Windows keeps putting Edge as .pdf file association

Question

Windows keeps putting Edge as .pdf file association. The PDF-edgeviewer is very bad. I want to set my Adobe Acrobat Pro as the standard .pdf association. When I set this, Windows keeps setting Edge back as .pdf file association. Somethimes within seconds.....! This is very anoying!

How can I solve this?

Answer 1

Hi

Usually Edge or Windows don't change the default reader automaticly. I suspect a GPO set for Edge overwrite your choice.

Please check your GPO.

User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Microsoft Edge

Always open PDF files externally set it to Enable.

If you don't have access to the main GPO's console, check if that registry is set, and chnage it to 1;

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft

AlwaysOpenPdfExternally (DWORD: 1)

Reboot after, and that should prevent Edge to take back the control of PDF's file.

Answer 2

Finding this thread six months later. I have nothing set in GPO, not part of a domain, and wanted to change PDF default from Chrome to Acrobat. Edge took it over within seconds and I can't set it to anything but Edge now. I will try reboot; if that fails, I will delete Edge.

Answer 3

"Usually Edge or Windows don't change the default reader automaticly."....that's just not true.

Every single time there's an Edge update, Edge takes over pdf file association....only way i found is to completely remove Edge: https://www.tomsguide.com/how-to/how-to-uninstall-microsoft-edge

I have not tested it myself yet, but definitely going to try and remove that thing off of all our computers...Having to redo file association every single time for the whole office is a mess.....and no, users can't do it. I've shown them over 5 times each and they can't remember how...

As for GPOs, my system admin does not want to unify all of our servers to the same version, and that's when it works. Half the GPO system is messed up, from not being able to access Firewall policies to having trusted networks not being applied. We have not applied any of those yet, but definitely going to try that also. Hopefully GPOs should overwrite Edge taking over.