PDF-ShellTools in Windows 11 Home - context menu

[P. Allan]

I don't know when it happened but the version 3.4.2.0 has vanished form the explorer context menu. I have tried restarting the explorer, reinstalling the PDFST - but it didn't help. (The settings in the manager is also in place.)

[RTT]

What is you current system default PDF app?
Does the problem gets fixed if you set it to the PDF-ShellTools Reader?

[P. Allan]

Hi Rui

The setting of the default pdf app (for double click, "Open with" item and so on (always) work.

Setting the internal PDFST-reader also does that. But the Shell-Tools doesn't show up in the context menu.

[RTT]

The shell context menu in Windows 11 uses a compact design and you need to click its "show more options" item to show the legacy context menu, where the PDF-ShellTools item will show (to show the legacy context menu directly use the Shift+Righ-click shortcut).

Please confirm the missing PDFST context menu is indeed in the legacy menu.

It is missing also from a file open dialog from a 32-bit program, e.g. from the PDF-ShellTools Reader file open dialog?

[P. Allan]

Hi again

Indeed it is in the "old" menu it is missing. I have never used other in W11.

I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling PDFST,  re-activated the legacy menu, manually regsvr32 of the PDST-dll's (lots of restarts of the PC).

I have the same experience with another - and slightly older - shell app, PathCopyCopy. There was an advice to install it "for me only". And when this not was en option in the installer, move the content of the app folder to a folder under "C:\Users\[user]\AppData\Local\Programs" and register the dll's manually. Sounded like a rather doubtful advice, and it didn't work.

Can't get them to show up.

[P. Allan]

Problem solved - but not quite explained.

I used nirsoft ShellExView and saw, that the PDFST was disabled. Enabled it and everything is OK.

But why disabled?

I removed PathCopyCopy earlier because of the above mentioned problem. Now I reinstalled it.

In ShellExView it showed up - but was disabled. Enabled it like with PDFST.

Both are now active in the shell (contextmenu).

Thanks for Your always quick and kind help.

[RTT]

Then the PDF-ShellTools registration code is missing some corner case.
If you have the time, search the Windows registry for this key name {E3FD95C1-D5B1-4929-B0EC-C156318EDD8F}, and take note, in a text editor, of all the key paths of the found ones.

Use the ShellExView tool to disable the PDFST context menu extension, and repeat the above registry search.

Now use the PDFST manager.exe to enable the extension, and repeat the above registry search.

Notice any change?
Is the context menu item still showing, or you need to use the ShellExView tool again?

[P. Allan]

Take note ... of all the key paths of the found ones.: Hmmm - notes. There 25 keys found.

Use the ShellExView tool to disable the PDFST context menu extension: Done - 5 items regarding PDFST disabled.

Repeat the above registry search.: Then there are 27 keys found.

Now use the PDFST manager.exe to enable the extension: Done - but the manager shows all the needed blue check marks. So I just opened and closed, confirming changes.

, and repeat the above registry search.: We are back to 25 keys found.

Is the context menu item still showing: Still not showing since the disabling above.

, or you need to use the ShellExView tool again?: Yes. And then its showing, and (of course) working.

[RTT]

You have to tell me the extra keys, regarding that CLSID, that got added by the ShellExView.

Maybe the RegistryChangesView tool, from the same author of the ShellExView, can help?
But, in this case, just manually comparing the keys regarding that CLSID may be sufficient.

[P. Allan]

Sorry - my mistake.

There are no differences before and after the PDFST is disabled and enabled with the ShellExView.

27 identical keys in both states.

Both the purpose of operating the PDFST with ShellExView is fulfilled - as mentioned. The tools "switches" off and on in the context menu.

[RTT]

So what is the ShellExView changing in the registry?
Disabling the PDFST context menu handler with the ShellExView tool, then entering the PDFST manager and applying the changes at exit (because it detects something is not fully registered) does not enable it.

In this not fixed registration situation, using the RegistryChangesView tool I mentioned, you can now take a snapshot of the registry, then enable the context menu with the ShellExView tool and then compare the registry changes.

[P. Allan]

OK. Is these the steps, I must perform:

1. Disable the PDFST 6 items in the viewer.

2. Uncheck the Context Menu Tools in the PDFST manager and save the setting.

3. Take a snapshot with RegistryChangesView.

4. Enable the PDFST 6 items in the viewer. But don't touch the manager?

5. Take another snapshot with RegistryChangesView.

6. Upload the (entire) results from RegistryChangesView to this forum thread.

[RTT]

The steps are:

1. Disable the PDFST context menu handler with the ShellExView tool.
2. Run the PDFST manager and enable the usual handlers you use (if any is disabled) and apply the changes if asked for when exiting.
3. Use the Windows Task Manager to restart the Windows File Explorer.
4. Check if the PDFST context menu shows in the File Explorer for PDF files.

The next steps are only needed if the context menu is not showing.

5. Take a snapshot with the RegistryChangesView tool.
6. Enable the PDFST context menu handler with the ShellExView tool.
7. With the RegistryChangesView tool create a diff .reg file of the current registry against the snapshot and upload it to the forum.

 

[P. Allan]

I hope I understand!

After performing the steps 1 - 3, PDFST context menu doesn't show up in the file explorer for PDF files (step 4).

After performing steps 5 - 7, I attach the diff file. (In txt format. .reg is not allowed.)

[RTT]

You understood perfectly, Peder!
I didn't know it was possible to block a registered shell extension by putting its CLSID at the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Shell Extensions\Blocked key. That's the technique the ShellExView tool is using and because of that the PDFST extensions registration code is not able to even detect the situation.
No idea if your original problem was this one, i.e. the menu was not showing because its CLSID got somehow added to this key, or if it was related to something else and only got added when you started using the ShellExView to try to fix the problem.

Anyway, I have now made some changes to the code to handle this situation.

Thank you very much for reporting the problem and all the tests you made.