removing TC-file-associations

[georgeb]

I've discovered a new file recently callled "totalcmd.chw". Internet said it is a compiled help-file and could be opened by any browser. So I first tried to associate it with MS-hh.exe as .chm-files are - but to no avail. hh.exe, I've been told, could not handle .chw-files. So I changed that to "firefox" as recommended by the net. As it turned out "firefox" didn't open it either but rather suggested to "download" it to the default location. That only gave me an unwanted copy of that file still incapable of somehow opening that.

Next I tried to remove that unsuccessful association again - only to find out that no such option is offered by TC. While there is a dedicated "Remove"-button in the edit-window it can seemingly only remove further, secondary associations - but not the basic association declared above the list-field.

A simple text-finding-search didn't turn up any (ini?)-file either that might contain the newly-declared, wrongful file-associatin.

Question: where are internal TC-file-associations actually stored and how can they (in case of erroneous declaration) again be removed altogether instead of only changing them to anotherparent- program which cannot handle/display that desired file-type either?

[white]

.chw files are not meant to be opened, but are used by the Windows help system. They are automatically created index files. You can safely delete them and the help system will recreate them when appropriate. .chw files are created in the same folder as the .chm file, except when the user has no write access in that folder. In that case the .chw file is created in the "%APPDATA%\Microsoft\HTML Help" folder.

[georgeb]

.chw files are not meant to be opened, but are used by the Windows help system.

Ok, thanks for bringing me up-to-date on that. Yes, my chw-file was found in the TC-folder next to the chm-file.

But the actual problem/question remains unsolved. If I now know that those aren't meant to be opened that means they aren't meant to be associated with any main program as I've already suspected.

But now - since the wrongful TC-association has already been (erroneously) declared - how do I get rid of it again? The TC-internal-file-association-dialog doesn't seem to provide that functionality. As already mentioned the "Remove"-button in there will only remove further, additional associations declared in the list-window but not the basic file-association itself.

So how do I get rid of this entirely? Where are these TC-internal-file-associations actually stored in the first place? Is there something like an ini-file where this wrongful association (which now unfortunately exists) is explicitly declared and hence could be deleted altogether again?

[Dalai]

Remove the file type itself from the internal associations: Files > Internal Associations > Select the file type (*.chw or whatever you named it) > Press Delete button.

Regards
Dalai

[georgeb]

Ok, guys, I've started an investigation and was able to come up with the solution myself. If a setting which is certainly there cannot be found in any configuration- or settings-file that usually means that the Win-registry might be the culprit.

So using a proven "Try&Decide"-tool which allows to reversibly make changes to the system from the point-of-start of that tool onward which can be entirely annihilated with a re-boot later on I created some dummy-exe-file named "xxxzzzyyy.exe" and then opened the TC-file-association-dialog once again to now associate ".chw"-files with this dummy-"xxxzzzyyy.exe"-program.

Once that association had been completed I started a versatile Win-registry-editor to search for associations with that unique dummy-file-name. And voilà! Exactly 1 hit was found.

Result: those TC-internal-file-associations created by the "Associate-with"-dialog are created and stored in the undermentioned registry-key:

Code: Select all

HKEY_USERS\___USERKEY__TC__IS__RUN__UNDER___\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\EXTENSIONS

After deleting the chw-entry there I re-booted to see if there would be any adverse side-effects to this operation. All did run normal except that wrongful association of the ".chw"-extension was entirely gone and hence the status-quo-ante had been successfully re-established.

[Dalai]

Result: those TC-internal-file-associations created by the "Associate-with"-dialog are created and stored in the undermentioned registry-key:

Code: Select all

HKEY_USERS\___USERKEY__TC__IS__RUN__UNDER___\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\EXTENSIONS

TC's internal associations are stored in section [Associations] of wincmd.ini. Associations made via menu Files > Associate With are NOT internal associations but they apply for all programs, perhaps even for all users. I'm not sure about the latter because I've never used that feature.

Regards
Dalai

[georgeb]

Remove the file type itself from the internal associations: Files > Internal Associations > Select the file type (*.chw or whatever you named it) > Press Delete button.

Ok, that is of course the easy way I've been looking for! A dedicated "Delete"/"Remove"-button there, too, as in the inner dialog, would help to avoid such mis-understandings, though.

[georgeb]

TC's internal associations are stored in section [Associations] of wincmd.ini. Associations made via menu Files > Associate With are NOT internal associations but they apply for all programs, perhaps even for all users. I'm not sure about the latter because I've never used that feature.

Thanks a lot for this clarification, @Dalai! I on the other hand have always been using that Files > Associate With-method as an easy way to make those associations valid in a system-wide manner as so far I cannot think of a good reason as to why I would have a given extension associated with a certain program within TC only. Nevertheless any system-wide declared change should of course be revocable from the very same location.

[georgeb]

Remove the file type itself from the internal associations: Files > Internal Associations > Select the file type (*.chw or whatever you named it) > Press Delete button

Granted, except there is no such Delete-button in the other (system-wide) method/dialog.

[white]

Granted, except there is no such Delete-button in the other (system-wide) method/dialog.

In that dialog you have to set the association to "(none)" which is at the top of the list in the Associate dialog window.

[georgeb]

In that dialog you have to set the association to "(none)" which is at the top of the list in the Associate dialog window.

Thanks a lot! That is exactly "the trick" I've actually been looking for!