Why can't change the default program to open an extension in Windows 7?

Question

I mistakenly assign Office Outlook to open my .eml files in Windows 7. But, as Outlook do not open such files, I downloaded Live Mail, but now I can not assign it to open this kind of file by default.

I've tried running Explorer as Administrator, not to avail.

Answer 1

Windows Vista and Windows 7's file type management facilities are half-baked at best. I never understood why Microsoft crippled that part of the OS when they released Vista. They added limitations that make absolutely no sense.

You might want to try to use alternatives listed in my previous question on the matter:

What program do you use to edit file associations in Vista and Windows 7?

The program that stood out was Default Programs Editor which is free and will allow you do pretty much whatever you wish to do.

Answer 2

An old question, but had the same problem and this simple tool fixed it for me. Simply select the extension and click on "Delete file type". After that, the option was no longer greyed out. http://www.winhelponline.com/articles/231/1/An-Utility-to-Unassociate-File-Types-in-Windows-7-and-Vista.html

Answer 3

Is "NoFileAssociate" set to 0?

From KB555076:

1. Go to "Start" -> "Run".
2. Write "Regedit" and press on "Enter" button.
3. Navigate to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\Explorer
4. In the right side of the screen double click on "NoFileAssociate".
5. Change the value of "NoFileAssociate" from 1 to 0.
6. Close "Regedit".
7. Reboot the server.

Answer 4

you may use the File Type Doctor which is part of the Creative Element Power Tools to fix this.