Windows Script Host  

RegRead Method

Returns the value of a key or value-name from the registry.

object.RegRead(strName) 

Arguments

object
WshShell object.
strName
String value indicating the key or value-name whose value you want.

Remarks

The RegRead method returns values of the following five types.

Type Description In the Form of
REG_SZ A string A string
REG_DWORD A number An integer
REG_BINARY A binary value A VBArray of integers
REG_EXPAND_SZ An expandable string
(e.g., "%windir%\\calc.exe")
A string
REG_MULTI_SZ An array of strings A VBArray of strings

You can specify a key-name by ending strName with a final backslash. Do not include a final backslash to specify a value-name. A value entry has three parts: its name, its data type, and its value. When you specify a key-name (as opposed to a value-name), RegRead returns the default value. To read a key's default value, specify the name of the key itself. Fully qualified key-names and value-names begin with a root key. You may use abbreviated versions of root key names with the RegRead method. The five possible root keys are listed in the following table.

Root key Name Abbreviation
HKEY_CURRENT_USER HKCU
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE HKLM
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT HKCR
HKEY_USERS HKEY_USERS
HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG

Example

The following code creates a key and two values, reads them, and deletes them.

[VBScript]
Dim WshShell, bKey
Set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")

WshShell.RegWrite "HKCU\Software\ACME\FortuneTeller\", 1, "REG_BINARY"
WshShell.RegWrite "HKCU\Software\ACME\FortuneTeller\MindReader", "Goocher!", "REG_SZ"

bKey = WshShell.RegRead("HKCU\Software\ACME\FortuneTeller\")
WScript.Echo WshShell.RegRead("HKCU\Software\ACME\FortuneTeller\MindReader")

WshShell.RegDelete "HKCU\Software\ACME\FortuneTeller\MindReader"
WshShell.RegDelete "HKCU\Software\ACME\FortuneTeller\"
WshShell.RegDelete "HKCU\Software\ACME\"
[JScript]
var WshShell = WScript.CreateObject ("WScript.Shell");

WshShell.RegWrite ("HKCU\\Software\\ACME\\FortuneTeller\\", 1, "REG_BINARY");
WshShell.RegWrite ("HKCU\\Software\\ACME\\FortuneTeller\\MindReader", "Goocher!", "REG_SZ");

var bKey =    WshShell.RegRead ("HKCU\\Software\\ACME\\FortuneTeller\\");
WScript.Echo (WshShell.RegRead ("HKCU\\Software\\ACME\\FortuneTeller\\MindReader"));

WshShell.RegDelete ("HKCU\\Software\\ACME\\FortuneTeller\\MindReader");
WshShell.RegDelete ("HKCU\\Software\\ACME\\FortuneTeller\\");
WshShell.RegDelete ("HKCU\\Software\\ACME\\");

See Also

WshShell Object | RegDelete Method | RegWrite Method