Incorrect default action on PDF context menu / "Open with" missing

Help & Support
1

Hello community,

I'm experiencing a persistent context menu issue specifically with PDF files in Directory Opus. Instead of the standard "Open" action, DOpus forces random incorrect default actions (bolded), and the standard "Open with" option is entirely missing.

Here is the exact behavior (see screenshots):

  • Standard Right-Click: "Cut" is set as the default (bold) action.
  • Shift + Right-Click (Extended): A third-party shell extension ("Upload to Imgur") is set as the default (bold) action.
  • In both cases, the standard Windows "Open with" dialogue is nowhere to be found in the context menu.

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Standard Context Menu

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Context Menu with Shift key

Some context:

  • This issue is isolated to Directory Opus. In standard Windows Explorer, everything works: PDFs open with the default editor (PDF-XChange) and the "Open with" menu is present.
  • I have already deleted the specific DOpus file type override for .pdf under Settings -> File Types to force a fallback to the Windows default, but the menu remains broken in DOpus.
  • I have also done a complete reset of DOpus' settings to default. Even then, the same behavior was present.

How can I completely clear this behavior in DOpus and restore the native Windows context menu for PDFs, so that "Open" is the default action and "Open with" returns?

Thanks for any assistance.

2

Can you remember what you deleted?

Opus doesn’t create a PDF override or do anything to the PDF file type by itself.

Have you tried using right-click on a PDF, then Open With > Choose Default Program?

3

Unfortunately not exactly, but it didn't change anything.

The problem is that the Open With entry is not even there.

4

You can get with a button

FileType OPENWITHMENU
5

Do you mean that will restore the 'Open With' context menu entry?

6

No, it will contain the option Choose Default Program.

2026-05-17 - 22.07.44
2026-05-17 - 22.07.44362×496 28.4 KB

7

Okay thanks, that's a workaround, but how come that the 'Open With' context menu entry would disappear at all? Something seems to be broken.

8

You might have Windows items hidden on context menus, or have removed the default Open With item from the menus in Opus.

Did using Choose Default Program work to solve the main issue?

9

I believe it was the latest version of PDF-XChange Editor (v11) that had caused the problem somehow.

The publisher has since withdrawn it due to this and other issues.

After going back to PDF-XChange Editor v10, Opus' behavior is mostly normal again.

Except, the "Open With..." Menu entry is still missing in Opus -- and has been for a couple of months.

10

the "Open With..." Menu entry is still missing in Opus -- and has been for a couple of months

Any ideas about why this would be the case and how to resolve this would be very welcome.

11

Probably a Win11 problem. Add the button as a context menu until the original comes back.

12

Have you turned on Preferences / Miscellaneous / Shell Extensions / Hide Windows & third-party items on file context menus (Shift overrides)?

That will hide the Open With item unless you hold Shift when opening the menu, or explicitly add an item which runs FileType OPENWITHMENU to (e.g.) the All Files context menu under Settings > File Types.

13

But in Windows 11 Explorer the "Open With" menu item is present.

The "Open With" menu item is missing in Opus even when holding down Shift when right-clicking on things? (as shown in the screenshot in my first post)

14

Is it present in File Explorer?

15

Yes, it's there in

16

Sorry for missing that. I actually searched the thread for "Explorer" and Chrome said there were no instances of the word, despite it being right there. Ctrl-F in Chrome seems completely broken these days.

Have you tried adding FileType OPENWITHMENU to the All Files context menu? That should force Opus to show it.

17

Awesome, that worked instantly, thanks very much.

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