Enable Classic Windows Photo Viewer in Regedit

The classic Windows Photo Viewer is still built into modern versions of Windows, but it is hidden and restricted to viewing TIFF files by default. This guide provides the exact Registry Editor (Regedit) entries required to re-enable Windows Photo Viewer for standard image formats like JPG, PNG, BMP, and GIF, along with instructions on setting it as your default image viewer.

Step 1: Open the Registry Editor

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

Step 2: Navigate to the File Associations Key

In the Registry Editor, navigate to the following path using the left sidebar, or copy and paste it into the address bar at the top:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Photo Viewer\Capabilities\FileAssociations

Step 3: Add the Image Format Entries

To make Windows Photo Viewer recognize common image formats, you need to create a String Value for each file extension:

1. Right-click on an empty space in the right pane.
2. Select New > String Value.
3. Name the value as the file extension (e.g., .jpg).
4. Double-click the newly created string value.
5. In the Value data field, enter: PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff
6. Click OK.

Repeat this process for all desired image file formats. The most common entries to add are:

Alternative: Create and Import a .reg File

Instead of adding entries manually, you can apply all changes instantly using a registry script:

1. Open Notepad.
2. Copy and paste the following code into the text document:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Photo Viewer\Capabilities\FileAssociations]
".bmp"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".gif"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".jpeg"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".jpg"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".png"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".tif"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".tiff"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"

3. Click File > Save As.
4. Set the Save as type dropdown to All Files (.).
5. Name the file EnablePhotoViewer.reg and save it to your desktop.
6. Double-click the saved .reg file and confirm the prompt to merge the entries into your registry.

Step 4: Set Windows Photo Viewer as the Default App

1. Right-click any image file on your computer.
2. Select Open with > Choose another app.
3. Select Windows Photo Viewer from the list.
4. Check the box labeled Always use this app to open files and click OK.