Default editor

[6205]

Durring installation is Paint.net setup to be a default editor for all file types which is installer offering but it is still not working for jpeg files. Any idea how to setup Paint.net as default editor also for jpeg? Registry keys for jpeg file seems to be OK, but when i rightclick on jpeg it will be opened in MS Paint

Edited November 19, 2010 by 6205

[pyrochild]

Default editor is not the same as default opener. Right-click -> Edit

You can also set Paint.NET as the default opener, but the installer won't do that for you.

[6205]

I dont wanna change default opener, only for right-click -> edit to replace MS Paint..

[pyrochild]

Did you try re-running the installer and making sure the option is checked, making sure to restart your computer afterwards?

If it doesn't work:

Check both HKLM\SOFTWARE\Classes\jpegfile\shell\edit\command and HKCU\SOFTWARE\Classes\jpegfile\shell\edit\command

[Sarkut]

This question has puzzled me for years.

It's impossible to websearch the answer because of the ubiquitousness of the search term "Edit".

.

Edited November 20, 2010 by Sarkut

[6205]

1./ i have uninstalled Paint.net, removed remaining folders from HDD, cleaned registry with CCleaner

2./ installed again Paint.net, custom installation(view picture)

3./ at the end of the installation i have unchecked start Paint.net and manually restarted PC, even if app itself does not require restart

4./ behaviour is still the same. on right-click edit will jpeg opened in MS Paint(Windows 7)

Both registry keys seem to be OK

HKLM\SOFTWARE\Classes\jpegfile\shell\edit\command and HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\jpegfile\shell\edit\command

My user profile HKCU\SOFTWARE\Classes\ does not contain key for jpegfile, maybe that is the problem..

Edited November 20, 2010 by 6205

[Mido]

You must set pix opener as Windows Pictures Viewer.

[Rick Brewster]

You guys, Windows has a file association editor built-in. No need to get all "advanced" and jump into the registry and potentially mess everything up.

Click the start button, type in Default Programs. Please ... use it!

[Sarkut]

That will set the program that will open a file.

How to have a different program respond to Right-click > Edit, is still an open question.

[joohn]

Hi guys!

I figured it out!!!

You have to change the value under the key:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\edit\command

for example to:

"c:\Program Files\Paint.NET\PaintDotNet.exe" "%1"

Cheers

Edited August 16, 2011 by joohn

[Diablo]

Hi guys!

I figured it out!!!

You have to change the value under the key:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\edit\command

for example to:

"c:\Program Files\Paint.NET\PaintDotNet.exe" "%1"

Cheers

I know it an old post but I just had to reply to say that this also works in W10.

Thanks so much for posting this solution.

[peterfnet]

Posting to provide a revision to the registry key value and to also confirm an OS working (Windows 10 Version 1607, OS Build 14393.576 - AKA Anniversary Update)

 

They key listed above is valid, but assumes that a user of a 64-bit Windows is using 64-bit Paint.net and that the Program Files path is in the c:\. Though unlikely that someone will install a 32-bit version on a 64-bit OS, it is possible by extracting the installation package with a program like 7-Zip and installing with the PaintDotNet_x86.msi. Haven't tried it, but I'm a stickler for portable code and registry snippets like this :-D

 

I used the same key/value/etc., I just changed the beginning of the path to use an environment variable provided by Windows.

 

For reference, this is the default value in its raw hex format. You can put this in a .reg file of your own and merge it to restore the default:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\edit\command]
@=hex(2):22,00,25,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,72,00,6f,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,00,6d,00,\
  73,00,70,00,61,00,69,00,6e,00,74,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,22,00,20,00,22,\
  00,25,00,31,00,22,00,00,00

or, if you want to just copy and paste to restore the default value/behavior, use the following:

"%systemroot%\system32\mspaint.exe" "%1"

 

 

When editing the existing registry key value located at [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\edit\command], edit the value and paste the following:

"%ProgramFiles%\paint.net\PaintDotNet.exe" "%1"

If you want to merge a registry file with your registry to overwrite the existing value, use the following in your own .reg file:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\edit\command]
@=hex(2):22,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,\
  00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,70,00,61,00,69,00,6e,00,74,00,2e,00,6e,00,65,00,\
  74,00,5c,00,50,00,61,00,69,00,6e,00,74,00,44,00,6f,00,74,00,4e,00,65,00,74,\
  00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,22,00,20,00,22,00,25,00,31,00,22,00,00,00

If you accidentally deleted the (Default) value in [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\edit\command], create a new REG_EXPAND_SZ there, and give it a value of (same as the first example):

"%ProgramFiles%\paint.net\PaintDotNet.exe" "%1"

 

Want to go hog wild and just be different for the hell of it? (Or you like more specific context menus) Use the following key to merge into your registry. It's the same value above, but it puts it into your Right Click/Context menu on images as "Edit with Paint.net" and doesn't mess with the Edit item in the menu:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\Edit with Paint.net\command]
@=hex(2):22,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,\
  00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,70,00,61,00,69,00,6e,00,74,00,2e,00,6e,00,65,00,\
  74,00,5c,00,50,00,61,00,69,00,6e,00,74,00,44,00,6f,00,74,00,4e,00,65,00,74,\
  00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,22,00,20,00,22,00,25,00,31,00,22,00,00,00
  

 

Edited January 7, 2017 by peterfnet

[aragond]

On 16/08/2011 at 4:46 PM, joohn said:

Hi guys!

I figured it out!!!

You have to change the value under the key:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\shell\edit\command

for example to:

"c:\Program Files\Paint.NET\PaintDotNet.exe" "%1"

Cheers

 

What I want to know is how do i REMOVE Paint.Net's hijacking of all my edit file associations?! I do not want. When I want to use PaintNet to edit a file, I am perfectly capable of starting it from my taskbar, thx.

 

Thing is, I go to the above HKCR\....\command subdirectory and it is presently set to "%systemroot%\system32\mspaint.exe" "%1"

Oh, but it aint OPENING mspaint of that I assure you!

(For this, oh, I DO blame windows and their 957 layers of overlapping registry keys, don't you worry about that. Could not code their way out of a wet paper bag that had a door that activated with "Hello World")

 

JUST when I think I have my system set-up just how I like it, someone comes along and, without asking, messes everything up.

[toe_head2001]

15 minutes ago, aragond said:

... Paint.Net's hijacking of all my edit file associations ...

 

15 minutes ago, aragond said:

... comes along and, without asking, messes everything up.

 

For reals? What do you call this?

[aragond]

Okay, well, believe me or not, but I never saw that screen.

Not that I'm saying it isn't in the set-up, but ... yeah

Okay, my apologies. I don't know why I didn't see it, but, fine, I should have.

YES I DO! Express install.

I almost never use Custom Install because the setup always says, "Nah, go on, just use express. You have to know too much about what you're doing to use Custom."

 

Nevertheless, can it be undone?

Edited February 8, 2017 by aragond
Figured out why I didn't see what I should have

[Rick Brewster]

Can it be undone?

Run the installer again and choose different options. That's the official way to change those options.

 

You can also use the Windows control panel "Default Programs" to configure what file types are associated with Paint.NET (and other programs of course).

[Nvdk]

On 2/8/2017 at 9:48 AM, aragond said:

Okay, well, believe me or not, but I never saw that screen.

Hello, I know this is quite an old thread but I just wanted to share this information:

When choosing the "express installation" (it even says "recommended choice for most users") you do not get the following option:

 

On 2/8/2017 at 8:56 AM, toe_head2001 said:

For reals? What do you call this?

 

You only get this when choosing the "custom installation". So yes, for reals.

[Rick Brewster]

Those are enabled when you choose the Express installation. I'm not sure what you're trying to add to this conversation, Nvdk.

[WinchesterNL]

On 7/10/2017 at 3:21 PM, Rick Brewster said:

Those are enabled when you choose the Express installation. I'm not sure what you're trying to add to this conversation, Nvdk.

 

While I've had it like this for forever as well. My last two installations didn't do this. Gonna try Custom now, but honestly I still feel like that's a bug or something?

 

Edit:

Yup. Same thing after a custom installation. Still defaults to MS Paint 

Edited March 15, 2019 by WinchesterNL

[Ego Eram Reputo]

On 2/9/2017 at 12:38 AM, Rick Brewster said:

You can also use the Windows control panel "Default Programs" to configure what file types are associated with Paint.NET (and other programs of course). 

^ try that.

[comfreak]

I know this topic is ancient. I have a dimension to add though: when installing Paint.net via the Microsoft Store the app gets written into the hidden (and inaccessible) folder c:\program files\windows apps\

I know you can access this folder through manipulating its security settings. But I am on a machine where I cannot/do not want to do that.

 

But I can (and want to) change the default photo editor app via the registry hack mentioned by peterfnet (posted January 7, 2017). So what target do I point the registry to?

 

Something C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\....?  Any ideas?

Edited May 5, 2020 by comfreak

[Zagna]

1 hour ago, comfreak said:

I know this topic is ancient. I have a dimension to add though: when installing Paint.net via the Microsoft Store the app gets written into the hidden (and inaccessible) folder c:\program files\windows apps\

I know you can access this folder through manipulating its security settings. But I am on a machine where I cannot/do not want to do that.

 

But I can (and want to) change the default photo editor app via the registry hack mentioned by peterfnet (posted January 7, 2017). So what target do I point the registry to?

 

Something C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\....?  Any ideas?

You can use paintdotnet: protocol

[Majr]

On 5/6/2020 at 12:28 AM, Zagna said:

You can use paintdotnet: protocol

 

Did you actually test that? While the protocol works great in command line, it does not work within the context menu. I tried every wacky combination of quotes I could think of:

paintdotnet:%1

paintdotnet:"%1"

"paintdotnet:%1"

"paintdotnet":%1

"paintdotnet":"%1"

"paintdotnet:""%1"

"paintdotnet:'%1'"

"'paintdotnet':%1"

"'paintdotnet':'%1'"

"'paintdotnet:''%1'"

 

Even just a bare:

paintdotnet:

 

Still gives either "Windows cannot access the specified device, path or file. You may not have the appropriate permissions to access the item.", or "Which program do you want to use".

 

[Rick Brewster]

What about this, @Majr? https://forums.getpaint.net/topic/113700-set-paintnet-from-windows-app-store-as-default-editor-in-context-menu/?do=findComment&comment=572279