Member Avatar for sanbio

.exe files are not opening by double clicking in my xp sp2
anybody can help me?
thanks in advance
sankha

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A broken .exe file association or a piece of malware is the most common cause when executables won’t run on double‑click. ’s registry restore is the standard recovery for a corrupted association, but it should be applied only after the usual precautions and checks because the underlying cause can be either a simple registry mix‑up or an active infection. For background on why the association needs restoring and common variants of this symptom see these writeups: WinHelponline – .EXE opens in Notepad fix and Bitdefender – fix broken .EXE association. (winhelponline.com)

Safety first: always create a System Restore point and export/back up the registry before merging any .reg file. If a .reg file opens in a text editor instead of merging, import it from Registry Editor (File → Import) rather than double‑clicking. Microsoft documents the registry export/import and the need to back up before changes. (support.microsoft.com)

Quick, low‑risk diagnostic steps (in order): try launching the EXE directly from Task Manager (File → New Task), then use the built‑in association tools from an elevated Command Prompt to restore the handler and command string:

assoc .exe=exefile
ftype exefile="%1" %*
sfc /scannow

assoc and ftype are the supported commands to view/restore file associations and their open command; sfc /scannow checks critical system files (it may prompt for the XP install media). If Explorer is behaving oddly, restart it (end explorer.exe and run %systemroot%\explorer.exe). See Microsoft’s docs for assoc/ftype, SFC and restarting Explorer. (learn.microsoft.com)

Because malware often changes associations, boot to Safe Mode (press F8 at startup) and run an up‑to‑date anti‑malware scan (Malwarebytes’ Threat Scan is a practical choice) before reapplying fixes; if malware is removed, reapply the association fix and re‑scan. See the Safe Mode / scanning guidance and vendor docs. (lifewire.com)

If none of the above works, the remaining options are a System Restore to a known good checkpoint or a repair (in‑place) install of XP using the original CD (repair installs preserve applications/settings but require the XP media). (learn.microsoft.com)

Note: ’s script is the right tool when the registry is the issue; do not run registry fixes from untrusted sources and keep a backup/image handy before making changes.

Member Avatar for gerbil

Sankha, this should do the trick. I have included a link as a way of acknowledging the author of the fix.
Links -
==Please copy the text in the box to a notepad [format/wordwrap unchecked] and save as fixkey.reg, as type "all files", to your desktop; dclick it to run... agree; if it opens in notepad instead rclick the icon [file], choose Open with, Registry editor....

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe]
@="exefile"
"Content Type"="application/x-msdownload"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe\PersistentHandler]
@="{098f2470-bae0-11cd-b579-08002b30bfeb}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile]
@="Application"
"EditFlags"=hex:38,07,00,00
"TileInfo"="prop:FileDescription;Company;FileVersion"
"InfoTip"="prop:FileDescription;Company;FileVersion;Create;Size"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\DefaultIcon]
@="%1"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open]
"EditFlags"=hex:00,00,00,00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\runas]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\runas\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\DropHandler]
@="{86C86720-42A0-1069-A2E8-08002B30309D}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\PEAnalyser]
@="{09A63660-16F9-11d0-B1DF-004F56001CA7}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\PifProps]
@="{86F19A00-42A0-1069-A2E9-08002B30309D}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\ShimLayer Property Page]
@="{513D916F-2A8E-4F51-AEAB-0CBC76FB1AF8}"
Edited by gerbil
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