Top 7 Fixes When You Are Unable to Delete All Specified Values on the Registry Editor

The Windows registry is a database of configurations for the operating system and applications. Sometimes, you tweak the Registry by deleting certain entries. However, some users report getting ‘Unable to Delete All Specified Values’ when trying to remove a few entries from the Registry Editor.

This issue may occur when there are null values in your registry keys, the registry is corrupt, or you do not have the correct permission. We will walk you through practical solutions. However, before diving into them, you need to backup the registry to avoid losing important data.

1. Log in With an Administrator Account

To perform tasks on your registry, you need an administrative account. If you can’t delete specified values in the Registry Editor, double-check that you have the correct privileges. First, log into Windows with an administrator account, then follow these steps:

1. Click the Windows Search icon on the Taskbar and type “Regedit.”

2. Click “Run as Administrator.”

Step 3: Click Yes on the User Account Control prompt, then retry deleting the values.

2. Edit Key Permissions

When you don’t have the necessary permissions to change certain values, you can edit your account’s permissions to gain access. Follow these steps:

1. Press the Windows + R keyboard shortcut to open a Run dialog.

2. Type “regedit” and press Enter.

Step 3: Navigate to the key you want to delete, right-click on it, and click Permissions.

Step 4: In Permissions section, untick deny checkboxes, then click Apply and OK.

3. Delete the Registry Values Using the Command Prompt

The Command prompt allows communication with the Windows operating system using text-based commands. In addition to the various operations you can perform with this utility, you can also modify or delete specific registry values, as demonstrated below. Follow these steps:

1. Press Windows + R to open a Run dialog.

2. Enter “cmd” and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open the Command Prompt with Administrative privileges.

Step 3: Type the script below, replacing registry_location with the actual path to the key you need to delete, then hit Enter. This will force delete the registry key.

reg delete registry_location /f

Step 4: Follow the prompts on the Command Prompt to complete the process.

4. Delete the Values Using Microsoft’s Systernals RegDelNull

When registry keys contain null characters, they may be difficult to delete manually. However, Microsoft’s Systernals RegDelNull tool can still delete these values. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Download Systernals RegDelNull from Microsoft’s website.

2. Right-click the downloaded file, select Extract All, and click Extract.

Step 3: Double-click RegDelNull.

Step 4: Input the command below, replacing registry_location with the actual path to the values to be deleted and click Enter. regdelnull registry_location -s

5. Remove Null Characters from the Registry Key

Using the Systernals RegDelNull tool helps delete keys with null values. However, if you can’t delete registry keys, you may also add values manually to keys with null values. Once you change the null values, it should be easy to delete them.

Step 1: Press Windows + R to open a Run dialog.

Step 2: Type regedit and hit Enter.

Step 3: Navigate to the key you have difficulty deleting and double-click it.

Step 4: Change the value data to 1 and click OK, then try deleting the key again.

6. Boot in Safe Mode to Delete the Value

If Windows is using a specific value you want to delete, you can’t remove it. To ensure an application or operating system no longer uses it, boot your PC into Safe Mode. In Safe Mode, the computer only starts and uses Microsoft’s drivers, services, and programs. Then, try deleting the registry keys or values again.

7. Repair the Windows Installation

Another reason you cannot delete certain keys is due to corruption in your Windows installation. You will need to repair the installation before attempting the delete. You may repair your system installation by running command line utilities, as shown below.

Step 1: Press Windows + R keyboard shortcut to open a Run dialog.

Step 2: Type cmd and hit Ctrl + Shift + Enter keyboard shortcut to open a Command Prompt window with Administrative privileges.

Step 3: Type the script below and hit Enter:

dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth

Step 4: Type the command below to run the System File Checker scan and hit Enter:

sfc /scannow

Step 5: Restart your computer. This may fix the Registry Editor error and allow you to confirm the removal of an entry.

Gaining Full Control of the Registry

In most cases, you face an error while deleting keys because you do not have administrative rights. However, the solutions in this guide can help you avoid that and other issues.