It does not require any technical knowledge so any one can easily use it.

My pc's browser is quite slow, which always drive me crazy, I want a program to solve the problem, several days ago my friend recommend me a software tuneup360, now I'm waiting for the result. do you guys have any recommendation?

Actually most times there is no need to rebuild or reinstalled your PC windows system, what you need is Tuneup360. You just need to click one big “fix now” button and get your computer fixed at once.