Windows Photo Viewer is one of the things that gets removed, or hidden from access after upgrading to Windows 10. The new Photos app takes charge as the default handler for image files in Windows 10.
The good news is Windows Photo Viewer application still exists in the same location in Windows 10, but what is removed is only its registration. Windows Photo Viewer is a light-weight app similar to the Office Picture Manager and Windows Live Photo Gallery, both of which are discontinued by Microsoft. But, Windows Photo Viewer remains an integral part of Windows.
If you’re not a fan of the new Photos app, you can revert back to the built-in Windows Photo Viewer.
Microsoft is looking to transform most of the built-in Windows 10 tools and programs into modern or UWP apps. That’s probably the reason why Microsoft decided to keep Windows Photo Viewer hidden in Windows 10.
Photo Viewer DLL version comparison between Windows 7 & Windows 10
How to Restore Windows Photo Viewer in Windows 10
To restore Windows Photo Viewer in Windows 10, you need to add the necessary registry keys related to application registration and file associations. After applying the registry file below, the Windows Photo Viewer is displayed as an option in the Default Apps page as well as in the Open with dialog.
Follow these steps to get back Windows Photo Viewer in Windows 10:
- Download restore_windows_photo_viewer_w10.zip, unzip, and double-click the enclosed .reg file.
(Windows Photo Viewer option will now show up in Default Programs or Default Apps, and the file association settings for BMP, DIB, JFIF, JPE, JPEG, JPG, PNG, TIF, TIFF, WDP types are added.)
- Click Start → Settings → Apps → Default apps.
- Under “Photo viewer”, select Windows Photo Viewer from the list.
This associates the above-said image file types with Windows Photo Viewer. To set it as the default viewer for chosen image files types only, click Choose default apps by file type and configure it accordingly.
You can also use the Open with dialog to set Windows Photo Viewer on a per-file type basis.
Note that you may need to re-run the above registry fix after installing a Windows 10 Feature Update every time.
Cannot import the REG file?
If you get this error when running the REG file, no problem. Most of the settings would have been written correctly. Perhaps the file got stuck when writing to TIF/TIFF association settings due to locked down permissions, as the association for TIF/TIFF exists by default in Windows 10. You may ignore the error message and move on.
Contents of the above .reg file
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
;Restore Windows Photo Viewer to Default Apps in Windows 10
;Includes complete association settings for file types handled by Windows Photo Viewer
;http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\RegisteredApplications]
"Windows Photo Viewer"="Software\\Microsoft\\Windows Photo Viewer\\Capabilities"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Photo Viewer\Capabilities]
"ApplicationDescription"="@%ProgramFiles%\\Windows Photo Viewer\\photoviewer.dll,-3069"
"ApplicationName"="@%ProgramFiles%\\Windows Photo Viewer\\photoviewer.dll,-3009"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Photo Viewer\Capabilities\FileAssociations]
".tif"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".tiff"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
".jpg"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg"
".wdp"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Wdp"
".jfif"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.JFIF"
".dib"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Bitmap"
".png"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Png"
".bmp"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Bitmap"
".jpe"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg"
".jpeg"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg"
".gif"="PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Bitmap]
"ImageOptionFlags"=dword:00000001
"FriendlyTypeName"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,\
00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,\
77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,\
00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,33,00,30,00,35,00,36,00,00,\
00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Bitmap\DefaultIcon]
@="%SystemRoot%\\System32\\imageres.dll,-70"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Bitmap\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,72,00,75,00,\
6e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,22,00,25,\
00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,\
25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,\
00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,\
6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
00,22,00,2c,00,20,00,49,00,6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
5f,00,46,00,75,00,6c,00,6c,00,73,00,63,00,72,00,65,00,65,00,6e,00,20,00,25,\
00,31,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Bitmap\shell\open\DropTarget]
"Clsid"="{FFE2A43C-56B9-4bf5-9A79-CC6D4285608A}"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.JFIF]
"EditFlags"=dword:00010000
"ImageOptionFlags"=dword:00000001
"FriendlyTypeName"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,\
00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,\
77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,\
00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,33,00,30,00,35,00,35,00,00,\
00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.JFIF\DefaultIcon]
@="%SystemRoot%\\System32\\imageres.dll,-72"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.JFIF\shell\open]
"MuiVerb"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,\
69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,\
00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,\
72,00,5c,00,70,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,76,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,\
00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,33,00,30,00,34,00,33,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.JFIF\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,72,00,75,00,\
6e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,22,00,25,\
00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,\
25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,\
00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,\
6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
00,22,00,2c,00,20,00,49,00,6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
5f,00,46,00,75,00,6c,00,6c,00,73,00,63,00,72,00,65,00,65,00,6e,00,20,00,25,\
00,31,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.JFIF\shell\open\DropTarget]
"Clsid"="{FFE2A43C-56B9-4bf5-9A79-CC6D4285608A}"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg]
"EditFlags"=dword:00010000
"ImageOptionFlags"=dword:00000001
"FriendlyTypeName"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,\
00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,\
77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,\
00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,33,00,30,00,35,00,35,00,00,\
00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg\DefaultIcon]
@="%SystemRoot%\\System32\\imageres.dll,-72"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg\shell\open]
"MuiVerb"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,\
69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,\
00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,\
72,00,5c,00,70,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,76,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,\
00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,33,00,30,00,34,00,33,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,72,00,75,00,\
6e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,22,00,25,\
00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,\
25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,\
00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,\
6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
00,22,00,2c,00,20,00,49,00,6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
5f,00,46,00,75,00,6c,00,6c,00,73,00,63,00,72,00,65,00,65,00,6e,00,20,00,25,\
00,31,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Jpeg\shell\open\DropTarget]
"Clsid"="{FFE2A43C-56B9-4bf5-9A79-CC6D4285608A}"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Png]
"ImageOptionFlags"=dword:00000001
"FriendlyTypeName"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,\
00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,\
77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,\
00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,33,00,30,00,35,00,37,00,00,\
00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Png\DefaultIcon]
@="%SystemRoot%\\System32\\imageres.dll,-71"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Png\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,72,00,75,00,\
6e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,22,00,25,\
00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,\
25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,\
00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,\
6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
00,22,00,2c,00,20,00,49,00,6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
5f,00,46,00,75,00,6c,00,6c,00,73,00,63,00,72,00,65,00,65,00,6e,00,20,00,25,\
00,31,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Png\shell\open\DropTarget]
"Clsid"="{FFE2A43C-56B9-4bf5-9A79-CC6D4285608A}"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Wdp]
"EditFlags"=dword:00010000
"ImageOptionFlags"=dword:00000001
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Wdp\DefaultIcon]
@="%SystemRoot%\\System32\\wmphoto.dll,-400"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Wdp\shell\open]
"MuiVerb"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,\
69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,\
00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,\
72,00,5c,00,70,00,68,00,6f,00,74,00,6f,00,76,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,\
00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,33,00,30,00,34,00,33,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Wdp\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,72,00,75,00,\
6e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,22,00,25,\
00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,\
25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,\
00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,\
6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
00,22,00,2c,00,20,00,49,00,6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
5f,00,46,00,75,00,6c,00,6c,00,73,00,63,00,72,00,65,00,65,00,6e,00,20,00,25,\
00,31,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Wdp\shell\open\DropTarget]
"Clsid"="{FFE2A43C-56B9-4bf5-9A79-CC6D4285608A}"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Applications\photoviewer.dll\shell\open]
"MuiVerb"="@photoviewer.dll,-3043"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Applications\photoviewer.dll\shell\open\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,72,00,75,00,\
6e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,22,00,25,\
00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,\
25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,\
00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,\
6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
00,22,00,2c,00,20,00,49,00,6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
5f,00,46,00,75,00,6c,00,6c,00,73,00,63,00,72,00,65,00,65,00,6e,00,20,00,25,\
00,31,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Applications\photoviewer.dll\shell\open\DropTarget]
"Clsid"="{FFE2A43C-56B9-4bf5-9A79-CC6D4285608A}"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Applications\photoviewer.dll\shell\print\command]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,72,00,75,00,\
6e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,33,00,32,00,2e,00,65,00,78,00,65,00,20,00,22,00,25,\
00,50,00,72,00,6f,00,67,00,72,00,61,00,6d,00,46,00,69,00,6c,00,65,00,73,00,\
25,00,5c,00,57,00,69,00,6e,00,64,00,6f,00,77,00,73,00,20,00,50,00,68,00,6f,\
00,74,00,6f,00,20,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,5c,00,50,00,68,00,\
6f,00,74,00,6f,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,65,00,72,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,\
00,22,00,2c,00,20,00,49,00,6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,56,00,69,00,65,00,77,00,\
5f,00,46,00,75,00,6c,00,6c,00,73,00,63,00,72,00,65,00,65,00,6e,00,20,00,25,\
00,31,00,00,00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Applications\photoviewer.dll\shell\print\DropTarget]
"Clsid"="{60fd46de-f830-4894-a628-6fa81bc0190d}"
The above procedure works in all builds of Windows 10. It has also been tested in v20H2 and verified to work.
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About the author
Ramesh Srinivasan founded Winhelponline.com back in 2005. He is passionate about Microsoft technologies and he has been a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012.
ik mis in windows 10 de store en dat is zeer hinderlijk
Whoever you are (that wrote this article), long live! Thanks.
why isnt there a one click fix it? this is giving me a headache
there is a one click fix it, very top, zip file. download it and run it. download w10 blahblahblah.zip
Perfect. Very easy to follow. Easy fix. Thanks again!!!!!
Perfect… thanks so much. Saved a lot of manual reg editing….
Thank you, thank you, thank you! Live long and prosper! This was a great and instructive article!
Glad you liked the post, Mike.
Amazing work! Life saver! Great job! Perfect fix!
Thank you so much. It helps a lot.
Incredible! Worked fantastically! Thank you so much
tnx a lot. it works 🙂
Thanks. This worked just fine.
bloody exellent works just great Thankssssssss
it works for me.. thanks dude
Thank you so much! this is really helpful!
@Ella: Glad to hear that. Thanks for writing.
Thank you! You are so damn good!
Thanx a Ton!
I got same problem…
But my friend suggest me to use KrojamSoft PhotoViewerPro and I really like that Photo viewer than default image viewer
Brilliant Just Brilliant!!!!!!
Thanks dude..
Ah-mazing! Thank you!
I’ve got a problem.
when i Click “Choose defaults for this program”, I only find TIF and TIFF formats !
awesome man … thx
Genius. Nicely done my friend 🙂
Thank you! Why does this have to be so hard?!
@Ryan: Because MS is promoting its UWP apps, and classic apps will vanish one by one in future. Fortunately, WPV is not one among the earliest ones to go.
Hi!
Sir,
When double click on this registry file. I found “Cannot import the REG file” and this press “OK” button.
After that, I go to the “Set your default Programme”, i click on Windows Photo Viewer and than “Choose defaults for this program”.
But i have not found other extensions of Images otherwise “TIF/TIFF”.
Help me about this error.
Saved me! So much thanks!
Regarding one click fix, just download Winaero tweaker and it adds photoviewer with one click fix . Also you can tweak many things on windows withit .Sadly to say, the old tweaks used to add Control Userpasswords2 to the Control Panel, but hey, just download the registry Tweak. Remember these are tweaks, not Hacks. One doesn’t hack his registry, by tuning/tweaking/changing settings or values.
Just a quick annoyance rant. This is the third time I’ve needed to fix the Windows Photo Viewer by running the registry editing “Activate-Windows-Photo-Viewer-on-Windows-10” script. It works very well, thank you. One of the few points of control we have in the never-ending stream of software quicksand being dumped on us daily.
Thank you!
Perfect. Thank you
Thanks! , I was really looking for it.
This is the only solution I’ve found that actually works. Thank you!
Thank you, Ramesh !
Didn’t work for me….grrr.
I followed the instructions and it worked. I am very pleased.
I can’t stand the Windows 10 Photos app.
I used the procedure I found on CNET (and other places) that said to copy the code from a “post by Edwin over at TenForums”. It is similar to yours but different. It did not give me Windows Photo Viewer option for default apps for all photo viewing or under individual file types. I can go to a bmp or jpg and select it and check to use on all files of this type. Will your code give me the option under defaults? Can I use this over what I’ve already done? I did a regedit computer export before I updated the registry. Do I need to go back and import this before I use your code?
@Tom: The registry file adds Windows Photo Viewer to the Default Apps. The previous registry file (from Edwin) can be removed, but the presence of those key won’t cause any problem.
Read quite a few posts and yours actually worked with great directions and brilliant outcome. Cheers Super Star !!!!
@Michelle: Thanks for the compliment! Very glad you found the post useful!
Thank you, thank you, thank you!! I cannot say it enough times!
I print A LOT of photos, and I just got a new computer with Win10.
First time I go to print and it wasn’t giving me the option of selecting size and print to frame I almost cried.
You have saved my sanity!
Thank you very very much so easy and it worked in 5 seconds.
many thanks!!!
Thanks a ton!!!! it worked beautifully… Finally, I’m able to toggle between pics…
truly….THANKS 🙂
Thanks soo much, been trying to get this sorted for months!! Bless ya!
many thankss…i finally fix the problem
Worked like a charm. Now I don’t have to wait and waste a lot of time waiting for the photo editing app to start. Like yea,,,, we have to edit every photo we view. Whose bright idea was that? I guess windows is getting too good and we need some app to slow us down. Okay I’m getting tired of been sarcastic. What a relief. Thank you, thank you very much.
Wow, what a difference. I had forgotten how easy photo viewing was before.
Thanks for the easy to follow info.
Thank you for this article. I’ve tried numerous times to fix my Windows Photos – Windows 10 so I gave up. And now I have Windows Photo Editor.
I work on data with light graphics using Windows Photo Viewer. Microsoft didn’t notice that some people out there still depend on WPV. I don’t need all the complications of Photos, MS Paint, Paint 3D, Snip & Sketches, etc. It was sad not to find WPV in Windows 10, V1909. Looked everywhere, until I found this blog. When I ran the .reg file it worked perfectly as expected. My work will be more productive. Thanks, dude!
The normal app in Windows 10, Photos, did not work properly with my Wacom mousepen. I am happy Windows Photo Viewer works again. Thanks!!
Done it. But still not showing in Default Apps
Brilliant. Thanks.
Worked as advertised.
I’ll keep the file in my Tools folder so when there’s another Windows 10 Update, I can restore the viewer. The new W10 Photo App gives me this error when printing photos to my HP ENVY Photo 7855 All-In-One printer.
Before the latest Win 10 update, there wasn’t a problem.
Seems MSFT and HP developers are not talking to each other again.
Worked easily and perfectly. Thank you!
Windows 10 opens .tiff or .tif files in the good old Windows Photo Viewer. If you want to open .jpg or .png files in that app too, the simplest and quickest thing you can do is just put one .tif file together with the .jpg or .png files in the same folder. When you first open that lonely .tif file, then Windows Photo Viewer will open all the .jpg and .png files of the same folder simply using the arrows forth and back…
Perfect solution, thank you Ramesh for you energy and time. Remember people, to run this file as Local Admin, should work first time without errors.
Worked perfectly. Thanks so much.
Does this work with Win10 version 1909?
I’d like to note that you can verify that WPV is installed by looking at the “default programs” for .TIFF.
Yes, it does work in all versions of Windows 10, including 2004.
THANK YOU !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank You! Simple and easy fix!
Doesn’t work on Windows 10 2004 build – Previous and Next buttons are disabled despite all of my JPEG files do not have hidden or read-only attribute set.
@Icepax: If you can upload your .jpg association report (made using FileTypeDiag), I’ll work on this issue. Let’s know.
Thank you so much. This was my solution as the Photos app has a bug that prevents me from clicking next on some pictures. Now i get to keep Photos app for importing pictures and photos viewer for viewing
Thank you for taking the time to share this valuable information that Microsoft didn’t. I find it hard to believe that with updates to a person’s own computer that apps and whatever Microsoft feels they want to remove are removed without notification. It’s like we have no control over our own computers anymore. It’s experts like you that deserve recognition for what you do and at no cost. Microsoft or any of these companies wouldn’t do that, give people options and freedom to choose what they want to keep on their own computer. Thank you again. Your help is not only greatly appreciated, but I hope well documented as it should be.
Thank you very much for your appreciation, TK.
Many thanks, I appreciate your efforts.
Brilliant, thank you