Apparently, in Windows 11 25H2 you can no longer set a program to just be the default for all the file types it supports.
This is really obnoxious on, for example, VLC, which supports dozens of file types, and of course Windows Media Player registered itself as default after the update.
So, to change it back to what it was just days ago, I need to painstakingly click every single file type that VLC player supports, one by one, and set it to VLC again.
Several options mentioned elsewhere do not work – the Default Program Editor doesn’t work because while Windows didn’t protect me from Media Player to register itself as a default, it sure does protect the registry keys from changes from me.
You also cannot use the “Associate all files” option inside VLC, because that just shows a prompt to use the Windows Default Apps interface – which essentially amounts to having to click 50 file associations to get VLC back (until Media Player overrides it again).
I do realize what Microsoft is up to – by making it extremely time consuming to get the old app back as default, they hope most people will just give up and content with Media Player. However, I like VLC. What are my options, other than clicking 50 file associations, and other than waiting for the EU to do a power move in another 10 years?
