Member Avatar for cronus88

Hi I used to have a problem, where if i double clicked on any hard drive in My Computer, it would be opened inside the program ACDSee, rather than just opening up in explorer.

there was no way to switch it off from within ACDSee so i went to Tools->Options->File Types in the my documents folder.

I navigated to the Drives file type, and clicked on it. THere were only two options, one was to open it with ACDSee, the other was called "find" and it opened up the search dialogue.

SO I added a new command, which was "open" and the application to open in was "explorer.exe."

This solved the ACDSee problem, but gave me another one. Now when I double click on any hard drive, it opens it in a new window, rather than the same window I was in.

Its extremely frustrating. (I also can't seem to delete commands I've added in Edit File Type -> Drives)

I had to add the Open command in the "File Folder" file type, and now i've got the same problem. WHen I double click a folder, it opens in a new window.

How do i get it back so that the Hard Drives or Folders I click on open in the same window when I double click on them? Going to tools, folder options and ticking the correct option in Browse Folders doesn't seem to make a difference.

Thanks for any help

  • 3 Contributors
  • 3 Replies
  • 242 Views
  • 3 Years Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by swathi shetty

Dani AI

Generated

A short, practical explanation and safe fix notes.

Editing the Folder/Drive file types (File Types dialog or a third‑party file‑type editor) can change registry verbs that Explorer relies on. If the default verb under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell is changed to something like "opennewwindow", or a nonzero LaunchExplorerFlags value exists under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\open, Explorer will open a new window on double‑click even when Folder Options is set to "Open each folder in the same window". Restoring the correct shell keys/values returns the old behavior — which is what did (other posters such as and reported the same outcome). (winhelponline.com)

Recommended safe steps (backup first)

  1. Create a System Restore point and export the affected registry keys (export HKCR\Folder\shell and HKCR\Drive\shell) so changes can be undone. (learn.microsoft.com)
  2. From an elevated command prompt, the commonly used commands to reset the folder double‑click action are (run each line and then restart Explorer or reboot):
reg delete HKCR\Folder\shell /ve /f
reg add HKCR\Directory\shell /ve /d none /f
reg delete HKCR\Folder\shell\open /v LaunchExplorerFlags /f
reg add HKCR\Folder\shell\open\command /v DelegateExecute /d "{11dbb47c-a525-400b-9e80-a54615a090c0}" /f

These commands remove a bad default, clear a problematic LaunchExplorerFlags value, and restore the Explorer handler (DelegateExecute) used to open folders. Test after a reboot. (winhelponline.com)

If the problem keeps recurring or folders/drives are launching a third‑party app (ACDSee, file managers, etc.), check for and remove any shell‑extension or context‑menu changes from that program. Tools such as Autoruns (Sysinternals) or ShellExView (NirSoft) help disable non‑Microsoft shell extensions so the culprit can be isolated; uninstalling or restoring defaults for that app is often required. If registry edits are uncomfortable, restore the registry/exported keys or use System Restore. (learn.microsoft.com)

Notes and cautions
Export keys before editing and avoid one‑click "repair" tools without a backup. The DelegateExecute GUID shown above is the Explorer ExecuteFolder handler used by Windows — removing or replacing it is the usual source of the symptom, and restoring it is the usual fix. (geoffchappell.com)

Member Avatar for cronus88

ok managed to solve it.

Playing around with the Edit File Type stuff messed up the registry entries dealing with opening each folder in the same window, i restored those specific entries with the file i downloaded on this page:

Hope it helps anyone else with the same problem

Member Avatar for Marchie

Haha no way! I had the same problem and it just started yesterday. I did exactly what you did in your first post too! Thanks for the link! =]

Member Avatar for swathi shetty

i too had the same problem... n finally got a relief through the link... you made my day.thank you....

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.