# Any way to axe the Edge browser? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 21, 2024, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996 "2024-12-21T22:04:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/1 "2024-12-21T22:04:31Z")
My wife is having minor memory problems. She uses the Firefox browser and things generally go smoothly. But at least once a day, the Edge browser opens spontaneously and covers the Firefox window. I have told her repeatedly to close the Edge browser, but she doesn’t remember and doesn’t realize that she is not looking at the Firefox window. I point out the little Edge icon on the tool bar, and show her how to close it, but she doesn’t remember from one time to the next. BTW, at first it happened very time she woke it up in the morning but I found that it had inserted itself on the start menu. I removed that and rebooted. But now it just opens at random times. Her computer came with Win 11 already installed. Thank god I still have Win 10. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/2 "2024-12-21T23:04:45Z")
> **[Make Firefox your default browser | Firefox Help](https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/make-firefox-your-default-browser)** > > How to make Web links open in Firefox automatically by setting it as the default browser on your computer. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/3 "2024-12-21T23:32:30Z")
Of course it is her default browser. Trouble is Edge randomly opens and hides it. I have no trouble deleting it and once or twice a day she has to ask me to help. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/4 "2024-12-21T23:33:44Z")
It’s not random. You need to discover what she’s doing to cause it to open. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/5 "2024-12-21T23:34:53Z")
I’d guess that she has one or more applications (or visits websites) that ignore the default browser setting, and are opening Edge anyway. It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that they’re Microsoft news apps or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/6 "2024-12-21T23:47:52Z")
Not a Windows guy, but - any reason not to just delete Edge? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/7 "2024-12-21T23:48:56Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > It’s not random. You need to discover what she’s doing to cause it to open. Is she trying to open something from the Start Menu? If you go to the start menu and begin typing the name of the program you want to open, Windows will autofill as you’re typing. However, if it autofills a program you don’t have, and you’re not paying attention, it _looks_ like a program on your computer, but when you hit enter it’ll spawn an Edge browser to download the program with. Here’s what I mean. When I start typing ‘fusion’, it shows my Fusion360. Hitting enter, even with just ‘fus’ typed, opens Fusion 360 [![](https://i.imgur.com/YZvuWsU.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/YZvuWsU.jpeg) When I type “gimp”, the start menu shows me gimp, however, I don’t have gimp on this computer, when I click it or hit enter, it opens Edge. Notice how similar they look. [![](https://i.imgur.com/tuPCFtO.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/tuPCFtO.jpeg) If that’s what’s going on, I’d guess Windows doesn’t have any built in method for using a 3rd party browser in that situation. I wouldn’t be surprised, however, if there’s 3rd party program or some registry changes that could fix it. Come to think of it, again if this is what’s happening, there might be a setting so Windows doesn’t treat the start menu as a search engine. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/8 "2024-12-21T23:49:48Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Not a Windows guy, but - any reason not to just delete Edge? Back in the mists of time Microsoft got sued because they bundled their own browser with Windows. So, Microsoft embedded the browser into the OS and claimed it was an integral part of the OS and could not be separated. It worked in court. It also means you can’t delete it. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/9 "2024-12-21T23:50:42Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Not a Windows guy, but - any reason not to just delete Edge? No, it’s more integrated into Windows than just being a browser. > **[Why can't I uninstall Microsoft Edge? - Microsoft Support](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/why-can-t-i-uninstall-microsoft-edge-ee150b3b-7d7a-9984-6d83-eb36683d526d)** > > Learn more about why you can't uninstall Microsoft Edge on your Windows computer. If Hari’s lucky and his wife is just clicking on the Edge icon, the shortcut could be deleted. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/10 "2024-12-21T23:52:01Z")
Is she hitting F1 for anything? That’s my most frequent cause of unintended browser opening. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/11 "2024-12-21T23:52:09Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > If that’s what’s going on… I think that is exactly what is going on. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/12 "2024-12-21T23:59:48Z")
I have not read anything about these programs beyond seeing a short description, but I did find a few that would, I think, fix that: > **[GitHub - rcmaehl/MSEdgeRedirect: A Tool to Redirect News, Search, Widgets, Weather...](https://github.com/rcmaehl/MSEdgeRedirect/)** > > A Tool to Redirect News, Search, Widgets, Weather and More to Your Default Browser > **[Release EdgeDeflector version 1.2.3.0 · da2x/EdgeDeflector](https://github.com/da2x/EdgeDeflector/releases/tag/v1.2.3.0)** > > Fixed an issue where the app wouldn’t launch when installed to a directory path containing a space. (Contributed by @ajay4q.) > Fixed an issue where the app would be shown without an icon in some Win... ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/13 "2024-12-22T00:00:49Z")
It actually appears to be random. She will go away for a while, come back and it has opened in the meantime. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/14 "2024-12-22T00:05:15Z")
If I use the widget in the lower right of my screen (a part of Windows 10 at least, not sure about Windows 11) a window pops up with various items of interest (presumably). Anything I click on in there open in the Edge browser even though it is not my default browser. (see what red arrows are pointing to) [![](https://i.imgur.com/YHVd9y7.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/YHVd9y7.png) ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/15 "2024-12-22T00:21:16Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > It actually appears to be random. She will go away for a while, come back and it has opened in the meantime. That’s…odd. Do you know what website(s) is showing when it appears? Take a look at these options: > **[Does Microsoft Edge Keep Opening Itself on Windows? Try These Fixes](https://www.makeuseof.com/windows-microsoft-edge-opens-automatically/)** > > If Microsoft Edge seems a bit too eager, here's how to stop it from opening by itself on Windows. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/16 "2024-12-22T00:21:27Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > It worked in court. It also means you can’t delete it. Damn lawyers! 🧐 ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/17 "2024-12-22T00:25:39Z")
EdgeDeflector is extremely old, and probably doesn’t work anymore. The other one was made to replace it. Go for MSEdgeRedirect. Get the stable version. Install with the default options, except also enable the PDF viewer option when it shows up during the install. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/18 "2024-12-22T00:52:03Z")
That looks useful. She is using her computer now, but I will try those things. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/19 "2024-12-22T01:09:42Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > If I use the widget in the lower right of my screen (a part of Windows 10 at least, not sure about Windows 11) a window pops up with various items of interest (presumably). Anything I click on in there open in the Edge browser even though it is not my default browser. This is exactly what I thought of when I read the OP. I normally use both Chrome and Edge, but if I click on one of the ‘items of interest’, it opens in Edge. > [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > She will go away for a while, come back and it has opened in the meantime. But this is bizarre. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2024, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996/20 "2024-12-22T01:26:13Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > She will go away for a while, come back and it has opened in the meantime. > [@Railer13](#): > > But this is bizarre. I agree. I can’t say for sure but sounds like the work of some malware or a virus. If your computer is doing things you never told it to do then something else is. Maybe her mouse is glitching and “clicking.” Hard to say without more info. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-way-to-axe-the-edge-browser/1011996.md?page=2)