[When it comes to the Windows registry, you should be cautious. Changing individual entries can do a lot of useful things, but changing the wrong value can quickly get you into trouble.

That hasn't changed, but Windows 10 seems to be more resistant to mass editing of the registry than one might imagine; the YouTube channel Come on Windows goes to the extreme of changing all entries to zero values (via Tom's Hardware). Doing so renders most functions unusable (e.g., .exe files can no longer be executed), but Windows 10 apparently still runs, allows logging in and logging out, and even allows a bit of tinkering with Paint and Wordpad.

Using the Registry Replace tool, Come on Windows ran a haphazard test and changed each value to zero. Paint and Wordpad remained running the entire time, but Windows 10 quickly lost key features, including the ability to identify which CPU it was running on.

I am not familiar with the 00th generation Intel Core i7 00800H, but according to this distressed installation, this was the chip at the core of its troubled mind.

Microsoft Edge seemed to hold out longer than most, cheerfully running through its opening tutorial before crashing, while various windows folders were locked with the message "Class not registered." windows 3D Objects folder, the least useful of the folders, is now sealed forever. Now it is sealed forever, at least until I reboot.

Speaking of rebooting, Windows seems to allow logout and login even in this sorry state, but Come on Windows confirms in the comments that Windows will try to recover itself with the automatic repair tool after a reboot, blaming it on "corrupted or missing file" is to blame.

Still, it is indeed an interesting test to see what happens when you commit the cardinal sin of wreaking havoc with registry entries. While this approach is not exactly scientific, Windows 10 seems to be somewhat resistant to such tomfoolery. I would have bet on it crashing instantly, but, well, you never know.

Now, for giggles, let's see what happens if we set everything to "1" instead. The same thing should happen. However, I'm tempted to do a little test on a privately owned machine, but I think I'll leave this sort of thing to someone braver than me.

Here's the part where I say, despite the resilience demonstrated here, don't mess with your own registry entries unless you're prepared to destroy your machine?

OK, to be precise, I'll add the proviso that following clear instructions from a trusted source is worth a try in the case of very specific changes. Anyway, it is often better to leave the mysteries of the registry to qualified people if you don't know what you are doing. Otherwise, you may be stuck using only Paint and Wordpad forever, or at least until Windows does its best to undo your misguided decisions.