How to Switch HKCU and HKLM Registry Keys in Windows 11
- 5 steps
- Needs administrator rights
Registry Editor is the built-in tool that lets you browse and edit the registry, the database where Windows stores its settings. Its left pane is split into top-level sections called hives. This guide covers two of them and how to jump between them in Windows 11.
🗝️HKEY_CURRENT_USER (HKCU) holds settings for whoever is signed in right now. 🗝️HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE (HKLM) holds settings that apply to every user account on the computer. Many programs keep a matching key in both places, one for your own preferences and one for the machine default. Moving between the two quickly helps when you compare them or work out which one is controlling a setting.
Right-click a key in Registry Editor and choose the “Go to” entry at the bottom of the menu, such as “Go to 🗝️HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE” while you are in HKCU. Registry Editor jumps to the same key in the other hive. The entry only appears when that exact key path exists in both hives.
How to Switch Between HKCU and HKLM
This saves you from digging through long key lists by hand when you want to compare user settings with system settings. Registry Editor is included in every edition of Windows 11, Home and Pro alike, so the steps are the same on both.
- Click Start, type Registry Editor and press Enter. Approve the User Account Control prompt. Registry Editor opens with the hives listed in the left pane.
- In the left pane, expand either 🗝️HKEY_CURRENT_USER or 🗝️HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and browse to the key (the folder-like item) you want to look at. The shortcut works most reliably for keys under Software, since that is where both hives usually hold matching entries.
- Right-click the key you selected. A context menu appears.
- Look for the Go to entry near the bottom of the menu. It names the other hive, for example Go to 🗝️HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE when you are in HKCU, or Go to 🗝️HKEY_CURRENT_USER when you are in HKLM. Click it.
- Registry Editor jumps to the same key in the other hive and highlights it. You don’t type the path yourself.
For example, if you are at HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop and want the same location in HKLM, right-click the key and choose the Go to entry for 🗝️HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE. Registry Editor takes you to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager.
If the menu shows no Go to entry, that key probably has no match in the other hive (see below). You can also paste a full path into the address bar at the top of Registry Editor and press Enter. That works for any key, whether or not it exists in both hives.
The shortcut works in both directions. If you start in HKLM, you can use the same right-click entry to land on the matching key in HKCU.
Keep in mind that this only works when the exact same key path exists in both 🗝️HKEY_CURRENT_USER and 🗝️HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE. Many keys exist in only one hive, and in that case the menu entry is missing. That is normal and does not mean anything is broken.
Browsing and jumping between keys changes nothing in the registry. Only editing, adding or deleting values does.
Summary
Registry Editor stores Windows settings in several main sections. Two of them are 🗝️HKEY_CURRENT_USER, which holds settings for just your user account, and 🗝️HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, which holds settings that affect every person who uses the computer.
The right-click Go to entry lets you jump to the same key location in HKCU and HKLM, as long as the key exists in both. For any other key, type or paste the path into the address bar.
Before you edit anything, back up the key by selecting it and going to File Export. To undo a change later, double-click the saved .reg file and confirm the merge. Changes under HKLM also need an administrator account, and some changes only take effect after you sign out or restart.
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About the Author
Richard
Tech Writer, IT Professional
Richard is a writer at Geek Rewind who turns complex IT tasks into clear, step-by-step guides. He draws on years of hands-on experience in system administration and enterprise IT operations, focusing on Windows, Linux and WordPress: the problems people actually run into, and the fixes that work. His server and WordPress guides come from systems he runs himself. Richard builds and maintains the platform behind Geek Rewind, from its Ubuntu servers and Nginx configuration to its custom WordPress plugins. Many new tutorials start with readers' questions, and he's always glad to answer them in the comments.
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