Registry "Wow6432Node" needed for 64-bit Windows?

[sss42445448]

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Policies\Adobe

Do I need to add Wow6432Node to tune Adobe acrobat on 64-bit Windows 10?  Since Acrobat is a 32-bit application, I am confused. I found the application creates registry items both under the path with and without Wow6432Node.

[EnterpriseHelp]

Short answer: No.

Long answer: Tune using the path relevant to the bit of your machine. If you're on a 64 bit machine, is the default 64-bit Wow path. If you use the Wizard to tune the installer, it knows what to do. Manual config is ok too.

I agree the implementation can throw a person off.

[sss42445448]

I am perplexed. It sounds self-contradictory to me as "No" for the short answer and "Yes" for the long answer.

Do you mean that: I still use HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Adobe (Wow6432Node omitted) for a 64-bit windows 10?  assuming I manually edit the registry instead of using the wizard.

Thank you for your clarification.

[EnterpriseHelp]

You asked if need to add the node. If you have a 64 bit machine, the node is already there. So, "no" don't add anything. Acrobat uses the hives based on the bit of the machine, not the bit of the app.

So make all your mods in the existing 64-bit Wow hive.

"perplexed" is the same word used in the bug I filed regarding this . It's apparently not a bug, but it is confusing.

[sss42445448]

Yes. It is confusing as I found the adobe items under the paths both with and without Wow6432Node in my windows registry. Anyway, It is now clear and I appreciate your prompt reply.

[Test Screen Name]

The Policies key appears to be automatically shared (Registry Keys Affected by WOW64 - Windows applications | Microsoft Docs ). As such, you can access it either way.

[sss42445448]

It seems to be that case. I changed the 32-bit registry key once but it surprisingly worked on my 64 bit Windows. Now I got the answer

[EnterpriseHelp]

Since we don't know what's happening behind the scenes or how the config might be changed on an update or app migration, it might be wise to modify the 64 bit Wow hive and ignore the other.

[sss42445448]

I agree.