Question:
What is the best browser-based way to read values from the Registry? Can JavaScript do it?
Answer:
There is no easy way to read the Registry on a user’s machine through a Web browser. This is purposely made difficult, since giving remote Web sites access to the Registry on the machines of their visitors would be a major security flaw. The only way to accomplish your goal is to use a custom ActiveX control to get this functionality. This solution, however, has numerous disadvantages. For one, this solution would only work on Windows 95 and Windows NT machines running Internet Explorer. Additionally, users would have to approve the download of your ActiveX control before it is run. In general, when creating JavaScript solutions it’s a good idea to assume that your Web site will not have access to the configuration information or the file system on the machines of your users.
