How to restore opening PDFs with Zotero

wangkejun520
After I used the Scholaread software, it became the default for opening PDFs. However, even after uninstalling it, PDFs are still opened as external links. Even if I manually set Zotero as the default, it reverts back to opening with external links after restarting the software. How can I restore the settings? Or how can I completely remove the third-party software?
https://s3.amazonaws.com/zotero.org/images/forums/u8516351/7pbzwzlmv6j6u4zw4b0l.png
  • dstillman
    Are other settings changes taking effect after a restart?

    If you go to the Config Editor in the Advanced pane of the settings and search for extensions.zotero.fileHandler.pdf, do you see Scholaread.exe? What happens to that line when you change the visible setting to "Zotero"?
  • wangkejun520
    After the restart, no other settings changed. In the advanced settings under extensions.zotero.fileHandler.pdf, I did not see "Scholaread.exe", nor was there any option to change it to "Zotero".
  • wangkejun520

    https://s3.amazonaws.com/zotero.org/images/forums/u8516351/7sh6xg0f2ennebtv850w.png
  • dstillman
    Can you reproduce this in Troubleshooting Mode (Help → "Restart in Troubleshooting Mode…”), which temporarily disables all plugins?
  • wangkejun520
    The issue still exists in Troubleshooting Mode. 'Scholaread.exe' is not a plugin, but rather a desktop application that was launched.
  • dstillman
    I understand, but that setting comes from extensons.zotero.fileHandler.pdf, so I'm not sure how you're seeing that if there's no value set there.

    Could you provide a Report ID from Troubleshooting Mode?
  • dstillman
    edited April 25, 2025
    If you change the drop-down to System Default, does extensons.zotero.fileHandler.pdf change to "system"? And then what happens to both when you restart?
  • wangkejun520
    Thank you for your help—the issue has been resolved. I just had to go into the software and disable the default setting for opening documents with ScholarlyRead.
    Is it possible to set up something like a one-click restore in Zotero to prevent such software from making changes to it?
    https://s3.amazonaws.com/zotero.org/images/forums/u8516351/keq5mq8r5cemglmlwnaz.png
  • dstillman
    The way to clear this setting in Zotero is by choosing "Zotero" from the drop-down. If an app is then modifying Zotero's preferences from outside, we can't do anything about that.
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