Windows 7 Default registry settings needed for Notepad in HKCR

[Exp HP]

(Resolved) Default registry settings needed for Notepad in HKCR

I was using a program called Default Programs Editor to associate some files and give them some custom icons I made, but one of them in specific (.BIN files) didn't work out too well. Well, all the changes I made to .BIN files are working (as in, the icon shows and they can be opened in XVI32), but at the expense of Notepad.

It's the strangest thing ever. Let me be clear: Notepad works fine. And all files associated with it (like .txt) still open in Notepad. The problem is something else: It is no longer possible to open an unrecognized file type in Notepad because Notepad has disappeared from the Open with... dialog. I can't even add it via the Browse dialog; when I browse to system32 and choose the file notepad.exe, the item that gets added to the list is XVI32. If you don't understand, I'll whip up a few screenshots to show.

Upon further investigation, I found that the .bin extention was associated with a filetype called "Applications\Notepad". And guess what? There is a key of the same name, "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\Notepad.exe", and DPE seems to have made my changes to BIN files there. For reference purposes, here's a reg file of that key.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe]
"FriendlyTypeName"=hex(2):42,00,69,00,6e,00,61,00,72,00,79,00,20,00,46,00,69,\
  00,6c,00,65,00,00,00\
    ;(FriendlyTypeName is "Binary File")

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\DefaultIcon]
@="\"C:\\Old Computer\\Old Shared Folder\\icons\\bin.ico\" -1"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell]
@="edit"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\edit]
@="Edit hex"
"MuiVerb"=hex(2):45,00,64,00,69,00,74,00,20,00,68,00,65,00,78,00,00,00
   ;(MuiVerb is "Edit hex")

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\edit\command]
@="\"C:\\Downloaded Software\\XVI32\\XVI32.exe\""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\open]
@="Edit text"
"MuiVerb"=hex(2):45,00,64,00,69,00,74,00,20,00,74,00,65,00,78,00,74,00,00,00
   ;(MuiVerb is "Edit text")

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):6e,00,6f,00,74,00,65,00,70,00,61,00,64,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,\
  00,25,00,31,00,00,00
    ;(Default) is "notepad.exe %1")

It would greatly please me if you would do the same and post a Reg of the same key on your computer. You know, a working version of the key, one that doesn't have all this misplaced crap that is supposed to be for


I may request more regs in this thread later on if I find that this isn't the problem key

 

[reghakr]

Are you asking for the original values so you can set you're back?

If so, here it is:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\edit]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\edit\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,4e,00,4f,00,\
54,00,45,00,50,00,41,00,44,00,2e,00,45,00,58,00,45,00,20,00,25,00,31,00,00,\
00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\open]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications\notepad.exe\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,4e,00,4f,00,\
54,00,45,00,50,00,41,00,44,00,2e,00,45,00,58,00,45,00,20,00,25,00,31,00,00,\
00

You'll need to save the file in Notepad and choose ANSI formatting.

Always export the key you are changing and save a copy to the desktop.

It's rather odd that you have a folder named C:\\Downloaded Software

It's much better if you install programs to the Program Files directory rather than the root folder.

 

[Exp HP]

RE: (Resolved) Default registry settings needed for Notepad in HKCR

Yay, the forum's back up! And your settings worked! Notepad is now appearing in Open With. Thank you very much.
I didn't even have to delete the deprecated values (like DefaultIcon or MuiVerb).


Somewhat off-topic:

It's rather odd that you have a folder named C:\\Downloaded Software

It's much better if you install programs to the Program Files directory rather than the root folder.

Two things:
1. C:\Downloaded Software actually is not for installed programs (that's where no. 2 comes in). It is for programs that run straight from the package without installation. Back in the XP days, I used to stick these in the Program Files folder along with everything else, but the first time I tried doing that in Vista, I spent hours playing a game just to later find it didn't have permission to save my progress.
2. I have another folder, C:\Installed Software, to which I install most programs. Vista's UAC drove me crazy for two months; files displaced to VirtualStore, issues editing INI option files, discrepancies between universal and per-user settings, etc.. I couldn't stand it any more. Nowadays, the only programs I install to Program Files are those that have a high degree of integration into Windows (antivirus, web browsers, microsoft software, windows extensions).

In other words, ever since UAC, I've pretty much avoided Program Files like the plague. The added security it provides just isn't worth the trouble.

Nitpick: The path actually is C:\Downloaded Software, with one slash; it only appeared with two slashes in my REG because it was encapsulated in quotes. But I'm sure you already understood that.


Completely off-topic: I'm a little annoyed that I can't seem to find a way to change the topic icon (as it appears on the Link Removed due to 404 Error). I picked thumbs down by accident, and, contrary to what I would expect, changing the Post Icon of the first post doesn't make a difference on the forum page.