"Hooking" IE run/initialization process? - Microsoft Windows

This is a discussion on "Hooking" IE run/initialization process? - Microsoft Windows ; I have a need to intercept the startup of iexplore.exe to run some checks I would like to run before actually launching the iexplore.exe browser window. In essence, I'd like to do this: iexplore.exe starts -> runs my code -> ...

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Thread: "Hooking" IE run/initialization process?

  1. "Hooking" IE run/initialization process?

    I have a need to intercept the startup of iexplore.exe to run some
    checks I would like to run before actually launching the iexplore.exe
    browser window.

    In essence, I'd like to do this:

    iexplore.exe starts -> runs my code -> continue launching browser

    I don't want to use a script to start iexplore.exe because the
    executable is too "wrapped" into the system -- registry settings, etc.
    I've experimented some with renaming iexplore.exe to something else and
    assigning my IE icons to a .cmd file, but I really need the
    iexplore.exe executable to exist.

    A couple of thoughts I've had are:

    (1) Rename real iexplore.exe to foo.exe, write my own iexplore.exe to
    do what I want, then execute foo.exe when I am done.

    (2) iexplore.exe is really small, like 90K or less. I'm NOT a big
    Windows internals guy (obviously), but it seems to me that at 90K, all
    iexplore.exe does is call into a .DLL somewhere? So maybe I could
    write my own iexplore.exe to:

    Run my code -> Call into .DLL just like iexplore.exe

    I realize all this opens up a bit of a Pandora's box with the nature of
    the executable in question, but I *really* need to be able to do
    something like this. I didn't know if someone has any thoughts on
    this, or maybe just a pointer to some materials available on IE
    internals.

    Thanks!
    -ceo

  2. Re: "Hooking" IE run/initialization process?

    newsbot@cox.net wrote:
    > I have a need to intercept the startup of iexplore.exe to run some
    > checks I would like to run before actually launching the iexplore.exe
    > browser window.

    Why do you want to launch the iexplore.exe at all? It not only sucks,
    it's so unsafe it ought to be illegal. Use Firefox.

    --
    http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
    Palladium? Trusted Computing? DRM? Microsoft? Sauron.
    "One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them
    One ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them."

  3. Re: "Hooking" IE run/initialization process?


    Twisted One wrote:
    > newsbot@cox.net wrote:
    > > I have a need to intercept the startup of iexplore.exe to run some
    > > checks I would like to run before actually launching the
    iexplore.exe
    > > browser window.
    >
    > Why do you want to launch the iexplore.exe at all? It not only sucks,

    > it's so unsafe it ought to be illegal. Use Firefox.

    I totally agree, but a lot of companies REQUIRE use of IE on internal
    networks; mine happens to be one of them. There are so many internal
    apps here that have client-side VBScript it's not even funny. So, it
    *has* to be used unfortunately (though my personal sentiments parallel
    yours.)

    So back to the problem at hand...

    -ceo

  4. Re: "Hooking" IE run/initialization process?

    newsbot@cox.net wrote:
    > Twisted One wrote:
    >
    >>newsbot@cox.net wrote:
    >>
    >>>I have a need to intercept the startup of iexplore.exe to run some
    >>>checks I would like to run before actually launching the
    >
    > iexplore.exe
    >
    >>>browser window.
    >>
    >>Why do you want to launch the iexplore.exe at all? It not only sucks,
    >
    >>it's so unsafe it ought to be illegal. Use Firefox.
    >
    > I totally agree, but a lot of companies REQUIRE use of IE on internal
    > networks; mine happens to be one of them. There are so many internal
    > apps here that have client-side VBScript it's not even funny. So, it
    > *has* to be used unfortunately (though my personal sentiments parallel
    > yours.)
    >
    > So back to the problem at hand...

    My God, where do you work -- the Cruftwerkz? Or the unholy Microsoft
    itself?!

    --
    http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
    Palladium? Trusted Computing? DRM? Microsoft? Sauron.
    "One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them
    One ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them."

  5. Re: "Hooking" IE run/initialization process?

    > > > I have a need to intercept the startup of iexplore.exe to run some
    > > > checks I would like to run before actually launching the
    > > > iexplore.exe browser window.

    > So back to the problem at hand...

    If you were able to force them to boot from a CD, there was a thread a
    couple of months ago where someone needed to be able to launch the
    browser with a specific page via CD...

    Perhaps you could incorporate the checks as part of the CD autorun
    facility ?!?

    The docs for ixshell.exe follow (but it may not be of use to you...)

    ----
    Instead of doing the programming yourself you can use a free tool I
    once wrote.
    You just put it in the root directory of your CD together with the
    autorun.inf and type the following into autorun.inf

    [autorun]
    open=ixshell.exe somefile.html

    you can also use switches like

    [autorun]
    open=ixshell.exe -d somefile.html (opens the default brwoser, not IE)

    or:
    [autorun]
    open=ixshell.exe -k somefile.html (opens the HTML file in kiosk mode
    of IE)

    Tested under WinNT/2000/XP and Win98.

    There's more, you can find it on my website:
    http://www.patrick-herb.de
    Unfortunately, the website is in German, you'll have to deal with
    that. You'll find the tool under "Produkte--ixshell". Just ask if
    there are questions.
    ----

    --
    Please add "[newsgroup]" in the subject of any personal replies via email
    --- My new email address has "ngspamtrap" & @btinternet.com in it ;-) ---

  6. Re: "Hooking" IE run/initialization process?

    Well, it wouldn't be prudent for me to say exactly, but I'd be VERY
    surprised to find it's in the minority with regard to standardizing on
    IE, as much as I loathe, IE, Microsoft, and anyone idiodic enough to
    place any reliance on non-standard, non-cross-browser components. Like
    any other working environment, there are some things which just "don't
    make sense" to those of who are technical because, well, frankly,
    non-technical people generally make the really big decisions... But
    I/we digress. There have to be 1000 threads a day started on stupid
    things companies do internally using technology.

    With that said, I wouldn't even MENTION what the root reason is that I
    need this capability because it's just another stupid thing they've
    decided which has me completely beside myself and I'm on a mission to
    put an end to it on my workstation at least.

    So, if you think standardizing on IE is bad, you should hear why I want
    to be able to do what I originally wrote.

    So far, no real answers are emerging.

    Actually, I've gone far enough with a solution that if I can find a way
    to set a global environment variable on the fly, I could do what I want
    to do. Windows 98 used to have a utility called WINSET that does this,
    but I don't see a way to do this in Windows 2K/XP yet.

    -ceo

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