Registry compaction (as in, simply re-creating the hive files) shouldn't cause problems, but registry "repair" or "cleanup"? I've stayed clear from that kind of stuff for quite some time.-f0dder
Me too, as all to often they end up breaking something that is impossible to spot until it's to late.
Btw, I wonder if registry compaction might actually be counter-productive? If you keep the extra "fluff" around (but keep the hive files defragmented), the "fluff" can be re-used without causing the hive file to grow (and thus possibly causing file fragmentation). On the other hand, re-using the "fluff" can cause internal fragmentation. Ho humm.
Anything within reason (/moderation).
Compacting it after a few month of extensive software testing = Good Idea
Compacting it every weekend, Just to be thorough... is foolish
I think the main scale tipper is the one two punch of both internal fragmentation/head space/slack/"fluff" coupled with external file level fragmentation. Granted a truely robust database should be able to handle a some abuse...but... Once that combination goes past a certain point lunching the db is only a matter of time.
This is (part of) why large high speed/traffic/demand databases like Exchange must be segregated to their own partition, to prevent catastrophic interaction with other files that need to be allocated around as the elbbubmug grows.
Sure the registry is a much tinyer ... but the same (albeit scaled-down) rules still apply.