What program do you use to edit file associations in Vista and Windows 7?

windows-7 windows-vista file-association

8,699

Solution 1

Default Programs Editor was created for this purpose! From the site:

File Type Settings:

Add, Edit, and Delete context menu items

Edit file type information (such as icon and description)

Change an extension's associated file type

It also does Autoplay handler editing, and Default Programs editing. And it installs as a Control Panel applet, which makes it discoverable from Windows Search, so you can forget about it until you need it.

Also, it doesn't require administrative privileges for most operations (but it is UAC compatible).

Default Programs Editor Screenshot

(In the interest of full disclosure, I wrote this program!)

Solution 2

FileTypesMan from NirSoft fulfills all your requirements.

enter image description here

8,699

Andrew Moore

Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist Zend Certified PHP Engineer (5.5) LinkedIn Profile http://www.linkedin.com/img/webpromo/btn_viewmy_160x25.png

Updated on September 17, 2022

Comments

Andrew Moore almost 2 years
We all know that Vista and Windows 7 doesn't let you specify custom extensions or customize them to your liking. What program do you use to edit file associations in Vista and Windows 7?

EDIT:

Just to be more clear, I'm looking for a program which lets you:
- Create new extensions (I am aware of the Open With > Set As Default).
- Customize the Icon
- Customize the file type name
- Allows the creation of custom actions
- Repair any non-working extensions
Presently, the Windows Vista/7 extension manager doesn't let you do any of those actions.
- NightOwl almost 15 years
  
  Yes, file associations and extensions is one area where Vista/Win7 took a HUGE step back from XP and prior.
Andrew Moore almost 15 years

Then you can't customize the icons. That's the problem with the new editor, it simply isn't as powerful as the XP version.
Andrew Moore almost 15 years

Existing, it doesn't allow you to create new ones (you can by doing Open With > Set As Default) and it doesn't allow you to customize the icons or the actions.
Andrew Moore almost 15 years

Same for the actions. You cannot add a custom action to an extension.
jadkins4 almost 15 years

Indeed you can use the registry, but that is a cumbersome complicated way to achieve this. Since there are better tools (as I mentioned in my answer to this post) why go through all this ordeal messing with the registry?!
Sasha Chedygov almost 15 years

+1: Very nice-looking program. I'll give it a shot. :)
NightOwl almost 15 years

looks nice, though i notice some of the controls don't pick up the OS look. particularly some textboxes. Only thing seems missing is ability to easily add extensions. Otherwise, nice app. :)
Factor Mystic almost 15 years

Feel free to leave any program feedback at the UserVoice page: defaultprogramseditor.uservoice.com
Andrew Moore almost 15 years

Exactly what I was looking for!
The How-To Geek almost 15 years

Very nice. Going to check it out.
mjsr over 13 years

nice answer, if something could be automated i always prefer that way. Registry modifications is a great way to deploy solutions to more than one pc.