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[Solution]The issue has been resolved. I ran the 'Advanced Renamer' program as suggested, and changed the file type of my make file from make to make.mak. Then after the program was done I removed the extension and it showed as type File. From then on, every extensionless file that I create has that type.

Recently my system (Windows 7) had become infected by some Adware. I removed its entries in the registry and deleted the relevant files in my Program Files and ProgramData folders. A few days later I was working on a coding project when I noticed my make file had a type that was the name of the adware program.

Here is an image of my make file in a folder: enter image description here

I'm pretty sure that the adware is not active anymore. However, I'm not sure how I can change the file type of an extensionless file. How can I change the type back to the generic 'File' descriptor?

[Edit] I have attempted to use the suggested answers in the thread linked but HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Type was not present in my directory. I then tried to create a new key: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\..

This did not change the file assosiation back to 'File' unfortunately. So I removed the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\. key, but it didn't change the association either.

[Edit 2] To clarify on the extension: The image shown is already showing the file extension. That is to say, there is no file extension. I have the hide file extensions for known file types unchecked in the image and my make file has no extension. All extensionless files will show the file type 'AulleCheapPrice.'

Maleous
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  • what happens when you attempt to change the file type in properties, to do this add the extension to the name? – Cosco Tech Mar 11 '15 at 17:42
  • When I change the file extension, it correctly displays as the file type associated with that extension. When I remove the extension, it goes back to displaying its type as 'AulleCheapPrice.' – Maleous Mar 12 '15 at 00:48
  • very weird, are you able to use the file normally when you change the extension? I would give that file an extremely thorough virus scan. – Cosco Tech Mar 12 '15 at 13:40
  • I can still use the file as long as what is using the file doesn't require the correct extension. The make file in question isn't at risk however. I can see the code in a text editor and it is unchanged. Also, the problem is not limited to just this make file. Indeed, any file with no extension has the 'AulleCheapPrice' Type. – Maleous Mar 12 '15 at 16:24
  • Oh OK, so you are looking for a way to change them all back to extension-less files. I'll see what i can dig up. If you go and search your c: drive for "AulleCheapPrice" do all these files populate in the list. – Cosco Tech Mar 12 '15 at 16:34
  • When I search the c: drive no results turn up. What's strange is when I use start menu search, then some extensionless files show up in the search. – Maleous Mar 12 '15 at 16:42
  • K do this for now, open any folder, go to Organize - > Folder and Search Options -> View tab -> uncheck "hide extensions for known file types". There are no generic/blank file extensions, they must have an extension. After you do this, search the c drive for AulleCheapPrice again. – Cosco Tech Mar 12 '15 at 17:24
  • I already have known file extensions shown. Files with no extension can exist, and that is the case that is the issue. – Maleous Mar 12 '15 at 17:49

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First of all, it's a good idea to verify that your PC is free of viruses and malware. It's always best to do a virus scan from an environment other than windows. To achieve this you can download an antivirus boot disk or scan the hard drive from another computer. Once you are satisfied that your PC is free and clean proceed to the following:

Next you need to determine if the virus has arbitrarily changed random files to that AulleCheapPrice extension or has it changed all the same extensions. Do this by searching your c drive for AulleCheapPrice. You may need to unhide extensions for known file types to achieve this.

Go to:
Organize - > Folder and Search Options -> View tab -> uncheck "hide extensions for known file types"

Once you are able to populate a list of all the files that have been changed to .AulleCheapPrice, you can then try to determine if they are all the same type of file. If they are you can batch change them back to what they are supposed to be with Advanced Renamer.

If the files aren't all the same extension, unfortunately you will have to endure the painstaking job of manually changing them back to what they were before. There is software available to aid you in this called TRid. It reads the binary data of the file and cross references it with a database to find its most common extension.

Sources:
http://www.online-tech-tips.com/computer-tips/how-to-change-file-extension/
How do I find out the file type without an extension?

Community
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Cosco Tech
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  • Thank you for taking the time to reply to my post. I'm sorry to say that I'm already showing file extensions for known file extensions in that image. Any extensionless file will show the type of file as 'AulleCheapPrice.' – Maleous Mar 12 '15 at 21:40
  • use the advanced renamer then to change all the AulleCheapPrice extensions to blank – Cosco Tech Mar 12 '15 at 21:51
  • My answer is formatted to cover your issue and aid anyone else with similar issues, please read it all the way through. – Cosco Tech Mar 12 '15 at 21:55
  • The issue has been resolved. However I'm not sure exactly how. I ran the program as suggested, and changed the file type of my make file from `make` to `make.mak`. Then after the program was done I removed the extension and it showed as type `File`. In fact, every extensionless file that I now create has that type. It was my understanding that Advanced Renamer would only change the files I selected but I guess it can change the association for all of them. Thanks for the help. – Maleous Mar 12 '15 at 22:31
  • Interesting. Glad you got it sorted. – Cosco Tech Mar 13 '15 at 00:14