Oct 15, 2015 I commented the wrong application's.exe file associated with the file extension (.rar in my case) and tried to open a.rar file. This resulted in the default dialog opened - I was able to select the right program this time. The commented.exe was returned to the default state then. Yes, the UX of Windows 10 is a real pain in some cases.
On the Unassociate File Types main window, select the desired file extension from the File types list. To remove the user-specific, custom association, for the chosen file type, click the Remove file association (User) button. This changes the default program used to.
Jan 19, 2016 You can change the file type associations direct from the File Explorer. To do so on Windows 10 and 8, right click the file and then hover on Open with. You’ll see a list of programs, which you can use to open the file, but note that this will just be a. Oct 08, 2009 Windows 10/8/7/Vista do not provide a GUI to unassociate or dissociate file type extensions. But if you need to remove file associations, you can do so using this portable utility called. Extract the contents to a folder and run the file unassoc.exe Select the file type from the list Click Remove file association (User) The user-specific association for the chosen file type is.
Windows will open each type of file by using a particular program. It does this through file type associations. However, if a file type isn’t opening in the program you want it to by default, have no fear: it’s very easy to change.
Whether you’ve got a broken file type associationHow To Change & Fix Broken File Type Associations In Windows 7How To Change & Fix Broken File Type Associations In Windows 7This article will discuss what file type associations are, how you can change them in general, and why so many people have issues with .lnk file associations in Windows. If you have been running into..Read More or just want to use another program, our three methods below will sort it out and let you have full control over the association defaults.
Be sure to head to the comments section after the article to let us know your thoughts and to share stories and alternative methods.
What Are File Type Associations?
Every file on your system is stored in a particular format. And certain programs can only open certain files. For example, a photo file like .jpgKnow When to Use Which File Format: PNG vs. JPG, DOC vs. PDF, MP3 vs. FLACKnow When to Use Which File Format: PNG vs. JPG, DOC vs. PDF, MP3 vs. FLACDo you know the differences between JPG and PNG, or MP3 and FLAC? If you don't know which file formats to use, let us guide you through their distinctions.Read More can’t be opened in a word processor like Notepad. Instead, you’d open the file in something like Windows Photo Viewer.
Rather than having to specify which program you want to open a file in every time you access it, Windows assigns each file type a default program that opens it. These defaults can be changed by the user or a program could set its own when installed.
That’s why it sometimes becomes necessary to adjust your file type associationsHow to Change Default Apps and Settings in Windows 10How to Change Default Apps and Settings in Windows 10Here's how to change default programs in Windows 10 if you're not happy with how the OS behaves out of the box.Read More. Handily, it’s very easy and quick to do this. Let’s find out how you can see what type your files are and then the different methods to change the program associations.
How Can File Types be Seen?
Unassociate File Extension
Revealing file types is easy. First, navigate to the folder which contains your file in File Explorer. Then, right click the file and select Properties. A new window with details about that particular file will open. Type of file will tell you what the file extension of the file is. Opens with will tell you what program it’ll open in.
You can set it so that the file extension appears with the file name in File Explorer10 Little Known Features of Windows File Explorer10 Little Known Features of Windows File ExplorerDon’t let Windows File Explorer fool you with its plain looks. It’s capable of many more actions and tweaks than it lets on! Let us show you a bunch of them.Read More. To do this in Windows 8 and above, open File Explorer and click the View tab. Then tick the box for File name extensions.
To achieve the same effect on Windows 7, click Organize, then Folder and search options, then the View tab. Locate the line Hide extensions for known file types and untick the box. Then click OK.
How to Change File Type Associations
There are three quick and easy methods within Windows to change the file type associations.
1. Open With
Remove File Extension Association
You can change the file type associations direct from the File Explorer. To do so on Windows 10 and 8, right click the file and then hover on Open with. You’ll see a list of programs, which you can use to open the file, but note that this will just be a one off and won’t change your settings permanently. To make a permanent change, select Choose another app.
Now select the application from the list that you want to use to open the file type of the file you’ve chosen. If you don’t see the program you need, scroll down and select More apps for a wider selection. If it’s still not there, select Look for another app on this PC. You can then go through your Program Files and locate the executable for the program you want.
When selected, tick Always use this app to open .X files at the bottom of the window. The ‘X’ will be replaced with the extension of the file you’re using (so in the case of the screenshot above, that’s the image format .jpg.) This will permanently change the file type association. Then click OK.
The process is essentially the same for Windows 7 and prior, except that Open with isn’t expandable and you can Browse for an alternative program straight from the window that opens.
2. Set Your Default Programs
This method is suitable for when you want to select what file types a particular program should open. To find it, do a system search for set default programs and select the result. Along the left-hand side you’ll find a list of all the programs installed on your system. Select the program that you wish to adjust the defaults for and its information will appear on the right.
If you want to use the program to open all the file types it can, select Set this program as default. If you want more control over which file types it opens, select Choose defaults for this program. You’ll see a list with all the available file types, along with what their current default program is. To change them, select or deselect the tickboxes as appropriate and then click Save.
3. Associate a File Type with a Specific Program
This method is best for when there’s a particular file type that you want to change the program association for. First, do a system search for change the file type and select the relevant option. You’ll see a list of all the file types on your system, along with what the current default program is to open it.
To adjust a file type’s default, select if from the list and click Change program…. Select a program from the list to change the default to. If you don’t see the program on Windows 7, click Browse to find it. On Windows 8 and above, scroll and request More apps and then Look for another app on this PC if you still can’t find it. When selected, press OK.
Backup & Restore File Type Associations
Associate Files With Programs
Windows 10 has been known to reset default appsHow to Change Default Apps and Settings in Windows 10How to Change Default Apps and Settings in Windows 10Here's how to change default programs in Windows 10 if you're not happy with how the OS behaves out of the box.Read More by changing file type associations after every update. The best thing you can do to fix this, is back up your file type associations and restore them once you discover that a Windows 10 updateHow to Manage Windows Update in Windows 10How to Manage Windows Update in Windows 10For control freaks, Windows Update is a nightmare. It works in the background, and keeps your system safe and running smoothly. We show you how it works and what you can customize.Read More has messed with them.
The following method works in Windows 10 and older Windows versions. Press Windows key + R to open the Run menu. Enter regedit and hit Enter to launch the Registry Editor. Now browse to the following key:
Once you need to restore this backup, right-click the respective .reg file and select Merge. This will overwrite the current settings in your registry and restore your previously backed up preferences.
How Do I Unassociate A File Type In Windows 10
Accurate Associations
With these methods you’ll have full control over your file type associations, ensuring that all your files open in the most suitable program by default. Be wary when installing a new program as some of them will request to become the default program for a set of file types, and you might not want that.
If you want more control over changing and removing file types, check out two of the best tools2 Best Tools To Change Or Remove File Type Associations [Windows]2 Best Tools To Change Or Remove File Type Associations [Windows]Having unused file types associated with software that you don't use isn't a big deal, but some of us are a little OCD with our Windows. That's fine, and we should have that control. Now,..Read More to do that. Alternatively, perhaps you’ve got some files with mysterious file types: find out how to open strange file typesHow To Open Strange File Types In WindowsHow To Open Strange File Types In WindowsComputers know thousands of different file formats. Sometimes, both you and Windows are clueless as to how to open a strange file. Here is how you can figure out how to open those files.Read More in our handy guide.
Have you had problems with this in the past? Do you have any alternative methods to share for changing the file type associations?
Explore more about: Computer Maintenance, Windows 10, Windows Registry.
Last step didn't work. I can't backup registry files and it shows 'Cannot import... Not all data was succesfully written to the registry. Some keys are open by the system or other processes, or you have insufficient privileges to perform this operation.'
I can change my files association but i can't backup the registry. So how to fix this?
i change all file into vlc now i can not able to install new app because it open as vlc player .how i application as unknown programe
the trick doesn't work for me. Says various possible reasons but most likely seems to be lack of permissions. I am running the Windows 10 Home on Insider Program Fast Release.
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In WIN 10, even with 'Hide extensions for known file types' Unchecked, the file extensions do not appear if the file has been made into a shortcut (IE: drag/copy a file to the desktop and make it a 'shortcut.') The file extension remains the same, but when the file is viewed in Explorer, the extension does not show. Is there a way to fix this? Thanks, -g-
thanks for helping it was very help full topic for me
I do a little web programming. By mistake, I seldon double-click on PHP files, and 'strange' things happen, like explorer.exe get replicated uselessly (I see that at the Task Manager, and I have never been able to close them fast enough. With Windows 7, when I try to change the association of PHP files, there is no way following the above mentioned procedures. Help me please!!!
How do you change the actual file type? Due to an interrupted download I have this 'PART file' file type. It should be an .mp4. How do I change the actual file type to .mp4? The association is irrelevant because I want to convert it to an .mp3, but the converter keeps reading it as a 'PART file' instead of an .mp4.
You don't have a full file. you can't really do anything with it, if you were to rename it .mp4 you might get something out of it but really your better of re downloading the file
Before it was possible to change file associations with functionality of IrfanViewer, and it worked. With Windows10 it stopped to work. Non-stop update of list of negatives for Windows, waiting for next 'surprise'
Windows 10 Remove File Association
WinKey + X - Command Prompt (Admin) - type in -> Regedit Click on HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT In left pane scroll down to .dat and click on it. Right Click on it and EXPORT so you can recover if there is an error. Still in the left panel under .dat delete the one or two sub-keys but not the .dat itself or the info in the right panel when the .dat is highlighted. So now when .dat is highlighted there is no sub-keys and in the right panel is (Default) value not set <-- if you click on it data field is empty NoOpen <-- if you click on it data field is empty Close Regedit and Reboot the computer.