Open a file not using default program

Question

How in c# can I make a file open with a specified program ie: not the default program for that file type

Take look at this [post](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/4055266/open-a-file-with-notepad-in-c-sharp) — Alpay, Mar 04 '13 at 21:29

D Stanley · Answer 1 · 2013-03-04T21:43:05.510

5

If you can build a command-line to run the program (including passing the input file as a command-line parameter) than build the command line ans use Process.Start.

Of course this assumes

you know the path to the program's executable
you know how to pass the filename as a command-line parameter.

How 2. works depends on the program. It could be as simple as

Process.Start("MyProgram.exe","MyFile.dat")

But other programs may require a command-line switch or other information.

edited Mar 04 '13 at 21:43

answered Mar 04 '13 at 21:27

D Stanley

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1) is a yes 2) i do not, could you give a example? – Froodle Mar 04 '13 at 21:29
1

2) depends on the program. Read it's docs or search for the program name in the registry to get the start options. – D Stanley Mar 04 '13 at 21:31

score 3 · Accepted Answer · answered Mar 04 '13 at 21:29

You can use the System.Diagnostics.Process(String, String) method that you can find further documentation here

Sample:

// Start a Web page using a browser associated with .html and .asp files.
Process.Start("IExplore.exe", "C:\\myPath\\myFile.htm");

For future posts, I suggest you post code that you have already attempted/written to help us better help you.

score 0 · Answer 3 · answered Jul 06 '21 at 09:18

All the answers I found on the internet say that you can just use Process.Start("MyProgram.exe")

but I always get an exception that the file is not found so I got it working by specifying the full path to the .exe file in the installation folder

Process.Start(@"C:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe")

you can find the installation folder by clicking on the right mouse button on a shortcut in the desktop and press Open file location.

Open a file not using default program

3 Answers3