

Value names can contain backslashes but doing so makes them difficult to distinguish from their key paths. Values are referenced separately from keys. Registry Values are name/data pairs stored within keys. For example, HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows refers to the subkey "Windows" of the subkey "Microsoft" of the subkey "Software" of the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE key. Keys are referenced with a syntax similar to Windows' path names, using backslashes to indicate levels of hierarchy. Registry Keys are similar to folders - in addition to values, each key can contain subkeys, which may contain further subkeys, and so on.

The registry contains two basic elements: keys and values. 8 Equivalents in other operating systems.
