IE7 icon Problem

Firstly, let's clear up the icon definitions. Favicons are those that are downloaded from the linked website and show the websites logo or whatever. The icons that we are all concerned with here in this fourm that are in error are the windows icons. These icons along with an array of others are usually contained in system dll files. Indexes into these files are kept track of in the registry and in the shortcut or favorite itself under properties. For example if the dll has 256 icons and windows calls the dll as shell.dll, 255 the 255 is the index into the icon file. In this case the last one (base 0).

The problem here is with IE7. The registry entries under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT (url and internetshortcut) appear correct.

Icon files or container files contain an array of icons. Windows displays icons based on the index into the icon file. So if you call the icon file followed by a number, the number indicates which icon in the container file is to be used. This value is stored in the favorite or shortcut under properties.

The index in url.dll for favorites is 0. The zero points to the first icon of the array in this dll, which is the correct icon for favorites. There is another container file that windows uses called shell32.dll. The first icon in this container file is the windows default icon. 

Now, when IE7 accesses the favorite, it changes the icon container file name from the url.dll file to the shell32.dll file. Microsoft appears to be ignoring the problem throughout the Beta stage into the final release.

Until Microsoft realizes that there is a problem and fixes it, I suggest changing the icon in the properties dialogs of the offending favorites from  %SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll  to  C:\WINDOWS\system32\url.dll.

Unfortunately, as soon as you access this favorite with IE7, the icon file will be reset to the wrong one again. The solution is to set all of the favorites to read-only until MS comes up with the fix. All browsers based on IE like Maxthon will experience the same problem until the error is corrected by MS.

Sorry I couldn't provide a more permanent fix.

Hi Lance,

Surprisingly, it is still easy to delete or move favorites that are marked as read-only. The only stipulation is that you are required to answer yes to the prompt to move or delete a read-only file. I also suspect, but am not sure, that a disk defragmentation may not move the read-only files. Since they are probably too small to be fragmented, it shouldn't be a problem. With the read-only set, the browser (IE or Maxthon) cannot update the favorite, which again, is not a critical issue for the short-term anyway. So far the solution seem to be holding up well and appears transparent to the user.

Overal though, it appears that IE7 will be a welcome upgrade.

-- Chuck

I am not an IT person, so please excuse my foopahs in relating what I have done and please validate what I have presented, and post elsewhere as suits other related topics.

Note that I also have Monzila Firefox installed on my machine, a HP Pavilion zd8080 running WIndows Media.

I got my desktop IE shortcuts to display the IE7 icon and to launch IE7.

***************************************************************************************

The dead IE shortcut will give you a message to associate a file type via the Folder Options tab, that of itself did not suffice, and could be irrelevant.
The sequence though is as follows:
Open any folder, such as My Documents
Then go to Tools - Folder Options
In Folder Options select File Types tab
Scroll down in Registered file types window and select Internet Shortcut and then,
Click the Advanced button
In the Actions window, select Open and then click on the Edit Button
In the Edit File Type window click on Browse and go to where you installed IE7,

(default is) "C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe"

The above did not suffice for me, so I then went to START - Set Program Access and Defaults where I have a Custom configuration (which is active - bulleted) in addition to the
Microsoft Windows and Non-Microsoft configurations.
I clicked the drop-down arrow of the bulleted (Custom in my case) configuration and
under Choose a default Web browser I clicked on Internet Explorer and then OK.
When I went back through this sequence again I noticed that the Choose a default

Web browser had returned back to Use my current Web browser and all is still well.

*************************************************************************************************

I restored the IE shortcut Icons to IE7 style!

Right click on the dead Icon and select Properties
Under the Web Document tab click on Change Icon and then
paste into the Look for icons in this file: window
C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer and then click on Browse
In the Change Icon window select iexplore.exe and click on Open then go to
the icon at Row 4, Column 2 and select it then
Click OK and as the windows collasp, next click on Apply which will grey out and then click on OK

I also have internet shortcut throughout my file directories. When I looked at them, most had become the new IE7 Icon. The few that still had a broken icon in most cases restored to a site's icon soon after launching to that site via the short cut. The others (I can only speculate were expecting a site's icon) I had to manually establish the IE7 icon as described above.

When I looked I noted that the IE6 icon path was:
%SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll

Best wishes to all.

I did as you recommended. It works superbly. I ran a few tests on some URLs that I knew were susceptible to this error and it passed with flying colors.

Kudos to you. I am very impressed. Thank you.

Chuck

does not completely work for me

if you hover the mouse over the shortcuts you get the location of it

shortcuts that state location is internet explorer still do not function properly

all others do

is there a fix for this also or do i have to live with it

This fix was done and published for Doug Knox in his web page http://www.dougknox.com/xp/fileassoc/xp_url_shortcut_fix.zip

Markus,

I tried your suggested solution and it worked in regards to the icon issue. It did create another problem, however. If I select a favorite from the Favorites folder (that I have put in my Start Menu) , IE7 launches and displays whatever I have selected. If I then select another favorite, IE7 opens two tabs for it , and two tabs each for any subsequent favorite that I select, when it should be opening only one tab each.

This doesn't happen when I select favorites from the Favorites menu within IE7.

Can you locate where in your suggested change to the registry that would be causing this

I am having a simular problem as Chuckster.

I can not change the icon of any internet shortcut. I right-click on shortcut and choose Properties->click Change Icon...<select a different icon>, click OK, click Apply [shows new icon within shortcut properties dialog box], shortcut icon "blinks" [changes and reverts ], click OK to close dialog and shortcut icon remains the same (one in %SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll ). Open the properties dialog again and has default icon again!

This also affects (prohibits) favicons from being assigned to new interent shortcuts.

I seem to be able to change the icon of other types of shortcuts without a problem.

There were a couple of registry hacks posted in response to the original post, but I'm hesitant to apply either as subsequent posts declare they may be insufficient and may cause undesirable behavior beyond the fix.

Do you know if the "proper channels" were alerted and if and when a fix is available

Thanks,

Billy Hildebrand

Thanks wraithdu,

This worked perfectly without side effects.

Thanks again,

Billy

Here the solution:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/930426/en-us

Best wishes.