Bit of urgent help needed

bushmins · 9 Oct 2010 at 20:51

I just did something on win7 and every short cut has suddnly changed into a notepad icon, everything is being opened with note pad.

Any ideas how i can get this changed back?? I cant open anything unless i go into c drive.

Every short cut and icon in the programs menu if effected.

Help!

Oh and maybe this, in hindsite, was a bad idea but i have system restore off...

Also all NEW short cuts i create turn into notepad icons :S

There seems to be no way to set the 'open with' file type to default.

VFM Addict · 9 Oct 2010 at 20:59

What the heck was it that you just did? I sure as heck don't want to do it !!!

All joking aside are you sure that it was you that did it? Sounds to me far more like some nasty you've picked up or a weirdly corrupted opsys file.

bushmins · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:06

I some how did it though the 'search files and programs' thing under the win7 button. I was looking at a short cut right clicked to delete it but accidentally clicked the wrong thing i guess. Its like i selected to default this type of file with notepad.

The worst thing about it is that even if i deleted all my short cuts and re did them, its still defaulting them to note pad! And I cant see any option to stop defaulting short cut files... only changing them all to default to some other program.

Rroff · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:09

You've messed up the .lnk extension - its easy to reset in XP but I don't know off the top of my head in Win 7 short of editing the registry.

bushmins · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:13

That option to open certain files with a single default program i have only ever used with things like media player or quicktime. Never even thought it could be used to change short cuts... and no way of changing them back or even stop them from defaulting to a single program? Thats a bit mad.

redshadows · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:15

Rroff said:
You've messed up the .lnk extension - its easy to reset in XP but I don't know off the top of my head in Win 7 short of editing the registry.

yip, its fixable but time consuming.

You want a walk through for fixing?
might take me some time but easy enough to write up.

I might need a few more details right enough.

Rroff said:
You've messed up the .lnk extension - its easy to reset in XP but I don't know off the top of my head in Win 7 short of editing the registry.

Dont know the reg fix on win 7 myself but rewrite all the short cuts will work, time consuming but will work

Deleted member 77746 · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:19

Run this registry fix for .lnk associations.

http://cid-4fc3e8fc77f77286.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/.Public/lnkfix.zip

I know it says Vista, but it does work for windows 7.

Rroff · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:22

Open regedit, expand HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT and scroll down to .lnk does it have a sub-folder called OpenWithProgIds?

EDIT: Should be able to fix it through Default Programs section of the control panel (or not seems you can only break it there not fix it).

redshadows · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:27

Or:

copy and paste this to a note pad and the save as something.reg:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk] @="lnkfile"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk\ShellEx]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk\ShellEx{000214EE-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}] @="{00021401-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk\ShellEx{000214F9-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}] @="{00021401-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk\ShellEx{00021500-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}] @="{00021401-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk\ShellEx{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-00C04FC2D6C1}] @="{00021401-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.lnk\ShellNew] "Command"="rundll32.exe appwiz.cpl,NewLinkHere %1"

After saving just double click on the file.
Should work.

Rroff · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:29

That may not help if hes written a default program ID into the registry for .lnk by accident tho - he needs to prune that before making sure the shellEx stuff is right.

redshadows · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:31

Rroff said:
That may not help if hes written a default program ID into the registry for .lnk by accident tho - he needs to prune that before making sure the shellEx stuff is right.

..... dang

redshadows · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:32

Sorry double post but wouldnt let me edit, what about system restore?

Rroff · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:33

He has system restore off according to the first post.

bushmins · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:33

optitech-uk said:
Run this registry fix for .lnk associations.

http://cid-4fc3e8fc77f77286.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/.Public/lnkfix.zip

I know it says Vista, but it does work for windows 7.

You can all stop helping now. This seems to have done the trick. Thanks for all your time trying to fix this.
optitech-uk wins the cookie. Thanks very much. Hopefully this thread will help other people as dumb as me!

I still find it incredable that this can actually happen.

Thanks again.

redshadows · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:35

Rroff said:
He has system restore off according to the first post.

Missed that line..... ah well give me a few will get something together for a quick fix...... don't bank on it but I'm trying

optitech-uk said:
Run this registry fix for .lnk associations.

http://cid-4fc3e8fc77f77286.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/.Public/lnkfix.zip

I know it says Vista, but it does work for windows 7.

dang, had a look at this fix, I was soooooooooooo close

Google over knowledge nowadays

, happy days google works

Deleted member 77746 · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:35

bushmins said:
You can all stop helping now. This seems to have done the trick. Thanks for all your time trying to fix this.
optitech-uk wins the cookie. Thanks very much. Hopefully this thread will help other people as dumb as me!

I still find it incredable that this can actually happen.

Thanks again.

I don't .... the reason you can edit associations is so that different programs can open different files while double clicking them.

Rroff · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:38

Yeah but .lnk should really be protected and only editable from safemode really.

Looks like if your writing the whole lot again from scratch in the registry it removes the extra stuff too.

redshadows · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:41

Rroff said:
Yeah but .lnk should really be protected and only editable from safemode really.

Looks like if your writing the whole lot again from scratch in the registry it removes the extra stuff too.

Personally I would have taken the route of short cutting my exe's for the programs.

One by one as I need them

Edit: lazy but would have worked I suppose

bushmins · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:46

redshadows said:
Personally I would have taken the route of short cutting my exe's for the programs.

One by one as I need them

Edit: lazy but would have worked I suppose

It wouldnt let me do that, it wouldnt let me reset the default program to open lnk files. Once default to a program you cant 'un'default them. So when ever you try to create new short cuts they default to what ever you have set it too.
Thats why i got so worried. It really needs an option to un'default newly created types of the file.

redshadows · 9 Oct 2010 at 21:55

As the problem persisted I would have decided to delete all the shortcuts in the desktop and start menu.
I would have added shortcuts to the start menu only by right-clicking the .exe files and selecting "Pin to Start Menu". By doing this I would be able to have shortcuts to numerous applications in the start menu, although if the problem persisted for the desktop shortcuts when I restarted the computer I would have looked for other options.

Im guessing you issues persisted.