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Clicking on a file icon launches Search on my Windows PC?

A number of files and folders on my PC, which, when I double click on them, the search function comes up, rather than opening the file. If I right click, the dropdown menu shows 'search' at the top of the list; 'open' appears second. How can I change folders and files so that they ALL open when double clicked?

Dave's Answer:

That's a very strange problem to have on a Windows PC, I agree! Here's the best information I could find, which isn't that great, I admit:

When you right click on a folder or file with the Explorer, a list of options is available. As more applications get installed, this list may get too large for you.

To remove items from the list:

1. Note the text of the item you want to remove (in this case "Search")

2. Start Regedit

3. Go to the following sections in the Registry and delete the subkey with
the string you noted in Step 1.

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\file
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell

4. Save the changes and quit Regedit.

In this case, I'd just remove the entries for Search.

I hate ever pointing anyone to Regedit, however, so if anyone has a better solution, please do post about it.

Thanks to Tommy Martin for this suggested solution, however complex.

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Comments

Similar problems have cropped up in several support forums.

Both the keys below seems sometimes to get their default-action changed,
causing the wrong action to happen when clicking on folders.
Most often, as far as I've seen reported, in such a way that the search function is

started:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell

name = Default
type = Reg_SZ
data = none

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell

name = Default
type = Reg_SZ
data = none

They should both normally have the value "none" in "default" , but sometimes it get's set to empty or something else (still haven't seen any explanation as to why).

Unfortunately I know of no other way to correct this, except for either using RegEdit, or alternatively create reg-files which could be imported directly in to the registry.

Reader

Posted by: Reader at August 30, 2005 3:41 PM

Can't this be corrected through the advanced button found on the file types tab of the folder options dialogue box accessed from Windows Explorer's tools menu? The box that opens when the advanced button is clicked seems to provide a GUI for changing what happens when you left or right click on a file. Or am I missing something?

Posted by: Ken at September 6, 2005 1:55 AM

This happend to me too. You can solve it by going to: folder options> file types> select the filetype> advanced> select the action you want as default action> and click set as default. If the action you desire isn't there, you can create a new one there too.

Posted by: Michiel at November 7, 2005 11:06 PM

How do you create a new one? I went in to create a a new one "open" and it says I need to select a path. Can anyone help?

Posted by: val at February 1, 2006 8:31 PM

Thanks anyway.

I went to MS online support and got the answer. See the following link: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/321186/en-us

Posted by: val at February 1, 2006 9:39 PM

Even easier way to fix...

Start > Run > regsvr32 /i shell32.dll

Posted by: Krystyna at October 6, 2006 11:35 PM

Just to clarify, it's NOT "Default" that you should set, but "(Default)".

In other words, select HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell and the name "(Default)" will be displayed on the right - double click this, DON'T create a new key called "Default". The value should be "none".

The problem I had was horrible. Explorer was convinced that Directory should have the default, despite Folder's default being Open, so the first Directory action was always being used in preference to "open", which in my case was to open a command window!

Posted by: nemo at October 30, 2006 8:22 AM

Thank you Krystyna! After bashing my head trying to figure out the safest way to (uggh!) edit the registry to solve the same problem, I decided to just back up the whole and registry, and try your solution. And it worked! Very quick and easy, no registry editing required.

A million thanks!

Ted

Posted by: Ted Paull at October 5, 2007 2:43 PM

Thank you Krystyna! Yours worked the best

Posted by: Ben at April 5, 2008 9:11 AM

i shell32.dll
plz help what to do about this .. plz giv each n every step

Posted by: suzane at May 24, 2008 11:36 PM

I have a lot to say, but ...

I have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but most of all I'd like to say thank you for all your efforts on this Web site by buying you a chai!

I do have a comment, now that you mention it!