How do I tell IE9 to always open a certain filetype without asking me first?

Set IE as default

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Change-your-default-web-browser

 

Good luck!!

I've IE as default, and the criticized behavior is the same. I think it's a security feature by design to prevent you from running external programs or open external files without a chance to previously checking them. If you know the program or trust the file's source, you can "run" and "open" them but it isn't done without your explicite consent.

Absolutely need this fixed. Our app is a label printer for a medical lab. It needs to open a .bar file for every label printed. NOW, with IE9's lack of consistency with past functionality (as described, no option to check "always do this" re: a filetype as in previous versions), we have nothing but complaints from users.

Awfully poor functionality. This needs a fix. I always feel like I'm dealing with an angry bully with Microsoft products. They take forever to respond to user needs, if ever.

This is absolutely the dumbest thing Microsoft has done. Every time I want to view a picture I have to click on yes. Every version before IE9 had the option to always open a certain file. IE9 comes off my machine now.

 

 

Can't believe more people aren't complaining about the lack of ability to set a default download or open behavior.

This was frustrating to me as well. If you revert back to IE8 and then uncheck the "Always ask before opening this type of file" you are no longer prompted.  This puts a binary value in the following registry key [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\AttachmentExecute\{0002DF01-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}]. 

 

Then if you upgrade to IE9 after this you will not be prompted.  If you do not want to revert back to IE8 you would need to manually put in the binary value that is created when you uncheck that box. 

this does not work, if the download is started by a javascript action,
it works only if user clicks a link?!

Whenever I click on a link to a file in IE9, a prompt appears at the bottom of the screen that says "Do you want to open or save (filename) from (website)?", with the options to "open", "save" or "cancel".

How do I configure IE9 to automatically open a specific filetype without prompting me like this? In previous versions of IE there was an option to "always do X", rather than having to click "open" every single time.

 

Download a file and when IE window appears with options to Open, Save, Save and Run, select Save.  Once download is complete, you see Open available.  Click on the down arrow next to it and select Open With and select the program you want to open application/document with. Training you browser I believe.

This suggestion misses the point entirely.

If you "download" the file, you've already gone through the annoying exercise and made your choice to Save it, rather than Open it. We who are suffering under this "security" change are not downloading files, we're clicking on links, and doing so with the intention of simply opening the files.

Even when IE9 knows what app to use (with inherited info from its prior IE8 incarnation, or from regedit coercion (ala the rudely monikered wall****1, above), it still asks.

 

Consider this:

I have a "webpage" posted within a corporate network (think intranet), with links to internal documents. IE8 opens them up straightaway; one click gets you there. 

IE9, displaying the same webpage, prompts for Open or Save every single time. That is my experience, anyway, and it is apparently the experience of others. This is not an improvement.

Try right clicking and selecting Open.