Changes to Launcher.exe and Opera_AutoUpdate.exe in Opera Web Browser
If you use Opera web browser to surf the Internet, here is an important news for you. Opera team is going to make some major changes to a few core executable (exe) files in future versions (107 and later) of Opera web browser which can affect the shortcuts, scheduled programs, etc created by users in past.
Following are the two exe files which are getting changes starting from Opera 107 version:
- Launcher.exe
- Opera_Autoupdate.exe
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At the moment, the latest public stable version of Opera web browser is 106 and the changes will be implemented in Opera 107 or 108 versions which are going to release in coming months.
Currently, Opera 107 version is available on Beta channel and 108 version is available on Developer channel for testing purposes.
More Info: [Opera Beta / Developer Update] Opera One 108 Developer Version Released
Table of Contents
Opera Team Made Official Announcement Regarding EXE Files Changes
Yesterday Opera team released first developer version of the upcoming Opera 108 version and announced about these changes which we’ll discuss in details later in this article.
Here is a small excerpt taken from the official announcement from Opera team:
Most importantly, we changed the way how Opera Browser is starting for Windows. Previously Opera was started using launcher.exe binary which picks the appropriate opera.exe file. Starting from 107 the launcher.exe was removed, and Opera will be started directly through opera.exe file, located in installation directory.
As non-default shortcuts (created by the user) will stop working after this change, we created hard link (‘launcher.exe’) to allow users to adapt to this change.
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This works as follows:
For old installations, which contain launcher binary – the hard link will be created (to make sure that users custom shortcuts will still working after update)
For new installations – the link will not be created
The hard link is temporary solution and will be removed in the future. Please make sure that your custom shortcuts will point to opera.exe file after this update. The default Opera shortcuts should be updated during the update procedure, so no action is required.
Along with this change, opera_autoupdate binary was moved from versioned folder (f.e. 105.0.4970.76) to folder called ‘autoupdate’.
Let’s discuss the changes in details!
Upcoming Changes to Launcher.exe File in Opera Web Browser
Opera web browser uses the Launcher.exe file to open the installed version of the browser in user’s device. Whenever the user clicks on Opera shortcut, first the Launcher.exe file is launched and then it opens the Opera.exe file containing the appropriate version of the web browser.
You can find the Launcher.exe file in following directory:
C:\Users\User_Name\AppData\Local\Programs\Opera\
To improve performance and reduce startup or loading time, Opera team is going to skip and remove Launcher.exe executable completely. In Opera 107/108 versions, the Launcher.exe file will not be executed or used but will remain inside Opera directory for compatibility reasons. But in later versions, Opera team will delete the file permanently.
Since Opera browser will no longer utilize Launcher.exe file, the existing shortcuts created by the user might stop working if they point to the Launcher.exe file. That’s why Opera team has added hard links to the Launcher.exe file, so that the existing shortcuts keep working but users will need to update the shortcuts manually to point to Opera.exe file to make sure the shortcuts continue working even after the Launcher.exe file is removed from future versions of Opera web browser.
Upcoming Changes to Opera_Autoupdate.exe File in Opera Web Browser
This is an important file which comes bundled with Opera web browser. Opera_Autoupdate.exe is actually the updater utility which automatically looks for newer versions available of Opera web browser at regular intervals and if it finds a new versions available, it automatically downloads and installs the new version in user’s device.
Opera_Autoupdate.exe tool has been developed to automatically upgrade Opera web browser to the latest version in user’s device. Now the Opera team is going to make a major change to this file as well!
Starting from Opera 108 version, the location of the Opera_Autoupdate.exe file will be changed. The new location will be as following:
C:\Users\User_Name\AppData\Local\Programs\Opera\autoupdate\
Currently in existing versions of Opera browser, the Opera_Autoupdate.exe file is present under version number folder which can be found using following path:
C:\Users\User_Name\AppData\Local\Programs\Opera\Version_Number\
The existing system makes several copies of Opera_Autoupdate.exe file present in various version_number directories.
The new mechanism will force Opera web browser to always have a single copy or instance of Opera_Autoupdate.exe file present in dedicated “Autoupdate” folder.
Once this change is applied, users will need to update the scheduled tasks, registry keys, etc if they were blocking the Opera_Autoupdate.exe file from upgrading the installed version of Opera web browser in their devices as mentioned in following article:
[Tip] How to Disable or Block Auto-Update Feature (Opera_AutoUpdate.exe) in Opera
If you use Opera web browser, get ready for these changes in upcoming versions of the web browser.
Also Check:
[Tip] Disable or Remove Opera Splash Screen or Startup Logo and Sound
What is Opera Browser Assistant? How to Disable or Remove it?
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