In semi-tech speak, a DLL is a program file that dynamically loaded and executed by programs. DLL (Dynamic Link Library) files can either be used by the specific application that loads it, or by several applications, in order to reduce the required storage space. All well so far? Good, but what if you fall into DLL HELL?

In computing jargon, DLL Hell is a phrase used to describe the DLL problems that result in Microsoft Windows operating systems. These problems are most often attributable to a situation when, say, three different applications are using the same DLL, and the user then installs a program that uses a newer version of that DLL. Immediately, the three programs that we have mentioned refuse to function and cause your system to crash when you try to run any of them. Ergo, you are in DLL Hell.

Actually, the proper name for this situation is ‘dependency hell’, but DLL Hell is a far more accurate description of the miseries that you face when your system crashes repeatedly and without warning! Derek O’Hare, a 41-year-old fast food restaurant owner in Long Island, suffered from the DLL Hell syndrome without knowing the first thing about DLLs. “I was a very basic level user and Internet junkie, and I thought it was cool to download software and games from apparently trustworthy sources,” he says. When DLL problems began to crop up, Derek was at sea. “It was a friend who alerted me to the importance of DLL files and told me all about the Windows Registry.”

And there lies the root of the problem. Basically, Windows Registry, which is part of every Microsoft Windows operating system, is a vast internal database in which all programs that you use, including Windows itself, store an enormous volume of data. Essentially, it represents your PC’s unique configuration. Therefore, it is also the repository of all DLL files, and the first step toward fixing your DLL problems is to clean up or repair Windows Registry.

For advanced users, the way to do that is to run regedit.exe, but amateur users must not even think about going there. What you should do instead is what Derek did: download a free Registry repair tool that scans your Registry for errors and automatically fixes them. “I was amazed by the user-friendliness of the Registry repair software,” says Derek. “Even for a novice like me, running it was a piece of cake.”

Note: we recommend RegCure (direct download link) as the premiere Registry & DLL Repair tool.

Essentially, registry repair software will repair Registry errors, seek out and destroy viruses and spyware that have found place in your machine, delete links to non-existent programs and thus solve your DLL problems, and make your PC smooth and efficient, much like it was when you first bought it. Remember, an efficient Registry lies at the heart of an efficient PC.

This article could well be called “The Case of the Missing DLL Files”, a mystery that needed the attentions of a modern day Sherlock Holmes. Happily, for most PC users, there is a simpler alternative when DLL files go missing regularly and inexplicably. In case you are not aware, DLL stands for Dynamic Link Library, which is Microsoft’s version of the shared library concept within the Windows OS. This library is the place where Windows as well as other applications store various functions and data required for their proper operation using DLL files.

DLL files can either be used only by the application that installs them, or shared by more than one application, depending on whether they are bundled with the Windows OS. Unfortunately, it is most often with shared DLL files that the problems begin. This is because when you uninstall or modify a particular program, a DLL file pertaining to that program may also be modified or deleted, and when other applications search for that DLL file, they obviously do not find it. That will cause these applications to function improperly or not function at all.

Then again, a badly installed program may corrupt a DLL file, creating a missing DLL file message. Or you may install a program that overwrites a DLL file with an older version or one that is incompatible with the other programs that were using the particular DLL file. Or you may have a bad hard disk drive that corrupts the data that you store on it, generating a missing DLL file message.

Happily, as we said, a solution is readily available. And you don’t even need to rush to your friendly neighborhood technician to find it. He may actually charge you enough money to make you wish you had never set eyes on him. The solution is to fix the problem on your own, using a Windows Registry repair program.

What, you may ask, is Windows Registry? Crudely put, the Registry, which is part of every Microsoft Windows operating system, is a vast internal database in which all programs that you use, including Windows itself, store an enormous volume of data. Essentially, it represents your PC’s unique configuration.

Naturally, your Windows Registry holds an immense amount of information about your computer’s operating system, and as you keep using your PC, the volume of information grows to humongous proportions, creating a bloated and possible corrupt Registry, which in turn slows down your PC and leads to frequent system crashes and freezes.

This is where your Windows DLL problems begin. As you install and uninstall programs, they often leave traces all over the Registry that later hamper the smooth operation of your PC because DLL files linked to certain applications may no longer exist. Therefore, you need to pinpoint these files and replace them, and clean up your Registry to remove the garbage left by improperly uninstalled programs. Once you do this, the case of the missing DLL files will solve itself!

When was the last time you took your car to the mechanic’s for servicing? Why did you take it for a servicing anyway? Forgive us for asking obvious questions, but just as the engine of a car is its soul, which can be wrecked without proper servicing, so is Windows Registry the soul of your PC, and unless you clean Windows Registry regularly, your PC will function much as a car does with a faulty engine.

For those of you who have not heard of Windows Registry, now is the time to start. Brian Ferguson, a 26-year-old software analyst who runs several blogs aimed at educating lay users about the intricacies of their PCs, says he is constantly surprised by the number of people who have no idea of Windows Registry cleaning basics. “It is like someone driving a car without knowing how to fill the gas tank,” he says.

These same people may have been told that cleaning Windows Registry is really no big deal because it only helps when you install or uninstall a new program. How wrong they are! Cleaning Windows Registry is a must for any user who has been using his/her PC for any length of time. This is because as you continuously use your PC, the Registry gets bloated and possibly corrupt.

The Registry is the internal database where all Microsoft Windows applications, including Windows itself, store all data relevant to their smooth operation. And once the Windows Registry is corrupt, you can appreciate that your system will not operate smoothly. Beginning today, therefore, download a trial version of a Registry cleaner tool from the Internet and run it on your machine. Of course, you must be sure that you obtain the tool from a reputable source, but you should get adequate guidance from online user forums and reviews. Note: we recommend RegCure (direct download link), a high quality registry cleaner and repair tool.

Since Windows Registry is the repository of every file that is needed for your Windows operating system to run smoothly, you should realize the importance of keeping it clean and error-free. If you encounter unexplained error messages and your computer crashes or freezes often, you obviously need to repair your registry. As Conrad Haas, a librarian by training and Internet addict by choice, says, “I learnt only a few months ago that there are plenty of corrupt files, paths, and Registry keys that need to be cleaned for Windows Registry to remain error-free. I wasn’t even aware that I needed to repair certain DLL files in my Registry until the problem was pointed out to me.”

For most users like Conrad, the story is the same. However, as we say, the time to start thinking of cleaning your Registry is now. And before you do anything else, make sure you backup your entire Registry, which is the most important part of the Registry cleaning process. That way, if you mess up with the cleaning, you can always restore your Registry to its previous state and try again!

Without preamble, we would like to state one fact: if you want an error-free PC, you need to regularly clean Windows Registry.

For those stumped by this declaration, we’d better explain what Windows Registry is. In very basic terms, Windows Registry is a database that exists within every Microsoft Windows operating system. You’ll find plenty of experts describing the Registry as the heart and soul of your computer, and that is no exaggeration. It is a unique database that records every change you make to the system, and every installation and uninstalling of a program.

So you can appreciate why Windows Registry is vital to your PC. It contains information relevant to hardware components, OS parameters, services, protocols, application data, and more. Therefore, anything that goes wrong with the Registry will have potentially consequences for your PC unless you keep Windows Registry clean.

With all that we have described above, that would seem a lot of cleaning up to do, but the good news is that there are free Windows Registry cleaning tools on the Internet that are both user-friendly and effective. Most of these tools will scan and remove unused shortcuts, links to non-existent files and missing programs that have not been properly installed or uninstalled. And that is usually enough for the ordinary user. For advanced users, there’s always regedit.exe, but that’s an absolute no-no for basic users. We would have explained why, but this is not the place.

For best results, you must undertake Windows Registry cleaning at least once every month, and more frequently if you regularly install and uninstall programs, because incorrect installing or uninstalling of an application is the prime contributor to a bloated and corrupt Windows Registry.

However, be careful to choose a Windows Registry cleaning tool that lets you take a backup of the entire Registry before you commence cleaning it, because if you damage the Windows Registry during cleaning, you could make your entire system inoperable, perhaps for good. In case you were wondering, yes, we intend to scare you! Thankfully, though, most Windows Registry cleaning tools include built-in backup facilities.

The best way to choose the right Windows Registry cleaning tool is to read the numerous user and expert reviews available online. Not only will these give you an idea of the Registry cleaning tool that you should download, but also tell you which sites you should download from, because no matter how reputable they appear, not all sites are trustworthy when it comes to downloads.

So go ahead, make your PC fast and efficient today by downloading a quality Windows Registry cleaning tool. Happy cleaning!