Launching a .exe from link?

Rahh

Rahh

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Jan 14, 2005
Messages
1,607
I was wanting to put a link on my website that would launch an exe file like microsoft word (or the like) on the persons machine that would be clicking the link?

Can this be done?

Edit: I came across this LaunchinIE and was wondering if anyone has any experience with it or any software like it? Open to suggestions!!!
 
Why do you want to do this? Just to start Word for them?

If your link leads to a file, the shell will try to find the program registered to work with that file extension. That is, if you link to a *.DOC file and the user has *.DOC files registered to be opened with WinWord.EXE, the shell will do so.
 
In general it's not allowed to launch an executable from a web page. For obvious reasons. As a matter of fact any allowance of a web page to execute arbitrary code should be considered a major security hole.
 
This would be from a Internal Web. It would just be nice to add a link on our internal web to launch the software we are using I guess. I know putting a link to a .doc file would do that for word but thats not what I'm trying to accomplish. I will give the software I linked a try and see where that takes me.
 
I think you've missed my point.

Linking to a *.DOC file will launch WinWord. That happens because, when WinWord installs, it registers itself as the handler for *.DOC files.

If you have some other internal application you'd like to launch, then have that application register itself for its file types at install time. Then, link the user to a file of that type. If you don't have control over the application you're launching, then your scenario fits into the scurity concern category: the browser can't allow you to run something the user might not be anticipating when they click on the link.
 
If you don't have control over the application you're launching, then your scenario fits into the scurity concern category: the browser can't allow you to run something the user might not be anticipating when they click on the link.
Click to expand...

Unfortunatly that is the case, though I may be able to setup something because It's on the "Internal Web" that I want to do this. The program launchinIE is supposed to do what I'm looking for I think and am going to give it a shot. Security though is my concern.
 
Look at the installer for most downloadable Dell drivers. They open a README in IE when you unpack them that has a "run it" link at the bottom.
 
It's been a while since I've messed with this kind of thing, but the reason that works is because the README is on the local filesystem, right? That puts it in the "trusted" zone or whatever it's called, so IE puts the page in a much less restricted sandbox. Maybe that's all the OP needs to do: Get the users to put his web page on their "trusted sites" whitelist. Though if anyone I work with ever intentionally caused an executable to be launched on my computer through a web page, they would sure get an earful...
 
I just looked at my "local intranet" settings in IE, and noticed that intranet sites can link to a UNC path. Can your files be linked through UNC?
 
UNC maybe a work around for this since it is internal. Thanks for the tip!
 
You can set the MIME type to the certain application. That way if it is a known type by MIME, it will open the appropriate app.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top