How to Order Windows Regedit 'Favorites' Menu in Date-Ascending Order?

Order Windows RegEdit Favorites Menu in Date-Ascending Order

The Favorites menu in the Windows Registry Editor (RegEdit) can be organized by date in ascending order, making it easier to find and manage frequently accessed registry keys.

Location of RegEdit Favorites

In the Windows Registry, the Favorites menu is stored at the following path:

Registry Key Structure

In order to sort the Favorites menu based on the date created in ascending order, you need to understand the structure of each registry key:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Applets\Regedit\Favorites]

"MRUList"="f1,f2,f3"

"f1"="@REGEDIT4\\[path\\to\\first\\favorite]"
"f2"="@REGEDIT4\\[path\\to\\second\\favorite]"
"f3"="@REGEDIT4\\[path\\to\\third\\favorite]"
    

The MRUList value contains a comma-separated list of the favorites, and each favorite has a unique name ("f1", "f2", etc.) which points to the actual favorite location.

Sorting Favorites Based on Date Created

To sort the Favorites menu, follow these steps:

1. Backup your current registry configuration by following the instructions at How-To Geek (offsite article).

2. Open the Registry Editor (RegEdit).

3. Navigate to:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Applets\Regedit

4. Right-click the Favorites key, select New and then Key and create a new key named DateCreated.

5. Under the DateCreated key, right-click on the right side and select New and then String Value and name each value with the existing favorite name (e.g., "f1", "f2").

6. Double-click each String Value you created, and add the corresponding favorite's full path into the Value data field. Press OK to save.

7. Close the Registry Editor (RegEdit).

8. Run the following PowerShell script to order the Favorites in date-ascending order and update the MRUList:

   
   # PowerShell Script to Order RegEdit Favorites by Date
   # Requires Windows PowerShell 5.1 or higher
   
   $registryPath = "HKCU:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Applets\Regedit\Favorites"
   $dateCreatedKey = "$registryPath\DateCreated"
   $mruList = "$registryPath\MRUList"
   
   # Fetch all favorites
   $favorites = Get-ChildItem $registryPath
   
   # Parse favorite values
   $favoriteValues = foreach ($favorite in $favorites) {
       [PSCustomObject]@{
           Path   = $favorite.PSPath
           Name   = $favorite.Name
           Value  = (Get-ItemProperty -Path $favorite.PSPath -Name "*").PSObject.Properties | Where-Object {$_.Value -ne $null} | ForEach-Object {$_.Name}
           Date   = Get-Date (Get-ItemProperty $dateCreatedKey.$favorite.Name -Name "DateCreated").DateCreated -Format "yyyy-MM-dd"
       }
   }
   
   # Sort favorites by date in ascending order
   $sortedFavorites = $favoriteValues | Sort-Object Date
   
   # Update MRUList
   $newMruList = $sortedFavorites | ForEach-Object {$_.Name} -Join ","
   
   # Set new MRUList value
   Set-ItemProperty -Path $registryPath -Name MRUList -Value $newMruList
               

   Save the script as a .ps1 file and open PowerShell as an administrator. Change the execution policy, run the script, and then restart the Registry Editor (RegEdit).

   Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Force

   .\YourScript.ps1

References:

• Article: How-To Geek - How to Back Up and Restore the Windows Registry

• Online Resource: Microsoft - Set-ItemProperty (PowerShell Documentation)