Lost "Default Icon" for http *.URL file Type after IE7

Hi Experts

I think that this problem manifested itself after I upgraded the Windows XP SP2 IE6 to IE7, but I cannot be sure because I installed XP SP3 either at that time, or from a slipstreamed CD - I can't recall now.

IE7 changes quite a few icons to kind of glossy 3-D ones, and I had noticed that the blue "e" icon for a *.url file had changed.  The first I noticed my issue was when  installed a couple of programs that placed shortcuts to web help pages in the new Start Menu folder alongside shortcuts to the program.  Example, CDBurnerXP creates 4 shortcuts to web pages.

The issue is that the *.URLs revert to the icon representing a file with no program association, as can be seen in the screenshot of the file properties of the top shortcut (URL-Icon-01.jpg).

Before I noticed this issue with Start Menu *.url shortcuts, I had noticed something odd when I created a shortcut to a web page on my desktop by dragging and dropping the "e" (Or FavIcon) at the left of my IE address bar out.  In this page I'm seeing the orange Experts-Exchange logo, and if I click and drag that out to my desktop it creates an Internet Shortcut with the E-E icon.

Now, this icon persists until I empty my Temporary Internet Files folder in the normal manner, which deletes the "ee.ico" and/or favicon.ico" files.  Previously, in this event, the new *.url file on my desktop would revert to the standard blue "e" Internet Shortcut icon, which I believe was C:\WINDOWS\system32\url.dll,0

When I empty the Temporary Internet Files folder, and this delete the favicon files, my shortcuts now revert to the Shell32.dll,0 icon, ie. the "unassociated file type" icon.

In some instances I have been able to get the icon to stick if I use the "Change Icon" options under the file properties and choose the top left one (ie. index 0) from URL.DLL, but others revert back again to no icon.  I have uploaded a screenshot of 2 *.url files on my desktop (URL _Icon_02.jpg).  Example_01.url retains the icon, but Example_02.url keeps losing it.

I have done some comparisons on the code embedded in these *.URL files by creating a new right-click menu option that opens the files in Notepad.  Here is the code respectively for "Example_01.url" and "Example_02.url":

"Example_01.url":
[DEFAULT]
BASEURL=http://www.powerlift.co.uk/gallery_04_07.htm
[InternetShortcut]
URL=http://www.powerlift.co.uk/gallery_04_07.htm
Modified=201E364BBDD6C8011B

"Example_02.url":
[InternetShortcut]
URL=http://www.simplehelp.net/2008/07/11/using-crossloop-to-remotely-connect-to-view-and-control-another-pc/
IDList=
IconFile=http://www.simplehelp.net/favicon.ico
IconIndex=1
[{000214A0-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}]
Prop3=19,2

It looks like the additioal crap in the *.url that isn't retaining the icon is causing this, and I can't understand why because they were both created the same way.

The CLSID {000214A0-0000-0000-C000-000000000046} relates to "URL Shortcut PropSetStorage Mapping" (Master Key) and "InternetShortcut" here:
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{06EEE834-461C-42c2-8DCF-1502B527B1F9}\Instance\PropertySetStorage\{000214A0-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}]
and this key seems to contain the settings for all the additional (and in many cases superfluous) settings that can be placed in the code of a *.url file:

WhatsNew, Author, Desc, Comment, IDList, Pinned, URL, HotKey, ShowCommand, IconIndex, IconFile.

I believe that my "DefaultIcon" for the *.url file type is correctly set in my Registry, but perhaps someone could conmpare to make sure.  See Code Snippet for my *.reg export.  I'm sure there is a lot more in those exported keys than there was in IE6.

OK, so my conclusion is that web pages that do not have a "favicon.ico" that displays in the Address Bar seem to retain the default and normal blue "e" icon when saved as a *.url.   The code in them is simpler than those *.urls created from web pages that display the "favicon.ico" and tend to lose their icons.

I can live without "FavIcons", so if anyone knows of a method to completely disable the caching of them, then I would be pleased to have it.

If not, then does anyone know of a registry modification that will prevent all my *.url files from losing "favicons" and the default icon when I empty my temporary internet files folder?

All other suggestions EXCEPT doing a repair install of IE or XP are welcome.  It's not that big an inconvenience to go to those extremes.

Thanks

Bill

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Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url]
@="InternetShortcut"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url\PersistentHandler]
@="{5e941d80-bf96-11cd-b579-08002b30bfeb}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url\ShellEx]
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url\ShellEx\{000214EE-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url\ShellEx\{000214F9-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url\ShellEx\{00021500-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url\ShellEx\{CABB0DA0-DA57-11CF-9974-0020AFD79762}]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.url\ShellEx\{FBF23B80-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut]
@="Internet Shortcut"
"EditFlags"=dword:00000002
"IsShortcut"="1"
"NeverShowExt"=""
"FriendlyTypeName"="@ieframe.dll,-10046"
"FullDetails"="prop:System.Link.TargetUrl;System.Rating;System.Link.Description;System.Link.Comment"
"InfoTip"="prop:System.Link.TargetUrl;System.Rating;System.Link.Description;System.Link.Comment"
"PreviewDetails"="prop:System.Link.TargetUrl;System.Rating;System.History.VisitCount;System.History.DateChanged;System.Link.DateVisited;System.Link.Description;System.Link.Comment"
"BrowserFlags"=dword:00000008
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\CLSID]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\DefaultIcon]
@="C:\\WINDOWS\\system32\\url.dll,0"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell]
"CLSID"="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
@="open"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\inspect]
@="View In Notepad"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\inspect\command]
@="C:\\windows\\notepad.exe %1"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\open]
"CLSID"="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
"LegacyDisable"=""
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\open\command]
@="rundll32.exe ieframe.dll,OpenURL %l"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\print]
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\print\command]
@="rundll32.exe C:\\WINDOWS\\system32\\mshtml.dll,PrintHTML \"%1\""
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\printto]
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shell\printto\command]
@="rundll32.exe C:\\WINDOWS\\system32\\mshtml.dll,PrintHTML \"%1\" \"%2\" \"%3\" \"%4\""
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shellex]
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}]
@=""
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shellex\IconHandler]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shellex\PropertyHandler]
@="{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}"
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers]
 
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\InternetShortcut\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\{FBF23B40-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}]
@=""