This topic does not apply for Windows 10. The way that default file associations work changed in Windows 10. For more information, see the section on Changes to how Windows 10 handles default apps in this post.
How to change Default Programs in Windows 10
When a user sets program defaults using Default Programs, the default setting applies only to that user and not to other users who might use the same computer. Default Programs provides a set of APIs (deprecated in Windows 8) that enable independent software vendors (ISVs) to include their programs or applications in the defaults system. The API set also helps ISVs better manage their status as defaults.
If the user dismisses or ignores the resulting notification or flyout without making a new default browser selection, the default browser remains unchanged. Note that the user can also change the default browser at any time through other mechanisms, including Set User Defaults in the Control Panel.
When a user chooses the Set your default programs option, the following window appears. Users can use this page to assign a default program for all file types and protocols for which the program is a possible default. As shown in the following illustration, all registered programs and the program icon appear in the Programs box on the left.
The file association window shows the defaults that the application registered and also shows the current default for other extensions and protocols. After the user finishes customizing their defaults, they click the Save button to commit the changes. If the user clicks Cancel, the window closes without saving changes.
Deploy your Windows image to a test computer and configure the programs that are included in your image. You can log into Windows and use Control Panel to select your default app associations. You can export the default app associations that you have configured to an XML file on a network share or removable media so that you can import them into the WIM or VHD file before you deploy it to your destination computers.
You can change the default app association settings in a WIM or VHD file before you deploy it to your destination computers. You can also add and remove default app association settings from an online image.
If a device has only one application that can handle a specific association, that application will appear as the default for that type, even though there is no explicit choice in the registry.Exporting the default applications to XML will not gather these implied settings. To change the application from implied to explicit on the reference machine, just select that program for that association. Once selected (or reselected for implied associations), that choice will be written to the registry and then available for export.
On upgrade, Windows may re-assign default handlers for some inbox applications specified in your xml file. For instance, if you have set up applications that were previously recommended in Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 8.1, they may be changed in later versions of Windows according to ApplyOnUpgrade and overwriteIfProgIdIs in OEMDefaultAssociations.xml, or due to applications from previous versions of Windows going out of support.
To change the default program for files, open Settings from the Start menu or by hitting Windows Key + I on your keyboard. Then click Apps from the home screen of the Settings app.
Then click on Default apps on the list on the left. Then on the right, you will find the most common items you can change the default app for. Click on the app and choose another installed app you have on your system from the list. For example, I am switching my music player from Groove Music (the Microsoft default) to VLC.
When opening a file in Windows 10, it will be opened using the program that is set as the default program for that file type. Depending on the type of file, you may wish to change the default program that is used to open that file. For example, the default program used to open PDF files in Windows 10 is Microsoft Edge but if you have Adobe Acrobat or another PDF reader installed you may want to change that to the default program.
This article provides information on how to change the default apps in Windows 10. Under default apps settings, you can change the default email client, maps, music player, photo viewer, video player, and web browser.
You may wish to change the default app Windows 10 uses to perform specific actions on your computer. For instance, Microsoft Edge is set as the default web browser during the installation or upgrade to Windows 10. To change the default web browser as well as other default applications (such as the music player, photo player, map program, or video player), follow the steps below:
For more individual control over default app association, Windows 10 also allows for setting default apps to open specific file types. In the Default apps menu, click on Choose default apps by file type at the bottom of the screen. Click to highlight the file extension you wish to change in the Name column, then click on the corresponding Default app to have this app open the particular file type:
However, you can change the default app if you have an alternative in mind. Text files can be opened in word processors such as Word or Pages; a photo can be displayed in Adobe Photoshop; a song can be played in third-party apps such as VLC Media Player; and webpages can be opened in Chrome, Firefox, or another browser.
In Windows 10, you can change the default app for specific files a few different ways. Open File Explorer and right-click on the file you wish to open. From the pop-up menu, select Open with. To open the file with a specific app just one time, click the name of the app. To always open this file type with a particular application, click Choose another app. From the menu, you can also opt to search the Microsoft Store to find and install another app capable of opening the file.
You can also set a default app via Settings > Apps > Default Apps. At the main screen, you'll see Mail, Maps, Music player, Photo viewer, Video player, and Web browser. Click one and select a new default app. Wait a couple of seconds for the change to take effect.
Another option is to set a default app based on the protocol of the file. For example, you can tell Windows to open an Acrobat protocol with Adobe Reader, a MailTo protocol with Mail or Microsoft Outlook, and a Zoom phone call protocol with the Zoom app. To do this, click the Choose default apps by protocol link at the bottom of the Default apps menu. Select the app you wish to set and change it to your preferred selection.
To use File Explorer, right-click on the file type you wish to control and select Open within from the pop-up menu. Click the Use default program command and select the program you want to set as the default. Make sure the box is checked next to Use this app for all .xxx files. Click the link for More options to see even more programs from which to choose.
To use Settings, open the Charms bar, select Settings, and click Change PC Settings. At the PC Settings screen, click the setting for Search and apps and then click Defaults. Here, the process for changing a default app is the same as in Windows 10. You can also change defaults by file type or by protocol.
To change the defaults via Control Panel, right-click the Start button and select Control Panel from the menu. Click Programs > Default Programs > Set your default programs, then click a specific program that you want to set, such as a web browser. To associate all the supported file types with your selected program, click Set this program as default. Windows will then tell you that the program has all its defaults.
If you're still running Windows 7 (you shouldn't be), you can change the default through Windows Explorer or Control Panel. Open Windows Explorer, right-click the file type you wish to set, and move to the Open with command. Click the option to Choose default program. At the Open with window, select the app you want to use as the new default. Make sure to check the box to Always use the selected program to open this kind of file. Click OK. Setting or changing a default app through Control Panel works the same in Windows 7 as in Windows 8.1.
Another way to change the default application for a specific file type, is to do this via the Control Panel. The benefit of this method is that is also gives you an overview of all of the registered file types on your system and which application it is associated with.
To quickly set a program as the default for all of the file types that it can support, you can use the same dialog as indicated above (except for Windows XP) but then choose; Set your default programs
I was able to track down a trigger that causes this to one of my programs. Though I'm not certain that it is the only one that does it as it only causes some associations to change. So more likely it is certain actions that the program causes sets up the first trigger; and another program completes the trigger sequence.
What I imagine happens is that the first program does something to corrupt the "protection" Windows 10 has for programs changing file associations. Opening the second program causes Windows to re-check its protection and when the hash/progid ends up being invalid, it gets reverted to Microsoft defaults.
When you double-click on a file in Windows XP, the operating system will automatically open the file using a program that has been is associated with the file's extension. It is possible, though, to change the default program that is opened when you click on a file. This tutorial will explain how to change the default program that is associated with an extension as well as assigning a program to an extension that Windows does not know about. 2ff7e9595c