Make right-click “Run with PowerShell” use PowerShell 7 (one command)

Right-click a .ps1 file in Explorer, pick Run with PowerShell, and Windows still launches the legacy Windows PowerShell 5.1. If you’ve installed PowerShell 7, there’s no reason it shouldn’t handle your scripts. Below are two clean ways to switch (the first is the one most people need), along with how it works, how to roll back, and what to watch out for.

How it works (the 30-second version)

What happens when you run a script from the context menu is decided by three chained registry entries:

.ps1 file association  →  ProgID (programmatic identifier)  →  Shell\<verb>\Command (the command that actually runs)

• Out of the box: .ps1 points to Microsoft.PowerShellScript.1. To stop scripts from running on an accidental double-click, its default Open verb opens the file in Notepad, while the Run verb launches the old powershell.exe (5.1).
• After installing PowerShell 7 (MSI): you usually get a ready-made ProgID such as Microsoft.PowerShellScript.7 or PowerShell7.script that points to pwsh.exe.

So the whole fix boils down to one idea: redirect the .ps1 ProgID for the current user, or override its Run / Open verb commands.

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Option 1 (recommended): switch the file association — no admin needed

If you installed PowerShell 7 from the MSI and its ProgID is registered, run this in any PowerShell window (no elevation required):

reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\.ps1" /ve /d "Microsoft.PowerShellScript.7" /f

Or the PowerShell-native equivalent:

Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\.ps1" -Name "(default)" -Value "Microsoft.PowerShellScript.7"

Why this is the best option

• No elevation: it writes only to HKCU (your user profile) and never touches the machine-wide HKLM hive.
• Non-destructive: none of the system’s ProgIDs are modified. You’re adding a per-user override, so deleting that one key restores the defaults instantly.
• Instant: it takes effect right away — no need to restart Explorer or reboot.

💡 Check the prerequisite first

This option needs Microsoft.PowerShellScript.7 and its command to exist. Check with:

Test-Path "Registry::HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Microsoft.PowerShellScript.7\Shell\*\Command"

True means you’re good to go with Option 1. False (common with the Microsoft Store build, the portable ZIP, or an MSI installed without file associations) means you should use Option 2.

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Option 2 (advanced): register your own ProgID and control the command line

Registering your own ProgID under your user profile works with every PowerShell 7 build (MSI, Store or portable ZIP), and lets you tweak the launch arguments — hide the banner, bypass the execution policy, and so on.

Step 1: find the real path to pwsh.exe

(Get-Command pwsh).Source
# Typical MSI output: C:\Program Files\PowerShell\7\pwsh.exe

Step 2: register the ProgID and wire up the context menu

Set $pwsh to your actual path, then paste the script into any PowerShell window:

$pwsh = "C:\Program Files\PowerShell\7\pwsh.exe"

# 1. Register the "Run with PowerShell 7" context-menu entry (Run verb)
New-Item -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\MyPsScript7\Shell\Run\Command" -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\MyPsScript7\Shell\Run" -Name "(default)" -Value "Run with PowerShell 7"
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\MyPsScript7\Shell\Run\Command" `
  -Name "(default)" -Value "`"$pwsh`" -NoLogo -File `"%1`" %*"

# 2. Double-click action (Open verb): run these two lines only if you want double-click to execute scripts
New-Item -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\MyPsScript7\Shell\Open\Command" -Force | Out-Null
Set-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\MyPsScript7\Shell\Open\Command" `
  -Name "(default)" -Value "`"$pwsh`" -NoLogo -File `"%1`" %*"

# 3. Associate .ps1 with the new ProgID
reg add "HKCU\Software\Classes\.ps1" /ve /d "MyPsScript7" /f

⚡ A handy variant

If your local scripts keep getting blocked by the execution policy, or the window closes before you can read the error, use this command instead (it adds -ExecutionPolicy Bypass and -NoExit):

"C:\Program Files\PowerShell\7\pwsh.exe" -NoLogo -NoExit -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File "%1" %*

⚠️ Security note: -ExecutionPolicy Bypass ignores script-signing and execution restrictions. Use it only on your own dev machine, and never run .ps1 files from sources you don’t trust.

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Check that it worked

1. Create a test script containing $PSVersionTable.PSVersion; Pause, right-click it and run it.
2. Look at the window title or the printed version. If Major is 7, you’re done.

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Roll back in one step

To go back to the Windows default (PowerShell 5.1), delete the per-user overrides and the system defaults take over again immediately:

# Restore the default .ps1 association
Remove-Item -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\.ps1" -Recurse -Force

# (Optional) If you used Option 2, remove the custom ProgID too
Remove-Item -Path "HKCU:\Software\Classes\MyPsScript7" -Recurse -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

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Gotchas

• Avoid the Store (MSIX) app execution alias. The Store build’s default path, C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps\pwsh.exe, is a virtual reparse point and can fail in some context-menu scenarios. Prefer the official MSI and hard-code the stable path C:\Program Files\PowerShell\7\pwsh.exe.
• Watch out for accidental double-clicks. Windows opens .ps1 files in Notepad on double-click precisely so you don’t run a dangerous script by mistake. If you point the Open verb at pwsh.exe in Option 2, double-clicking a .ps1 runs it straight away. Convenient — just be aware of it.
• The GUI route has limits. Using Open with on a .ps1 file, choosing pwsh.exe and ticking Always spares you the command line, but it locks the Open (double-click) action through the UserChoice hash. You can’t customize arguments like -File, and it sometimes makes the context-menu entry disappear or throw errors. The registry approach gives you far more control.
• Windows 11 hides the entry. The new Windows 11 context menu tucks classic shell entries into a submenu. If you don’t see the option, click Show more options at the bottom (or hold Shift while right-clicking).

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Originally published in Chinese on Zhihu by the author, 滴滴点到 (Liang Cui), and adapted for AI SI Daily.