After installing and uninstalling dozens of CD/DVD burner and ISO files management software on my Windows 10 PC, I realized that the “Mount” option is missing in Windows File Explorer. This “Mount” option appears when you right-click on an ISO file in Windows File Explorer. By using this option, you can mount the ISO image in the File Explorer in a virtual CD/DVD drive. This is really useful feature in Windows 10 using which you can test and explore any ISO image file without having to burn it on an actual CD/DVD or Blu-ray disk.
If you also have the same problem and the “Mount” option is missing from the right-click menu of File Explorer when you right-click on the ISO files, then you can follow these instructions:
- Click on the Start and then the cogwheel icon to open Windows settings. Alternatively you can also use the Win+I hotkey to open the settings panel.
- Select Apps and then Default Apps.
- Scroll down and then click on Set defaults by app.
- In the next window, find and select the app named Windows Disc Image Burner from the list.
- Choose .iso file type, click on the associated app and then choose Windows Explorer.
- It should restore the “Mount” option back for the ISO image files.
Another quicker way to restore the ISO file association to default values in Windows 10 is through a simple command. Here is how:
- Press Win+X and then select Command Prompt (Admin) to open the command prompt with admin rights.
- In the command prompt window, type the command assoc .iso=Windows.Iso.File and press Enter.
- It should instantly restore the file associations and your Mount option should reappear in File Explorer.
If the “Mount” option for ISO files in File Explorer does not appear instantly, then you can try restarting your computer after taking the above steps.
Thanks for the article!!!