Making IE9 64 bit default browser

Discussion in 'Application Software' started by tanjali, Sep 28, 2010.

  1. tanjali

    tanjali MDL Junior Member

    Aug 22, 2009
    89
    4
    0
    I was testing IE9 since day it got beta out and comparing 32bit and 64bit editions.
    64bit seems to be faster, less crashes and everything working flash wise java and similar
    Only thing I couldn’t figure out how to make it default browser for all applications.
    Anyone knows how to do that?
     
  2. sebus

    sebus MDL Guru

    Jul 23, 2008
    6,354
    2,026
    210
    Not possible, run search on this board, as same question was properly answered already

    sebus
     
  3. tanjali

    tanjali MDL Junior Member

    Aug 22, 2009
    89
    4
    0
    Couldnt find but thank you anyway.
     
  4. tanjali

    tanjali MDL Junior Member

    Aug 22, 2009
    89
    4
    0
    Well I was looking specifically for IE9 possibly couldn’t find because of that and thought they are different but I guess they aren’t.
    Thanks Sebus.
     
  5. klettke

    klettke MDL Novice

    Oct 21, 2011
    1
    0
    0
    [Background: 32-bit IE found at C:\Program Files (x86)\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe. 64-bit IE found at C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe.]
    STEP 1
    Navigate to C:\Program Files (x86). Hightlight the "Internet Explorer" folder and rename (right-click...Rename) it to "Internet Explorer 32".
    [Philosophy: Try to avoid actually deleting system files. Make it simple to return to if needed.]
    STEP 2
    Navigate to C:\Program Files. Note the "Internet Explorer" folder. Copy it to C:\Program Files (x86) by your preferred method. E.g., drag and drop is one way, or right-click on it, select Copy, navigate to C:\Program Files (x86) and Paste is another.
    [Comments: a. You can choose a different folder name for the rename in Step 1. I just like to be obvious.
    b. You can check after the rename of Step 1 by clicking on a link if you've put Favorites in your Start Menu--you should get an error message and the program won't launch.
    c. Why not just rename the iexplore.exe instead of the whole folder? Because I'm dumb enough not to know for certain whether any of the subroutines (.dll files and the like) in the 64-bit folder might also be optimized for 64-bit operation. This way, I think I've covered it all.]
     
  6. StevenLawyer

    StevenLawyer MDL Novice

    Apr 26, 2012
    1
    1
    0
    You can accomplish the same a little more elegantly using the NTFS file system's inherent feature called symbolic links (also called NTFS junctions). A symbolic link appears to Windows and any programs running in Windows as a real directory but is, in fact, a pointer redirecting the program to another drive or folder. Windows uses symbolic links to maintain backward compatibility. For example, in Windows 7, there is a hidden symbolic link in the root directory entitled “Documents and Settings” that points to the “Users” directory in order to maintain backward compatibility with programs written for XP (turn off “Hide Protected Operating System Files” in Folder Options and see for yourself—after looking, don’t forget to turn it back on!).

    Sidenote: I use symbolic links to relocate all of those unwelcome folders in My Documents created by various programs. I did a write up on that at sevenforums (I can't post links on this site because I am a new member here).

    Here's how to make 64-bit IE your default browser in all circumstances. Note, following these steps will disable 32-bit IE. However, it is simple to switch the default back to 32-bit when a page must be opened in 32-bit.

    1. Google sysinternals and download the Junction application (Note: Sysinternals has a plethora of great apps worth checking out). Save the executable somewhere easy to find, like the root of your hard drive (i.e., “c:\”).

    2. In Windows Explorer (with IE not open--so print these directions), rename the “Internet Explorer” directory in “c:\program files (x86)” to “Internet Explorer 32bit”.

    The 64-bit version of IE is located in the "Internet Explorer" directory in "c:\program files". We are going to create a symbolic link at "c:\program files (x86)\Internet Explorer" that redirects to "c:\program files\Internet Explorer". This will cause all programs--including Windows--to run the 64-bit version when they go to what appears to be the folder at "c:\program files (x86)\Internet Explorer" but what will be, in fact, a symbolic link. (Note: One can quickly change the symbolic link to point to the "Internet Explorer 32bit" folder that contains the 32-bit version. I use scripts to allow me to quickly change the default back and forth).​


    3. Open an elevated command prompt. To do so, in the Windows Search box, type “cmd”. Right click on “cmd.exe” and select to “Run as Administrator”.

    4. At the command prompt, navigate to the directory in which you saved “junction.exe”
    Example:
    c:\Windows\system32> cd c:\​


    5. Type the following command:
    Junction "c:\program files (x86)\Internet Explorer" "c:\program files\Internet Explorer"​


    If you want to change back to 32-bit, just type the following two commands at the elevated command prompt:
    Junction -d "c:\program files (x86)\Internet Explorer"
    Junction "c:\program files (x86)\Internet Explorer" "c:\program files (x86)\Internet Explorer 32bit"​


    The first command is necessary to remove the existing symbolic link before creating the replacement one.

    That's all there is too it. As I said above, one can create scripts (batch, powershell, or vbs) to make switching back and forth easy.

    Cheers,