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Set Zed as the Default Editor for .bat Files

Overview

This document describes how to configure the right-click menu for .bat files in Windows 10 to achieve the following effects:

  • Double-click .bat file: Keep the default behavior, execute the script using Windows Terminal
  • Right-click menu "Edit": Open the file using Zed editor

Implementation Principle

Windows File Association Mechanism

Windows manages file associations through the registry, with priority order:

HKCU\Software\Classes > HKLM\Software\Classes

The default association for .bat files is batfile, which executes cmd.exe /c xxx.bat when double-clicked. We only need to modify the "Edit" option in the right-click menu without affecting the default execution behavior.

Configuration Steps

Create and run the following PowerShell script:

# Set right-click "Edit" for .bat files to open with Zed
$zedPath = "C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Programs\Zed\Zed.exe"

# Create right-click menu "Edit" option
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit" /ve /d "Edit" /f
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit\command" /ve /d "`"$zedPath`" `"%1`"" /f

Write-Host "Configuration completed!"

Method 2: Manually Modify the Registry

  1. Open Registry Editor: regedit

  2. Navigate to the following path: 

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit

  3. Set the default value to Edit

  4. Create a command subkey under edit and set its default value to: 

    "C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Programs\Zed\Zed.exe" "%1"

Verification

Check Registry Settings

reg query "HKCU\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit" /s

Expected output:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit
    (Default)    REG_SZ    Edit

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit\command
    (Default)    REG_SZ    "C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Programs\Zed\Zed.exe" "%1"

Test the Effect

  1. Double-click .bat file: Should open Windows Terminal and execute the script
  2. Right-click .bat file → Edit: Should open the file with Zed

Notes

UserChoice Priority Issue

If the changes don't take effect, it may be because UserChoice settings override your configuration. Remove it:

Remove-Item -Path "HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts\.bat\UserChoice" -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

Restart File Explorer

After modifying the registry, it's recommended to restart File Explorer for changes to take effect:

Stop-Process -Name explorer -Force
Start-Process explorer

Migrate to Another Editor

If you switch to another editor later (e.g., VS Code, Notepad++, etc.), simply modify the command path:

reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit\command" /ve /d "`"C:\Program Files\Microsoft VS Code\Code.exe`" `"%1`"" /f

Common Issues

Garbled Text in Right-Click Menu

Cause: Menu text encoding error in the registry.

Solution:

reg delete "HKCU\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit" /f
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit" /ve /d "Edit" /f

Double-Click Behavior Changed After Modification

Cause: May have incorrectly modified the default program for .bat files.

Solution: Restore the default association:

reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\.bat" /ve /d "batfile" /f

Summary

By modifying the HKCU\Software\Classes\batfile\shell\edit registry key, we achieved:

  • Keep the default execution behavior of .bat files (using Windows Terminal)
  • Use Zed for the right-click "Edit" option
  • Configuration doesn't affect system-level settings (only affects current user)

This approach meets editing needs without breaking the normal execution functionality of scripts.