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Q247005: HOWTO: Move Visual C++ IDE Customizations to Another Computer

Article: Q247005
Product(s): Microsoft C Compiler
Version(s): 5.0,6.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbide kbRegistry kbVC500 kbVC600 kbDevStudio kbDSupport kbGrpDSTools
Last Modified: 11-JUN-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Enterprise Edition, versions 5.0, 6.0 
- Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Professional Edition, versions 5.0, 6.0 
- Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Learning Edition, version 6.0 
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IMPORTANT: This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry

SUMMARY
=======

The Visual C++ Integrated Development Environment (IDE) settings are stored in
the following registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DevStudio\x.0

Where x.0 denotes the version number of the VC++ installation.

When you customize the Visual C++ IDE and quit from Visual C++, this key is
updated. The next time Visual C++ is started this key will be queried and the
changes will be reflected in the IDE. The "More Information" section discusses
the specific keys that are used to store the Visual C++ IDE settings and the
steps involved in moving those registry values to another computer.

MORE INFORMATION
================

WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems
that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot
guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor
incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

To move Visual C++ customizations from one Visual C++ installation to another,
you will have to export and import all or some of the registry keys mentioned in
the "Visual C++ registry keys" section. This section doesn't cover all the
Visual C++ keys. If you want your new Visual C++ install to be identical your
current install then export and import the entire
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DevStudio\x.0 registry key. See the "Export
and Import registry keys" section on exporting and importing these keys.

The only difference between the key names in Visual C++ versions 5.0 and 6.0 is
the version number in the name. For Visual C++ 5.0, the keys you are looking for
are all sub keys of:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DevStudio\5.0

and for Visual C++ 6.0:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DevStudio\6.0

Not all of these keys will be present on every system, some of the keys are
created when you customize specific IDE settings. If you are upgrading from
Visual C++ 5.0 to Visual C++ 6.0, the Visual C++ setup program asks you if you'd
like to move your customizations to the new installation. The procedures
outlined in this article assumes that you have made no customizations to the new
installation of Visual C++. If customizations have been made to the new
installation, it is possible that the customizations will be lost when importing
from the customized computer.

Visual C++ registry keys
------------------------

- Format

  The Format key contains the settings for the custom colors and fonts used for
  the various windows that Visual C++ supports. You can get to this setting in
  Visual C++ by selecting the Tools menu, clicking Options, then selecting the
  Format tab.

  For Visual C++ 5.0 the key is:

  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DevStudio\5.0\Format

  For Visual C++ 6.0 the key is:

  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DevStudio\6.0\Format

- Layout

  The Layout key contains information on the custom menus, toolbars, and command
  buttons. It's the same as the preceding key except you replace Format with
  Layout.

  NOTE: The locations of these controls on the screen could be different,
  depending on the screen resolution.

- TextEditor

  The Text Editor key has information on the tab settings for different file
  types and some advanced settings. You can get to this setting in Visual C++
  by selecting the Tools menu, clicking Options, then selecting the Tabs tab.

- Tools

  The Tools key contains information on the Tools menu item, including all the
  default tools that come with Visual C++ and the tools you have added, along
  with their absolute paths. You may have to update these paths correctly on
  the new computer.

- General

  The General key mainly contains information on controlling the Window menu and
  ToolTips.

- Graphics Editor

  The Graphics Editor key contains information on screen color.

NOTE: Some keys store absolute path information. Make sure these paths are right
for your new installation or Visual C++ won't behave as expected.

Export and Import registry keys
-------------------------------

Use the following steps to export a registry key:

1. Start the registry editor Regedit.exe.

2. Navigate to the key that you want to export, for example select:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DevStudio\6.0\Format

3. Select Export Registry File from the Registry menu.

4. Specify a file name in the "Export Registry File" dialog box. The default
  extension for the file is REG.

Follow the steps below to import a registry key:

1. Copy the exported registry file to the target computer.

2. Start the registry editor Regedit.exe.

3. Select Import Registry File from the Registry menu.

4. Browse for the file copied in step 1 from the "Import Registry File" dialog
  box. On clicking Open, the Registry Editor message box displays whether the
  operation was successful or not.

You can avoid the above steps by double clicking on the REG file in Windows
Explorer. This works as long as the .reg extension is a registered shell
extension.

NOTE: Make sure that you have permissions to update the registry.


REFERENCES
==========

For more information on Customizing Visual C++ see the following topic in the
MSDN library:

  Home Page: Customizing Visual C++

For additional information about the Windows registry, click the article number
below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q136393 How to Modify the Windows Registry

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : kbide kbRegistry kbVC500 kbVC600 kbDevStudio kbDSupport kbGrpDSTools 
Technology        : kbVCsearch kbAudDeveloper kbVC500 kbVC600 kbVC32bitSearch kbVC500Search
Version           : :5.0,6.0
Issue type        : kbhowto

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