You rarely need to create a registry subkey. However, in some circumstances the solution to a problem - as described in a Knowledge Base article or a security bulletin - requires the addition of a subkey. If you need to create a subkey on a large number of computers, the best solution might very well be a script. After all, a single script can be used to create the subkey on every computer affected by the problem. The Registry Provider’s CreateKey method enables you to add a new subkey. It takes two parameters: a constant indicating the subtree to which the new subkey will be added and the path of the new subkey.
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The following PowerShell and VBScript code examples show how to use the CreateKey method to create the SOFTWARE\NewKey subkeys under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE.
Example
Do not run below example code just to see what happens next. Many methods seriously affect your system. Always make sure you actually understand what the method and the code do.
param
(
[Parameter(Mandatory)]
[UInt32]
$hDefKey,
[Parameter(Mandatory)]
[String]
$sSubKeyName
)
Invoke-CimMethod -ClassName StdRegProv -MethodName CreateKey -Arguments $PSBoundParameters
To run this method on one or more remote systems, use New-CimSession:
param
(
[Parameter(Mandatory)]
[UInt32]
$hDefKey,
[Parameter(Mandatory)]
[String]
$sSubKeyName,
[String[]]
$ComputerName,
[PSCredential]
$Credential
)
$session = New-CimSession -ComputerName $ComputerName -Credential $Credential
Invoke-CimMethod -ClassName StdRegProv -MethodName CreateKey -Arguments $PSBoundParameters -CimSession $session
Remove-CimSession -CimSession $session
Learn more about
Invoke-CimMethodand invoking WMI methods.
Syntax
uint32 CreateKey(
[in] uint32 hDefKey = HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE,
[in] String sSubKeyName
);
Parameters
| Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| hDefKey | UInt32 | Optional parameter that specifies the tree that contains the sSubKeyName path. The default value is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE (0x80000002). The following trees are defined in Winreg.h: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT (0x80000000) HKEY_CURRENT_USER (0x80000001) HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE (0x80000002) HKEY_USERS (0x80000003) HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG (0x80000005) HKEY_DYN_DATA (0x80000006) Note that HKEY_DYN_DATA is a valid tree for Windows 95 and Windows 98 computers only. |
| sSubKeyName | String | Contains the key to be created. The CreateKey method creates all subkeys specified in the path that do not exist. For example, if MyKey and MySubKey do not exist in the following path, CreateKey creates both keys: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\MyKey\MySubKey |
hDefKey
[Flags()]Enum StdRegProvhDefKey
{
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT = 2147483648 #
HKEY_CURRENT_USER = 2147483649 #
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE = 2147483650 #
HKEY_USERS = 2147483651 #
HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG = 2147483653 #
}
Return Value
Returns a value of type UInt32. Typically, a value of 0 indicates success.
See Also
Additional methods implemented by StdRegProv:
CheckAccess()
CheckAccess() verifies that the user has the specified access permissions.
DeleteKey()
DeleteKey() deletes a subkey.
DeleteValue()
DeleteValue() deletes a named value.
EnumKey()
EnumKey() enumerates subkeys.
EnumValues()
EnumValues() enumerates the named values of a key.
GetBinaryValue()
GetBinaryValue() gets the binary data value of a named value.
GetDWORDValue()
GetDWORDValue() gets the DWORD data value of a named value.
GetExpandedStringValue()
GetExpandedStringValue() gets the expanded string data value of a named value.
GetMultiStringValue()
GetMultiStringValue() gets the multiple string data values of a named value.
GetQWORDValue()
GetQWORDValue() gets the QWORD data values of a named value.
GetSecurityDescriptor()
GetSecurityDescriptor() gets the security descriptor for a key.
GetStringValue()
GetStringValue() gets the string data value of a named value.
SetBinaryValue()
SetBinaryValue() sets the binary data value of a named value.
SetDWORDValue()
SetDWORDValue() sets the DWORD data value of a named value.
SetExpandedStringValue()
SetExpandedStringValue() sets the expanded string data value of a named value.
SetMultiStringValue()
SetMultiStringValue() sets the multiple string values of a named value.
SetQWORDValue()
SetQWORDValue() sets the QWORD data values of a named value.
SetSecurityDescriptor()
SetSecurityDescriptor() sets the security descriptor for a key.
SetStringValue()
SetStringValue() sets the string value of a named value.
Requirements
To use StdRegProv, the following requirements apply:
PowerShell
Get-CimInstance was introduced with PowerShell Version 3.0, which in turn was introduced on clients with Windows 8 and on servers with Windows Server 2012.
If necessary, update Windows PowerShell to Windows PowerShell 5.1, or install PowerShell 7 side-by-side.
Operating System
StdRegProv was introduced on clients with Windows Vista and on servers with Windows Server 2008.
Namespace
StdRegProv lives in the Namespace Root/CIMv2. This is the default namespace. There is no need to use the -Namespace parameter in Get-CimInstance.
Implementation
StdRegProv is implemented in Stdprov.dll and defined in RegEvent.mof. Both files are located in the folder C:\Windows\system32\wbem:
explorer $env:windir\system32\wbem
notepad $env:windir\system32\wbem\RegEvent.mof