To open Windows Explorer, right-click Start, and then click My Computer. On the Tools menu, click Folder Options, and then click the File Types tab. Locate and select the HTM file type. Make sure that Internet Explorer is selected as the Opens with program. At first you need to open browser and then click on right top bottom on gear icon. Next select for Tools and then you need to open Extension option Now several for Maiagames.lnk associated extension from given list and then click on Trash icon to remove completely from browsers. The files in either startup folder aren't valid Excel workbooks or worksheets. The files are stored on a network drive that has a slow network connection. How to prevent files from automatically opening in Excel. Use one of the following methods to prevent files from automatically opening when you start Excel. Double-clicking a.url file (Website shortcut) always launches it using the default browser. But, there are situations where you need to open different website shortcuts in different browsers. By adding browser choices to the right-click menu for.url files, you can choose a non-default web browser from the list.
Most of the people double click on external devices like flash drive, external HDD, pen drive, memory card and due to which sometimes we get into trouble either serious one or simpler one. We can’t expect everyone to open any executable thing with caution and do right click then use explore while opening external devices. I would try to provide a basic solution to one problem which seems to be common in Vista, Win 7 (I have tested on these right now).
At the moment you tried double click on external devices, it will try to associate .lnk (shortcuts) files with Microsoft Internet Explorer (MS IE) without even notifying you (See the gievn image to understand what I meant) .
Symbolic link means shortcut icon here, which means, if you click on any such shortcut icon like kmplayer, msword etc, it will open IE or control panel as such. It is very easy to spread such annoying pranks, but almost impossible to remove it if you are not from computer background. (How many of you pay with regedit often?). This is because there is no possibility for the user to “unlink” a file extension and put it back to its original symbolic link.
Problem: All shortcut icons, both on the desktop and in the start menu are changed to Microsoft Internet Explorer Icon after accessing external devices. When clicking on them a Save as dialog opens or opens IE or open control panel. The problem is that the .lnk file extensions of all files have been associated with Microsoft Internet Explorer.
Solution: You need to tackle with a hidden monster called “registry editor”. Perform any action with great care which is associated with registry editor and remember the changes, as it involves manually editing the system registry. If you do a simple mistake here, it may cause your even crash your memory (not generally). If you feel unsure, get help from an experienced computer expert (like me 😉 ). Better take back of registry editor then perform any action.
Steps to recover back all original icons:
- Open run command by pressing windows key (windows logo) and R together.
- Type “regedit” and press enter.
- Browse the computer system registry into
- “HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerFileExts.lnk” (It may take time to reach there, so be patient)
- Delete all subfolders under “.lnk” directory but please never ever delete the “.lnk” folder.
- Close registry editor (regedit).
- The shortcuts on your desktop will still not work now although clicking on it will work fine. So better reboor your system.
Image Source: One of my friend's laptop 😛
-->Note
Office 365 ProPlus is being renamed to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise. For more information about this change, read this blog post.
Summary
This article describes how to prevent files from automatically opening when you start Microsoft Excel.
More information
When you start Excel, all the files that are located in the XLStart folder are automatically opened. This behavior occurs regardless of the kind of file. Additionally, if you specified an alternative startup folder for Excel, every file in that folder is also automatically opened.To remove an alternative startup folder:
- Select the File menu and then select Options.
- Select the Advanced tab and then locate the General section.
- Clear the box next to 'At startup, open all files in:'.
Excel might stop responding or take longer to start if either of the following conditions is true:
- The files in either startup folder aren't valid Excel workbooks or worksheets.
- The files are stored on a network drive that has a slow network connection.
How to prevent files from automatically opening in Excel
Use one of the following methods to prevent files from automatically opening when you start Excel.
Remove files from the XLStart folder and the alternative startup folders
To remove files from the XLStart folder and the alternative startup folders, follow these steps:
Select Start, and then select Run.
In the Open box, type one of the following and press Enter:
For Office365 or 2019 32 bit:
C:Program Files (x86)Microsoft OfficerootxxXLSTART
For Office365 or 2019 64 bit:
C:Program FilesMicrosoft OfficerootxxXLSTART
Where 'xx' represents the version that you are using (for example, Office15, Office14, etc.).
Also try the following:
- %appdata%MicrosoftexcelXLSTART
- C:UsersUserNameAppDataRoamingMicrosoftexcelXLSTART
Delete any files in the XLStart folder or move them to another folder.
Restart Excel.
Start Excel in safe mode
Note
This is only a temporary solution that will not fix the issue. To use this method, it must be done every time that you start Excel.
Another method for preventing files from automatically opening is to start Excel in safe mode. Starting Excel in safe mode prevents all Excel add-ins, toolbar customizations, and startup folders from loading when the program is started.
There are two ways to start Excel in safe mode: the CTRL key and command-line switches.
Using the CTRL key
To start Excel in safe mode, hold down the CTRL key while you start Excel. You will receive the following message: Excel has detected that you are holding down the CTRL key. Do you want to start Excel in Safe mode? Select Yes to start in safe mode.
You can then delete files from the alternative startup location as described earlier.
Use Command-line switches
In all versions of Excel, you can use a command-line switch to start Excel in safe mode.Both the /safe switch and the /automation switch can be used for this purpose.
Note
The /safe switch starts Excel in safe mode. The /automation switch disables all automatically opened files and auto-run macros.
To use a command-line switch to start Excel, follow these steps:
Select Start, and then select Run.
In the Open box, type either of the following lines (but not both):
excel.exe /safe
excel.exe /automation
Select OK.
Open File In Ie
Note
If Microsoft Windows Installer starts when you use one of these command-lines switches, clickCancel to finish starting Excel.
Press the ESCAPE key
Note
This is only a temporary solution that will not fix the issue. To use this method, it must be done every time that you start Excel.
Another method for preventing files from automatically opening is to press the ESCAPE key (but do not press and hold). When you press ESCAPE after the files start to open, Excel is prevented from opening additional files.
Using this method, you may receive one or both of the following messages:
Lnk Files Open With Internet Explorer Default
- Would you like to cancel opening all files from your Alternate Startup File Location?
- Would you like to cancel opening all files from your XLStart Location?
Lnk Files Not Opening
If you click Yes in either message, Excel starts without opening any additional files from the startup locations.
Note
Do not hold the ESCAPE key. If you do this, the messages will be closed before you can click Yes.
References
Ie Open Local File
For more information about Excel startup folders, see the following Microsoft Knowledge Base articles: