all icons lead to photoshop

[oddbubble]

I hope someone can help with this because I am well and truly stumped.

I don't no how it happened but every icon on my dads computer now opens Photoshop, same to for every program in the start menu.

I have been through all the program(work,chrome and various others) files and every time I try to open the program from there Photoshop still opens it even happens when I try to open cmd windows.

The only thing that works is the file manager and parts of the control panel, I cant even use the backup restore utility because it opens Photoshop.

I have lent him my laptop as I can't work out a way to fix it without reinstalling windows as I work in IT and have never seen this happen and now I am curious.

I am thinking it might be something in the registry but Its like looking for a needle in a hay stack.

I have also managed to remove Photoshop but still no change only now the icons and everything else opens nothing instead.

 

[Matt_C]

Safe mode?

 

[oddbubble]

I have tried to boot it into safe mode but it don't seam to make any difference

 

[spyder viewer]

When you rt click icon/properties I assume in the target box it shows "photoshop"? Have you tried deleting an icon and re-creating it?

 

[Matt_C]

Or right clicking an icon and changing the target? At least then if you change the target to System Restore, you can roll it back ot when it was working

 

[LJx]

Some info here
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...-program/1277eed6-2add-4bab-9c8d-fe28c6fd1264

http://forums.techguy.org/windows-7/876941-solved-all-icons-programs-open.html

http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/file-asso-fixes-for-windows-7/

 

[oddbubble]

Thanks for the help guys.

after a bit of messing around using what you guys told me I managed to get a few things working But it turned out it was riddled with viruses. I have backed up all the files that were on there and reinstalled windows.

now I'm just waiting for my anti virus to finish scanning my portable hardrive that had the backup on.

I don't think it was the virus that had caused the problems so I am still curious as to how it happened