Adding the ‘Open With’ option to Registered File Types

If you right click an unregistered file, you can choose ‘Open With’, to choose a program to open that file.  However, if you right click a registered file, by default, you can’t choose ‘Open With’.

Occasionally, its useful to be able of choose ‘Open With’ on file types which are registered.

To change this behavior, go to: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\Shell.

If the Shell key doesn’t exist, create it, by clicking on * and then click on the Edit menu and select New, then click on Key.  A new key will be created called New Key#1 and it will be highlighted ready for you to give it a name.  Type Shell and press the Enter key.

Create another new key below Shell

Name it OpenAs.  Double click the String Value (Default).  Enter the text you want to see in the Context Menu for this action in the Value Data: field.  If you leave this blank, the Context Menu will say: Open With.

Click OpenAs, make a new Key, and call it command.  Click command, and double-click the String Value (Default).  In the Value Data: field type: Rundll32.exe shell32.dll,OpenAs_RunDLL %1 and then press the Enter key.