Add Unblock to Explorer’s Context Sensitive Menu

When you download a file from the Internet, an NTFS stream is added to indicate the file came an unsafe place. This adds a layer of security when you try to open the file as you are forced to click through an are-you-sure dialog box. You can right-click the file, choose Properties, and select the Unblock button to remove this extra protection.  The following process will allow you to right-click a downloaded file and perform the Unblock function directly from the context sensitive menu.

 

Step 1) Download Streams and place somewhere in your Path (i.e., C:\Windows)

 

Step 2) Save the following as a .REG file (i.e., unblock.reg) and merge to your registry.

 

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shell\Unblock\command]
@="streams -d \"%1\""

Note: You will still get the are-you-sure dialog box since you are performing an operation on the file while it still has the stream, but this unblock process will still save you time navigating the menu and choosing the Unblock button.