SOLVED How Can I Either Disassociate My Photos and Memes From Paint, Or Remove Paint Totally From Computer

[Katiep]

I have a desktop Windows 10 Dell computer which I love. But somehow my son, while sending me a photo, also connected all my memes and photos that I might click on to share or move with Paint. I have tried the usual ways that the computer can do either or both, and I've tried suggestions from Google. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Trouble]

Images can come any many formats (file extensions) generally the most popular two currently are .jpg and .png, so......
Off you go to
Settings -> Apps -> Default Apps (left column)
Scroll down a bit if necessary and select the faint grey link that says "Choose default apps by file type"
Then scroll as needed (they're listed alphabetically) until you find the file extensions mentioned above OR the file extension associated with your particular images.
Click the associated handler (in your case presently "Paint") a list of other programs available should pop up and allow you to change to your preferred program.

 

[Katiep]

Thank you so much! It worked and now I don't feel like I'm a hostage to Paint.

 

[robertjons]

If you want to disassociate your photos and memes from Paint (or Paint 3D) or remove Paint completely, here’s how:

1. Change Default App for Images (Disassociate from Paint)​

1. Right-click any image file (e.g., JPG, PNG, BMP).
2. Select Open with > Choose another app.
3. Select a different app (e.g., Photos, IrfanView, Photoshop).
4. Check the box "Always use this app to open .jpg/.png files".
5. Click OK.

Repeat for other image formats if necessary.

2. Uninstall Paint 3D (For Windows 10/11)​

If you’re trying to remove Paint 3D, follow these steps:

1. Go to Settings (Win + I) > Apps > Apps & features.
2. Scroll down to Paint 3D.
3. Click it, then select Uninstall.

3. Remove Microsoft Paint (Classic Paint)​

Microsoft Paint (mspaint.exe) is a system app and cannot be fully removed, but you can disable it:

Method 1: Disable Paint via Optional Features​

1. Open Settings (Win + I).
2. Go to Apps > Optional features.
3. Scroll down and find Microsoft Paint.
4. Click Uninstall.

Method 2: Use PowerShell to Remove Paint​

1. Right-click Start and select Windows Terminal (Admin) or PowerShell (Admin).
2. Run this command to remove Paint: Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Paint | Remove-AppxPackage
   
   
3. Restart your PC.

4. Prevent Paint from Opening (Block Access)​

If you don’t want to remove it but want to block Paint from opening, you can rename or delete its executable file:

1. Open File Explorer and go to: C:\Windows\System32
   
   
2. Find mspaint.exe.
3. Rename it to something like mspaint.old (you might need admin rights).
4. If you ever need it again, rename it back.

Would you like help choosing an alternative image viewer?