Sometimes, a third-party application will mess up the default options, and the mount option will go missing in the Windows operating system. In this article, we’ll see how to fix the issue in Windows, which was messed up by a third-party app, or any file corruption. Remember that the methods discussed in this post to add/restore the “Mount” option to the context menu work for both .ISO files and .IMG files.
Why is the Mount Option Missing in Windows?
There can be several reasons why the “Mount” option may be missing from an ISO’s context menu. First, check whether or not your Windows version supports mounting ISO files natively. For example, you need to use third-party software on Windows 7 in order to mount an ISO file, since it does not have the feature built-in. However, operating systems released after Windows 7, like Windows 8, 8.1, 10, and 11, can mount the ISO natively. Windows 7 only included Burn Disk Image option, which could be used to create ISO files with the Universal Disk Format (UDF). Another reason for the missing mount option is that perhaps the user accidentally changed the default mount ISO application when installing a third-party program like WinCDEmu, Daemon Tools, PowerISO, ImgBurn, or WinRAR. If you do not have the mounting option in your context menu for an ISO file, you can follow the steps below to enable it. There are several ways to fix the issue.
Add Mount ISO Option to Context Menu using Settings App
Follow the steps below to select File Explorer as the default app for ISO and IMG files, which in turn will show the “Mount” option in the context menu when you right-click an IMG or ISO image: You can now mount ISO files and use this Windows feature.
In Windows 11: Settings app » Apps » Default Apps In Windows 10: Settings app » Apps » Default Apps » Set defaults by apps
On Windows 11, you do not need to press the “Manage” button.
Add Mount ISO Option to Context Menu using Command Prompt
Another convenient method to restore the missing “Mount” option to the context menu for ISO files is through the command line. All you need to do is run the following command in an elevated Command Prompt and it will associate the relevant Windows Registry to the .ISO files: Note that this method is valid for Windows 8 and onwards, and not for Windows 7.
Add Mount ISO Option to Context Menu using Control Panel
Note: This method has been deprecated for Windows 10 and 11, as Microsoft has shifted the relevant controls to the Settings app from the Legacy Control Panel. However, it is still valid for Windows 7, 8, and 8.1. Follow the steps below to add the “Mount” option to the context menu using the Control Panel:
Fix Mount ISO Option Missing using Windows Registry
You can also restore the missing option from the context menu using Windows Registry. Simply download the file below and run the Registry file to restore all default options. Associate ISO/IMG Files With Windows Explorer (5.4 KiB, 47 hits) Note: Incorrect configuration of key values in the system’s registry could damage your operating system. Please create a system restore point before continuing. Use our top selection of disk imaging and backup software to avoid losing data or your operating system. This is a simple Registry hack that will associate .iso and .img file extensions with Windows.IsoFile file type. Alongside this, it will make the following changes in order:
Closing Words
Although there are other file formats available on the internet, such as DMG, that are not natively supported by Windows. Thankfully, ISO and IMG files are very commonly used, and thus Microsoft decided to support these image files. For that reason, users can directly mount such images to their PCs and can use them, without any third-party applications.
