Functions/GenXdev.Webbrowser/Get-DefaultWebbrowser.ps1
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Part of PowerShell module : GenXdev.Webbrowser Original cmdlet filename : Get-DefaultWebbrowser.ps1 Original author : René Vaessen / GenXdev Version : 1.300.2025 ################################################################################ Copyright (c) René Vaessen / GenXdev Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0 Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations under the License. ################################################################################> ############################################################################### <# .SYNOPSIS Returns the configured default web browser for the current user. .DESCRIPTION Retrieves information about the system's default web browser by querying the Windows Registry. Returns a hashtable containing the browser's name, description, icon path, and executable path. The function checks both user preferences and system-wide browser registrations to determine the default browser. .EXAMPLE Get detailed information about the default browser Get-DefaultWebbrowser | Format-List .EXAMPLE Launch the default browser with a specific URL $browser = Get-DefaultWebbrowser & $browser.Path https://www.github.com/ .OUTPUTS System.Collections.Hashtable with keys: Name, Description, Icon, Path .NOTES Requires Windows 10 or later operating system #> function Get-DefaultWebbrowser { [CmdletBinding()] [OutputType([System.Collections.Hashtable])] param() begin { # define registry paths for url associations and browser information $urlAssocPath = 'HKCU:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Associations\' + 'UrlAssociations\https\UserChoice' $browserPath = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Clients\StartMenuInternet' # ensure HKCU registry drive is available if (!(Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Test-Path HKCU:)) { $null = Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\New-PSDrive -Name HKCU -PSProvider Registry ` -Root HKEY_CURRENT_USER } # ensure HKLM registry drive is available if (!(Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Test-Path HKLM:)) { $null = Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\New-PSDrive -Name HKLM -PSProvider Registry ` -Root HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE } Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose 'Retrieving default browser URL handler configuration' # get the default handler ID for HTTPS URLs from user preferences $urlHandlerId = Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Get-ItemProperty -Path $urlAssocPath | Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Select-Object -ExpandProperty ProgId Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose "URL handler ID: $urlHandlerId" } process { Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose 'Scanning installed browsers in registry' # iterate through all registered browsers in the system foreach ($browser in (Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Get-ChildItem -LiteralPath $browserPath)) { # construct the full registry path for the current browser $browserRoot = Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Join-Path $browserPath $browser.PSChildName # verify browser has required registry keys for URL handling if ((Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Test-Path -LiteralPath "$browserRoot\shell\open\command") -and (Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Test-Path -LiteralPath "$browserRoot\Capabilities\URLAssociations")) { # get the HTTPS handler ID for this browser $browserHandler = Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Get-ItemProperty ` -Path "$browserRoot\Capabilities\URLAssociations" | Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Select-Object -ExpandProperty https # check if this browser is the default handler if ($browserHandler -eq $urlHandlerId) { Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose "Found default browser: $browserRoot" # return browser details in a hashtable return @{ Name = (Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Get-ItemProperty "$browserRoot\Capabilities" | Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Select-Object -ExpandProperty ApplicationName) Description = (Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Get-ItemProperty "$browserRoot\Capabilities" | Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Select-Object -ExpandProperty ApplicationDescription) Icon = (Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Get-ItemProperty "$browserRoot\Capabilities" | Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Select-Object -ExpandProperty ApplicationIcon) Path = (Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Get-ItemProperty "$browserRoot\shell\open\command" | Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Select-Object -ExpandProperty '(default)').Trim('"') } } } } } end { } } |