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"Always ask when opening this file" - is the action correct on W7?



 
 
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  #1  
Old February 24th 18, 08:43 PM posted to alt.windows7.general
J. P. Gilliver (John)[_4_]
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Posts: 2,679
Default "Always ask when opening this file" - is the action correct on W7?

I have a vague memory that under XP, or something earlier, unticking
that box did more than the question implied - as if it was applying to
all files of that _type_ (such as .exe), or something. Is this fixed in
7, so that if I untick that box when the UAC comes up, _only_ that file
will be permitted without a UAC prompt in future? In other words, is it
safe to untick that box, or will doing so have consequences beyond what
the shown question imply? (Doesn't turn off all UAC prompts, for
example?)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

Today, I dare say more people know who starred as /The Vicar of Dibley/ than
know the name of the vicar of their local parish. - Clive Anderson, Radio
Times 15-21 January 2011.
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  #2  
Old February 25th 18, 06:04 AM posted to alt.windows7.general
VanguardLH[_2_]
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Posts: 10,881
Default "Always ask when opening this file" - is the action correct on W7?

J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:

I have a vague memory that under XP, or something earlier, unticking
that box did more than the question implied - as if it was applying to
all files of that _type_ (such as .exe), or something. Is this fixed in
7, so that if I untick that box when the UAC comes up, _only_ that file
will be permitted without a UAC prompt in future? In other words, is it
safe to untick that box, or will doing so have consequences beyond what
the shown question imply? (Doesn't turn off all UAC prompts, for
example?)


The checkbox to which you partially referred is actually titled "Always
use the selected program to open *this kind of file*" (emphasis added).
This is the option's name in Windows 7. I don't have a Windows XP to
see what was the name of the same option under that OS.

That option affects file association: filetyping by extension (and why a
file with no extension cannot be filetyped or associated to a handler
other than using a registry hack for ALL files with no extension).
Filetype association has nothing to do with UAC (which is based on
privileges, not filetypes). If you want to see the current list of
filetype associates, you can run 'assoc' (no arguments) in a command
shell or use Nirsoft's FileTypeMan (as alternatives to the "File Types"
tab in the 'Folder Options' of Windows Explorer).
  #3  
Old February 25th 18, 09:35 AM posted to alt.windows7.general
J. P. Gilliver (John)[_4_]
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Posts: 2,679
Default "Always ask when opening this file" - is the action correct on W7?

In message , VanguardLH
writes:
J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:

I have a vague memory that under XP, or something earlier, unticking
that box did more than the question implied - as if it was applying to
all files of that _type_ (such as .exe), or something. Is this fixed in
7, so that if I untick that box when the UAC comes up, _only_ that file
will be permitted without a UAC prompt in future? In other words, is it
safe to untick that box, or will doing so have consequences beyond what
the shown question imply? (Doesn't turn off all UAC prompts, for
example?)


The checkbox to which you partially referred is actually titled "Always
use the selected program to open *this kind of file*" (emphasis added).
This is the option's name in Windows 7. I don't have a Windows XP to
see what was the name of the same option under that OS.

That option affects file association: filetyping by extension (and why a

[]
No, I know that one; the question in the subject header was copied
verbatim. Unfortunately, I can't reproduce it at the moment! It was more
a UAC than a file-association type situation, though - when running a
specific utility.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

Diplomacy is the art of letting someone have your way.
  #4  
Old February 25th 18, 11:34 AM posted to alt.windows7.general
Steve Hayes[_2_]
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Posts: 1,089
Default "Always ask when opening this file" - is the action correct on W7?

On Sat, 24 Feb 2018 19:43:55 +0000, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote:

I have a vague memory that under XP, or something earlier, unticking
that box did more than the question implied - as if it was applying to
all files of that _type_ (such as .exe), or something. Is this fixed in
7, so that if I untick that box when the UAC comes up, _only_ that file
will be permitted without a UAC prompt in future? In other words, is it
safe to untick that box, or will doing so have consequences beyond what
the shown question imply? (Doesn't turn off all UAC prompts, for
example?)


How do I get to see that box to untick?

I have one file that always pops up something askinh if I want to open
it when I open it in Win 7, though not in XP. It's I program I use a
lotso it's a nuisance having to click three times to open it.


--
Steve Hayes
http://www.khanya.org.za/stevesig.htm
http://khanya.wordpress.com
  #5  
Old February 25th 18, 03:22 PM posted to alt.windows7.general
JJ[_11_]
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Posts: 744
Default "Always ask when opening this file" - is the action correct on W7?

On Sat, 24 Feb 2018 19:43:55 +0000, J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
I have a vague memory that under XP, or something earlier, unticking
that box did more than the question implied - as if it was applying to
all files of that _type_ (such as .exe), or something.


No it doesn't. The checkbox setting only applies to a single file (more
explanation below).

Is this fixed in
7, so that if I untick that box when the UAC comes up, _only_ that file
will be permitted without a UAC prompt in future?


It's not a bug, and it's an entirely separate security than UAC. Disabling
it won't disable the UAC prompt, and vice versa.

In other words, is it
safe to untick that box, or will doing so have consequences beyond what
the shown question imply? (Doesn't turn off all UAC prompts, for
example?)


That dialog will only appear for executable files which are downloaded from
the internet (including those which are attachments of a downloaded email),
into an NTFS drive. It's a Zone Identifier feature which is part of Windows'
Security Zone feature. The file is specially marked using a file stream
named "Zone.Identifier" if it was downloaded from a site which falls into
the internet zone category (rather than trusted sites zone, or local
intranet zone). MSIE, Edge, download managers which uses Windows' Internet
API, and those which specifically support Zone Identifier, will apply this
marker. Firefox also supports this. IIRC, Chrome doesn't.

Zone Identifier is still supported even in the newest Windows version.

The "Zone.Identifier" file stream can be seen using the DIR /R command from
the command prompt. It'll show something like below.

07/05/2010 20:33 3,584,456 setup.exe
26 setup.exe:Zone.Identifier:$DATA

To disable the marker creation, enable the "Do not preserve zone information
in file attachments" setting in the Group Policy. Note that it's only a
setting. It won't remove any markers which have been applied onto files.

To remove the markers, you'll have to do it manually by opening the file
properties dialog of the marked file. The setting will be shown at the
bottom of the "General" tab. Click the "Unblock" button.

To batch-remove the markers, unfortunately, the DEL command can't delete a
file stream (at least on Windows 7), so you'll have to either use
PowerShell's Unblock-File cmdlet, Microsoft's Streams tool, or any third
party tool.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/streams
  #6  
Old February 25th 18, 10:52 PM posted to alt.windows7.general
J. P. Gilliver (John)[_4_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 2,679
Default "Always ask when opening this file" - is the action correct on W7?

In message , JJ
writes:
On Sat, 24 Feb 2018 19:43:55 +0000, J. P. Gilliver (John) wrote:
I have a vague memory that under XP, or something earlier, unticking
that box did more than the question implied - as if it was applying to
all files of that _type_ (such as .exe), or something.


No it doesn't. The checkbox setting only applies to a single file (more
explanation below).

Is this fixed in
7, so that if I untick that box when the UAC comes up, _only_ that file
will be permitted without a UAC prompt in future?


It's not a bug, and it's an entirely separate security than UAC. Disabling
it won't disable the UAC prompt, and vice versa.

In other words, is it
safe to untick that box, or will doing so have consequences beyond what
the shown question imply? (Doesn't turn off all UAC prompts, for
example?)


That dialog will only appear for executable files which are downloaded from
the internet (including those which are attachments of a downloaded email),
into an NTFS drive. It's a Zone Identifier feature which is part of Windows'
Security Zone feature. The file is specially marked using a file stream
named "Zone.Identifier" if it was downloaded from a site which falls into
the internet zone category (rather than trusted sites zone, or local
intranet zone). MSIE, Edge, download managers which uses Windows' Internet
API, and those which specifically support Zone Identifier, will apply this
marker. Firefox also supports this. IIRC, Chrome doesn't.


Thanks. I think I understand that. It's likely that the prog.s where I'm
getting it _are_ ones I've downloaded, as I've recently switched
machines, and it's often easier just to fetch a new version (and/or
because I wasn't sure if the XP installer I had was appropriate for 7).
Actually, since I started this thread, the box hasn't come up!

So, basically, if I untick it, it _will_ only allow _that program_ to
run without asking, not anything else. Thanks for that.

Zone Identifier is still supported even in the newest Windows version.

The "Zone.Identifier" file stream can be seen using the DIR /R command from
the command prompt. It'll show something like below.

07/05/2010 20:33 3,584,456 setup.exe
26 setup.exe:Zone.Identifier:$DATA

To disable the marker creation, enable the "Do not preserve zone information
in file attachments" setting in the Group Policy. Note that it's only a
setting. It won't remove any markers which have been applied onto files.


Thanks. Can I take it that unticking the question in that box if it
comes up clears the relevant marker?

To remove the markers, you'll have to do it manually by opening the file
properties dialog of the marked file. The setting will be shown at the
bottom of the "General" tab. Click the "Unblock" button.


Thanks - all noted (well, your post marked as keep; I'll possibly not
remember the goodies that are in it!).

To batch-remove the markers, unfortunately, the DEL command can't delete a
file stream (at least on Windows 7), so you'll have to either use
PowerShell's Unblock-File cmdlet, Microsoft's Streams tool, or any third
party tool.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/streams


It isn't coming up that often, so I don't think I need to batch-remove -
I'll just untick the boxes as they appear.
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/1985 MB++G()AL-IS-Ch++(p)Ar@T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

If you believe in telekinesis, raise my right hand
 




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