Many python developers think of registry keys as if they were python keys in a dictionary which is not the case. The windows registry is broken down into the following components:
This is the top level of the registry. They all begin with HKEY. - HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT (HKCR) - HKEY_CURRENT_USER(HKCU) - HKEY_LOCAL MACHINE (HKLM) - HKEY_USER (HKU) - HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG
Hives contain keys. These are basically the folders beneath the hives. They can contain any number of subkeys.
Values or Entries are the name/data pairs beneath the keys and subkeys. All keys have a default name/data pair. It is usually "(Default)"="(value not set)". The actual value for the name and the date is Null. The registry editor will display "(Default)" and "(value not set)".
The following example is taken from the windows startup portion of the registry:
`
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run]
"RTHDVCPL"="\"C:\\Program Files\\Realtek\\Audio\\HDA\\RtkNGUI64.exe\" -s"
"NvBackend"="\"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\NVIDIA Corporation\\Update Core\\NvBackend.exe\""
"BTMTrayAgent"="rundll32.exe \"C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Intel\\Bluetooth\\btmshellex.dll\",TrayApp"
`
In this example these are the values for each:
Hive: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Key and subkeys: SOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionRun
salt.states.reg.
absent
(name, vname=None, use_32bit_registry=False)¶Ensure a registry value is removed. To remove a key use key_absent.
Parameters: | name (str) -- A string value representing the full path of the key to |
---|
include the HIVE, Key, and all Subkeys. For example:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Salt
Valid hive values include:
Parameters: | vname (str) -- The name of the value you'd like to create beneath the |
---|
Key. If this parameter is not passed it will assume you want to set the (Default) value
Parameters: | use_32bit_registry (bool) -- Use the 32bit portion of the registry. |
---|
Applies only to 64bit windows. 32bit Windows will ignore this parameter. Default if False.
Returns: | Returns a dictionary showing the results of the registry operation. |
---|---|
Return type: | dict |
CLI Example:
'HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Salt\version':
reg.absent
In the above example the path is interpreted as follows:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER
is the hiveSOFTWARE\Salt
is the keyversion
is the value nameSo the value version
will be deleted from the SOFTWARE\Salt
key in
the HKEY_CURRENT_USER
hive.
salt.states.reg.
key_absent
(name, force=False, use_32bit_registry=False)¶New in version 2015.5.4.
Ensure a registry key is removed. This will remove a key and all value entries it contains. It will fail if the key contains subkeys.
Parameters: | name (str) -- A string representing the full path to the key to be |
---|
removed to include the hive and the keypath. The hive can be any of the following:
Parameters: | force (bool) -- A boolean value indicating that all subkeys should be |
---|
deleted with the key. If force=False and subkeys exists beneath the key you want to delete, key_absent will fail. Use with caution. The default is False.
Returns: | Returns a dictionary showing the results of the registry operation. |
---|---|
Return type: | dict |
The following example will delete the SOFTWARE\Salt
key and all subkeys
under the HKEY_CURRENT_USER
hive.
Example:
'HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Salt':
reg.key_absent:
- force: True
In the above example the path is interpreted as follows:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER
is the hiveSOFTWARE\Salt
is the keysalt.states.reg.
present
(name, value=None, vname=None, vdata=None, vtype='REG_SZ', reflection=True, use_32bit_registry=False)¶Ensure a registry key or value is present.
Parameters: | name (str) -- A string value representing the full path of the key to |
---|
include the HIVE, Key, and all Subkeys. For example:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Salt
Valid hive values include: - HKEY_CURRENT_USER or HKCU - HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE or HKLM - HKEY_USERS or HKU
Parameters: | value (str) -- Deprecated. Use vname and vdata instead. Included here for |
---|
backwards compatibility.
Parameters: | vname (str) -- The name of the value you'd like to create beneath the |
---|
Key. If this parameter is not passed it will assume you want to set the (Default) value
Parameters: | vdata (str) -- The value you'd like to set for the Key. If a value name |
---|
(vname) is passed, this will be the data for that value name. If not, this will be the (Default) value for the key.
The type for the (Default) value is always REG_SZ and cannot be changed. This parameter is optional. If not passed, the Key will be created with no associated item/value pairs.
Parameters: | vtype (str) -- The value type for the data you wish to store in the |
---|
registry. Valid values are:
Parameters: | reflection (bool) -- On 64 bit machines a duplicate value will be created |
---|
in the Wow6432Node
for 32bit programs. This only applies to the SOFTWARE
key. This option is ignored on 32bit operating systems. This value defaults
to True. Set it to False to disable reflection.
Deprecated since version 2015.8.2: Use use_32bit_registry instead. The parameter seems to have no effect since Windows 7 / Windows 2008R2 removed support for reflection. The parameter will be removed in Boron.
Parameters: | use_32bit_registry (bool) -- Use the 32bit portion of the registry. |
---|
Applies only to 64bit windows. 32bit Windows will ignore this parameter. Default if False.
Returns: | Returns a dictionary showing the results of the registry operation. |
---|---|
Return type: | dict |
The following example will set the (Default)
value for the
SOFTWARE\Salt
key in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER
hive to 0.15.3
. The
value will not be reflected in Wow6432Node
:
Example:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Salt:
reg.present:
- vdata: 0.15.3
- reflection: False
The following example will set the value for the version
entry under the
SOFTWARE\Salt
key in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER
hive to 0.15.3
. The
value will be reflected in Wow6432Node
:
Example:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Salt:
reg.present:
- vname: version
- vdata: 0.15.3
In the above example the path is interpreted as follows:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER
is the hive
- SOFTWARE\Salt
is the key
- vname
is the value name ('version') that will be created under the key
- vdata
is the data that will be assigned to 'version'