Access Keys:
Skip to content (Access Key - 0)

Q: How do I change my operating system's default application for opening PDFs?

Answer

To set a PDF viewer as the default on Mac OS X:

  1. Select any PDF file from Finder. Control-click to open the menu.
    Result: A menu will open next to the file name.



  2. Choose Get Info from the menu that opens.
    Result: A new window will open with information on that PDF file.



  3. From the Open with: section in the new window that opens, select your preferred application, such as Adobe Reader or Preview.
    Result: That application will be selected.



  4. Click the Change All button. In the subsequent dialog box, click Continue.
    Result: The application that you selected will be the location in which PDFs open.




To set a PDF viewer as the default on Windows

  • If no other PDF viewer is installed, once Adobe Reader is installed, it becomes the default.
  • To set a preferred PDF viewer as the default:
    • Windows 7:
      1. Follow the menu path Start > Default Programs > Associate a file type or protocol with a specific program
      2. Highlight .pdf, then click Change.
      3. Choose your preferred PDF viewer, such as Adobe Reader.
    • In Windows XP
      1. Follow the menu path Start > Control Panel > Folder Options > File Types.
    • In Windows 10
      See: Tech Minute's Instructions

See also:

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/fixtheproblem/ht/defprogramxp.htm

IS&T Contributions

Documentation and information provided by IS&T staff members


Last Modified:

July 16, 2020

Get Help

Request help
from the Help Desk
Report a security incident
to the Security Team
Labels:
acrobat acrobat Delete
_pdf _pdf Delete
r-content r-content Delete
pdf pdf Delete
viewer viewer Delete
adobe adobe Delete
reader reader Delete
c-adobe c-adobe Delete
Enter labels to add to this page:
Please wait 
Looking for a label? Just start typing.
Feedback
This product/service is:
Easy to use
Average
Difficult to use

This article is:
Helpful
Inaccurate
Obsolete
Adaptavist Theme Builder (4.2.3) Powered by Atlassian Confluence 3.5.13, the Enterprise Wiki