411436 - Firefox changes registry such that hyperlinks can't be opened from Outlook 2007 messages.

Status: UNCONFIRMED

(Firefox :: Installer, defect, P5)

Description

[Steve Zaslaw]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 6.0; en-US; rv:1.9b2) Gecko/2007121120 Firefox/3.0b2
Build Identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 6.0; en-US; rv:1.9b2) Gecko/2007121120 Firefox/3.0b2

Clicking on hyperlinks in inbox messages in Outlook 2007 resulted in error message "This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions in effect on this computer. Please contact your system administrator."

Changing the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\.htm default to htmlfile appears to have fixed the problem. See http://www.cnblogs.com/CrazyCoder/archive/2006/09/06/496187.html

NOTE: In the control panel (classic view) Default Programs dialog, "Set Program Access and computer defaults", "Custom", setting Internet Explorer as your default browser solves the error message problem without hacking the registry, but has the obvious unwanted side effect (to Microsoft's delight, no doubt). 


Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1.Install Firefox 3 Beta 2
2.In outlook 2007, click on an http hyperlink that appears in a mail message that you've received.

Actual Results:  
Received error message as described in "Details" section of this report.

Expected Results:  
Expect my default browser, Firefox 3 Beta 2, to open and access URL.

Comment 1

[Steve Zaslaw]

The reference at http://www.cnblogs.com/CrazyCoder/archive/2006/09/06/496187.html says the following:

"After an uninstall from Firefox 3.0 Beta there was a wrong value of the default ...

So it seems we have to check all the registry class entries with htm!"

Comment 2

[Stan]

I have this exact same problem on Windows 7 x64, Firefox Developer Edition x64 51.0a2 build ID 20160923004002

UserAgent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.1; Win64; x64; rv:51.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/51.0

This only started happening after one of the September 2016 daily updates, possibly only on or after version 50. I don't recall having this problem on versions 40-49.

Comment 3

[Andrew Overholt [:overholt]]

Are you using Outlook? :rstrong, do you know if this should work these days?

Comment 4

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

I know that everything work fine with newer versions of Outlook.

Note: mhowell now owns the installer.

Comment 5

[victor50]

This bug is reintroduced(?) with 57.0 install, which changes registry-keys to "FireFoxHTML" instead of leaving them as they were or changing them to "htmlfile" HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\.html and .htm, shtml, .xht, .xhtml, .xhtm 
Took me about two hours to find out. Finally found solution at https://www.slipstick.com/problems/this-operation-has-been-cancelled-due-to-restrictions/#reg2 (scroll a bit up).

Comment 6

[Molly Howell (she/her) [:mhowell]]

On the page you linked to, do you mean the instructions for resetting HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\​Software\​Classes\​htmlfile or do you mean the "Edit Registry, Part 2" section below that? The former would not be our bug, because we don't modify htmlfile, and the latter should only apply after Firefox has been uninstalled, because the uninstaller won't reset the default browser setting (bug 255225).

Comment 7

[victor50]

It is the section "Edit Registry, Part 2" in which the edit of "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\.html" is explained so I don't understand your question. Any way I still wonder who changed the key to "FireFoxHTML" if not Firefox. I think it highly unlikely that Windows would do this, though I seem to remember that I had to set the default browser to Firefox recently, probably after the major Windows update which was about at the same time.

Comment 8

[Molly Howell (she/her) [:mhowell]]

The installer does change Software\Classes\.html, I didn't mean to imply that we don't. It's htmlfile that we don't touch. But that article is about handling a situation that the uninstaller can create, not the installer; it shouldn't be able to happen while Firefox is still installed (because the problem is that .html is associated with a now-uninstalled browser).

Comment 9

[victor50]

Your answer is confusing. I found this solution when it turned out that after updating FF and/or Windows update links didn't open from Outlook (and from shortcuts on the desktop too), getting the error "cancelled due to restrictions..." or something like that. I tried several "solutions" described elsewhere (fiddling internet explorer settings, uninstalling/reinstalling, setting the default program,...) and none worked save this one. What do you mean when you say that "the installer does change Software\Classes\.html" but "It's htmlfile that we don't touch". I experimented just now setting the default program to IE and back to FF and setting handling of .html to IE and back and the registry keys stayed the same.

Comment 10

[Robbi-Fox]

After removing FF 58 and re-installing for testing of Kaspperski certificate issue (Bug 1434731)
I also had above hyperlink issue . 
At all MS Office 2010 programs the hyperlinks failed with error text as below:
(first noted at MS Outlook // only on my user affercted !, other users still ok!)

(DE Text)
"Dieser Vorgang wurde wegen Beschränkungen auf diesem Computer abgebrochen. Bitte wenden Sie sich an Ihren Systemadministrator."
(EN Text)
"This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions in effect on this computer. Please contact your system administrator."

After long testing with above mentioned ideas (non solved it!) I search and found the soltion at:
>https://www.win-10-forum.de/windows-10-allgemeines/3216-outlook-2013-professional-oeffnet-keine-hyperlinks-mehr-8.html
>Simply download the "IE Linkkorrektur.zip" at 1st page and use 32B or 64B version to correct Regestry setting.
Thanks again to areiland

Is this BUG now alraedy solved at latest FF version > FF 58?