When links or hyperlinks are blocked in Outlook, it can become a nightmare as I receive messages from the server’s firewall in Outlook and having the links or hyperlinks blocked, slows me down from unblocking a client or banning a hacker with the click of a mouse.

Fortunately, there is a fix and cause to prevent it from happening again.

Causes
The cause happens when you or an alternate browser sets itself as the default browser then uninstall it later BEFORE making Internet Explorer the default browser. Outlook will still be looking for that non-existing browser and have a fit when you request it to do so.

Temporary Solutions
Check your messages from the browser. Most times, this is mail.company.com or webmail.company.com. Please remember to switch back to Outlook for replies since you may lose formatting in the browser. Another solution is to put back the browser. If this computer is shared, you may not know what browser was installed and removed and since this is now a problem, the guilty party will most likely not confess.

Permanent Solutions
For a permanent fix, get a user with Administrator access or better yet, contact your IT Department (which is more familiar with Windows Registry key names) to check and fix the registry.
01. Click on the Start button > All Programs > Accessories > Run
02. Type regedit > Click on Ok
03. Navigate to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.htm
04. With .htm highlighted, look on the right panel and double-click on Default
05. Make sure the value data is htmlfile and click on Ok
06. Navigate to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.html
07. With .html highlighted, look on the right panel and double-click on Default
08. Make sure the value data is htmlfile and click on Ok
09. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\.htm
10. With .htm highlighted, look on the right panel and double-click on Default
11. Make sure the value data is htmlfile and click on Ok
11. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes\.html
13. With .html highlighted, look on the right panel and double-click on Default
14. Make sure the value data is htmlfile and click on Ok
15. Exit Registry Editor
16. Save and close all running programs
17. Restart the computer

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Stephan Pringle

Chief Executive Officer at Sipylus

About The Author: Stephan Pringle is an Information Technology Specialist. He covers hardware and software and provides tips for you to troubleshoot and repair issues on your own. In his spare time, he writes articles about the State of New York on his Hackintosh and is currently the top contributor of the New York City section of Yahoo! Answers.

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