User registry corruption
I am sure that it is some value in the user's registry, also known as HKCU and/or hkey_current_user.
After only replacing — when the user is logged out — ntuser.dat
file in the profile, the https browser issue is gone.
Restoring the old ntuser.dat
file, and the https error is back. I have tried to pinpoint the specific hive/key, though was not successful in finding the specific corruption for the https issue.
Repair corrupted user registry
Recovering a user's registry that contains a corruption is not difficult, just a lot stop. Basically it is like exporting the registry, then emptying the registry, and importing back the exported registry.
Requirements
- the user with the corrupted registry should still be able to login
- a second account with administrator rights on the same machine
- do "Show hidden files, folders" in explorer
- do not "Hide protected operating system files" in explorer
- a pristine
NTUSER.DAT
file from a newly created user that has logged in at least once
Step-by-step
- login as secondary user (with administrator rights)
- run Registry Editor
regedit.exe
(as administrator)
- select
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
and highlight it (not expand)
- on
File
menu select Load Hive
(File\Load Hive)
- browse to %USERPROFILE%\CorruptUsername\NTUSER.dat
- name the newly loaded hive its
Key Name:
"corrupt" (without the apostrofs)
- select the new "corrupt" key (not expand)
- from the menu choose File\Export
- save to desktop as
corrupt.reg
- choose menu options File\Unload Hive
- select File\Load Hive
- browse to %USERPROFILE%\PristineUserName\NTUSER.DAT
- name the new
Key Name:
as "corrupt"
- expand "corrupt"
- delete everything under it (ignore that some entries cannot be deleted)
- after everything is done, click
corrupt.reg
that you save earlier on desktop
- select the "corrupt" key (to highlight it)
- select File\Unload Hive
- close the registry editor
- copy your %USERPROFILE%\PristineUserName\NTUSER.DAT to %USERPROFILE%\CorruptedUserName\NTUSER.DAT and replace it
- you may find many other NTUSER.DAT* files — like
ntuser.dat.LOG
, ntuser.dat.LOG1
, etcera — you can delete those
Adjust registry permissions (optional)
- login to your (formerly) "corrupted" user account
- open registry editor
- right-click at HKEY_CURRENT_USER,
Permissions
- remove
unknown
group or username
- then click
Add
button
- enter your username
- finally
Ok
and exit the registry editor
Inspired by http://write-code.blogspot.nl/2010/08/recover-corrupted-user-registry-hive.html