If the current Windows user is not a power user, neither AutoCAD nor the applications running under it can write to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE area of the registry. To handle this scenario, AutoCAD supports demand load entries in both the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and HKEY_CURRENT_USER registry sections.
For demand loading, AutoCAD first looks for entries under HKEY_CURRENT_USER. If the necessary entries are found there, they are used. If the entries are not found under HKEY_CURRENT_USER, AutoCAD looks under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.
ObjectDBX also follows the AutoCAD registry search rules described in this section.
ObjectARX provides APIs that simplify the process of writing to the correct area of the registry. See Using ObjectARX APIs to Simplify Registry Setup for more information on these APIs.