I am unfamiliar with this software (Regvac).... could a registry cleaner cause such an issue? ... sure it could... especiallly since these ISP-provided Anti-virus/Firewall programs are a fairly new development-- I am not sure if this is a scanner that works via your browser, or free software that you install on your PC. In either case there could be a conflict between the 2 programs... when there are conflicts... there are sometimes tweaks that can allow the 2 to co-exist

thanks for getting back to me. If i am going to clean my registry is there a program you can suggest?

That does not look like a "bad" program--though there are those out there...
I use Registry Mechanic-- have never had a problem with it.

Registry Cleaner - Registry Mechanic

However... it may be just a setting for your RegVac to ignore certain files --perhaps your ISP would help you configure it ? As I said-- the ISP-provided antivirus and/or firewall is a relatively new item-- I am unsure how they work-- do you download/install the program? or does it "just work"-- if it just works-- that means the files are scanned just as they enter your PC or just before even.

Might I ask what Anti-Virus your ISP provides-- name + version number?

Thanks for the info. My ISP didn't seem to want to give out (or the technician wasn't sure) the information regarding their Anti Virus. It is Sympatico if that helps.
Do you use the registered or not registered version of Registry Mechanic?
Further to this, I went to the Registry site listed just below this and found a program called RegCure which seems to work pretty good. anybody else using it?

I use the registered version-- I run it about once a week-- have not reinstalled or had a major error since I started using it. PC runs like a clock.

For freeware PC/Reg cleaners I recommend CCleaner-- by Piriform.
had very good results with it 140 million downloads and counting...

CCleaner - Home

just to toss in my nickel's worth, steer well clear of anything that says registry cleaner. I've had to fix about a dozen pc's just by folks using CCleaner's cleaner (sorry ih8bills ); ANY cleaner is a bad idea. The registry does not take up very much space at all, and any cleaning should be done by someone who knows what is going on, not an automated program. Imagine neurosurgery done by a preprogrammed robot based on what the doctor thinks he is going to find in there. Not a good idea.

If you want to do anything to your registry, I'd recommend ntregopt from my signature, and that's about it. That will compress the registry (essentially defrag it), and dramatically decrease boot time. Anything over 4 or 5% compression is good; the highest I've ever seen was 36%, but that guys machine took 20 minutes to boot as well.

Bottom line, steer clear of registry cleaners. More harm than good, IMO. The other bottom line is that it IS your rig, and as ih89bills has correctly stated, CCleaner is an immensely popular program. Just be careful. Here there be tygers.

thanks,

v