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Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser

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Tutorial: 
How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser
[Tested only once. By me. Today. On Windows 10. For privacy.]

Today I set up a bogus default web browser in Windows 10 that I document 
below so that others who are annoyed by "things popping up" can annul them.

Normally I'd want to set up the Mozilla-based Tor web browser (TBB)
as the browser default since it doesn't connect automatically by default.

But apparently Tor isn't registered as a web browser in Windows.
We could register Tor as a browser - but this may be a better way.

1. Create a batch file that does whatever you want
2. Convert that batch file to a Windows executable
3. Define that executable as a web browser in the registry
4. Set that "web browser" as your default Windows browser

I had never done this before, so I write this up for you, 
so that you too can define anything you want as your default
web browser in Windows.

My batch file simply appends to a text log & edits it for viewing:
 @echo off
 REM C:\path\to\dummybrowser.bat 20250819 revision 1.0
 set LOGFILE=C:\path\to\dummybrowser.log
 echo [%date% %time%] Attempted launch: %* >> %LOGFILE%
 start "" "C:\path\to\gvim.exe" "%LOGFILE%"
 exit

Since Windows won't set the default web browser to a batch
file, let's convert that dummybrowser.bat to dummybrowser.exe
using any of a number of batch-to-executable converters.
 <https://github.com/l-urk/Bat-To-Exe-Converter-64-Bit/releases>
 <https://github.com/l-urk/Bat-To-Exe-Converter-64-Bit/releases/download/3.2/Bat_To_Exe_Converter_x64.exe>
 1. Open that "Bat To Exe Converter v3.2" executable.
 2. Select your .bat file using the folder icon.
 3. At the right, in Options, there is "Exe-Format" with these choices
    32-bit | Console (Visible)
    32-bit | Windows (Invisible)
    64-bit | Console (Visible)
    64-bit | Windows (Invisible) <== Use this to compile a batch file
    as a 64-bit GUI-style exe that runs silently with no console window.
 4. Click the "Convert" button to convert batch to exe.
    (Optional) Add an icon or version info.
 5. Choose your output path in the "Save as" field.
    C:\path\to\dummybrowser.exe

But you still can't set the dummy browser yet as it's not registered.
 Win+I > Apps > Default apps > Web browser > 
That gives you the following four choices, none of which work yet.
 Choose default apps by file type
 Choose default apps by protocol
 Set defaults by app
 Recommended browser settings

You first need to register your exe as a browser in the registry:
 HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet

To do that, right-click "merge" this registry file:
 C:\> gvim C:\path\to\register_dummy_browser.reg

 Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\DummyBrowser]
 @="Dummy Browser"

 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\DummyBrowser\Capabilities]
 "ApplicationName"="Dummy Browser"
 "ApplicationDescription"="A privacy-preserving dummy browser"

 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\DummyBrowser\Capabilities\FileAssociations]
 ".htm"="DummyBrowserHTML"
 ".html"="DummyBrowserHTML"

 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\DummyBrowser\Capabilities\URLAssociations]
 "http"="DummyBrowserHTML"
 "https"="DummyBrowserHTML"

 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\DummyBrowserHTML\shell\open\command]
 @="\"C:\\path\\to\\dummybrowser.exe\" \"%1\""

 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\RegisteredApplications]
 "Dummy Browser"="Software\\Clients\\StartMenuInternet\\DummyBrowser\\Capabilities"

Now you can select the dummy browser as your default web browser.
 Win+I > Apps > Default apps > Web browser > dummybrowser.exe

Voila!

If any rogue process brings up the default browser, it is logged.
And nothing else happens. How kewl is that!

Please improve if you also need privacy in web browser sessions.
 

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Thread

Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser Marion <marion@facts.com> - 2025-08-19 15:34 +0000
  Re: Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser "R.Wieser" <address@is.invalid> - 2025-08-19 19:47 +0200
    Re: Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser Marion <marion@facts.com> - 2025-08-19 21:07 +0000
      Re: Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser "R.Wieser" <address@is.invalid> - 2025-08-20 09:09 +0200
        Re: Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser Marion <marion@facts.com> - 2025-08-21 03:33 +0000
          Re: Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser "R.Wieser" <address@is.invalid> - 2025-08-21 09:49 +0200
      Re: Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser wasbit <wasbit@REMOVEhotmail.com> - 2025-08-20 10:08 +0100
        Re: Tutorial: How to set up any batch script as your Windows default web browser Marion <marion@facts.com> - 2025-08-20 16:32 +0000

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