Configure Default Browser in Regedit

This article provides a direct guide on how to configure default browser protocols, specifically HTTP and HTTPS, using the Windows Registry Editor (Regedit). By navigating to specific registry paths and updating the target application identifiers (ProgIDs), you can associate web protocols with your browser of choice.

Step 1: Identify Your Browser’s ProgID

Before modifying the registry, you need the Programmatic Identifier (ProgID) of your desired browser:

• Google Chrome: ChromeHTML
• Microsoft Edge: MSEdgeHTM
• Mozilla Firefox: FirefoxURL or FirefoxHTML
• Brave Browser: BraveHTML

Step 2: Open the Registry Editor

1. Press Windows Key + R to open the Run dialog box.
2. Type regedit and press Enter.
3. Click Yes if prompted by User Account Control (UAC).

Step 3: Configure UserChoice for HTTP and HTTPS

In Windows, user-specific protocol associations are stored under the UrlAssociations key.

For HTTP:

1. In the Registry Editor address bar, navigate to:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Associations\UrlAssociations\http\UserChoice

2. Double-click the ProgId string value in the right pane.

3. Set the Value data field to your browser’s ProgID (e.g., ChromeHTML).

4. Click OK.

For HTTPS:

1. Navigate to:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Associations\UrlAssociations\https\UserChoice

2. Double-click the ProgId string value in the right pane.

3. Set the Value data field to the identical ProgID used for HTTP.

4. Click OK.

Step 4: Configure Protocol Handlers (System-Wide Fallback)

To ensure system-level components recognize the browser, update the base protocol handlers:

1. Navigate to:

   HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\http\shell\open\command

2. Double-click the (Default) value.

3. Set the value to the full path of the browser executable followed by "%1".
   Example for Chrome:

   "C:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe" -- "%1"

4. Repeat the same step for the HTTPS key at:

   HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\https\shell\open\command

Step 5: Apply and Verify Changes

1. Close the Registry Editor.
2. Restart the Windows Explorer process via Task Manager or reboot your computer to ensure the new registry settings take effect.
3. Click any web link in an external application (such as an email client or text document) to confirm that it opens in your specified browser.