How to Change Registration Information on XP Home

Change registration information to reflect current ownership of a Windows PC.

The registration information on Windows XP includes your name and, if applicable, your organization or company name. This allows the copy of Windows and its product key to be associated with one user. After installation this information can not be changed through the XP Control Panel but it can be changed by accessing the System Registry. This is useful if you entered incorrect information or you received a computer from a previous owner.

Instructions

1. Click on the "Start" menu followed by "Run." Type in "regedit" into the "Run" text box and press "Enter."

2. Scroll down the list of entries until you see the following: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion." Click on the small "+" symbol next to this entry to view items within the entry. You can also double-click on this entry.

3. Look for "Registered Organization" in the right side of the "regedit" window. Double-click on it and type in your organization, company name or any text you want and click "OK."

4. Look for "Registered Name" in the right side panel and double-click on it. Enter your name or the user name in the text box. Click "OK" when finished. Click the small "X" in the top corner of the regedit window.

Tips & Warnings

• Be careful not to click on registry entries as you may accidentally delete them or make a change to them. Changes to the registry, if you do not know what you are doing, can cause system damage or file loss.

References

• Windows Fanatics: Change Your Windows XP Registration Information
• Microsoft Support: Windows Registry Information for Advanced Users