Solved Adding MediaInfo to the context menu (again)

Hi everybody,

Well, this is my fault (probably).

To my surprise, today I have noticed that MediaInfo doesn't appear anymore in the context menu when I right-click on a video file (mp4, mkv, etc).
I use MediaInfo a lot, so this is a real problem for me.
Drag-n-dropping the file on MediaInfo works, so this is really about the context menu.

I figure this is related to me messing with the context menu a few days ago (although I can't be sure of that). For the record I was trying to remove some unwanted entries (I managed to remove two or three), using Easy Context Menu 1.6 and FileMenu Tools. I'm pretty sure I didn't remove anything MediaInfo-related, so I don't understand.

I don't have a system restore point (well, I have one from Dec. 28th, but me messing with the context menu happened on Dec. 25th, so...)
I have tried manually uninstalling AND reinstalling MediaInfo. Doesn't work either.
I have checked MediaInfo preferences, and the context menu option is checked as it should.

Could you guys walk me through this, so I can add MediaInfo again to my context menu?
Many thanks in advance, and Happy New Year!

Hi Jose,

Are you choosing "Show more options" at the bottom of the context menu? MediaInfo shows up for me after choosing "Show more options" but I do have K-Lite Codec Pack installed.

Hi Steve, happy new year
I don't have any "show more options": I'm using StartAllBack with classic context menu.
It all used to work perfectly until a few days ago, so I'm pretty sure that it was me messing with the context menu.
Maybe someone could help me check the Registry and see what's happening?

BTW here's two pictures: one of my current context menu (with MediaInfo missing), and one of what I'd like my context menu to be (which I can't achieve apparently, because Microsoft has made their goddamn context menu un-customizable )

..............................

You didn't mention whether you also have K-Lite Codec Pack, which bundles a basic version of MediaInfo. That's where I started, but since I was in the same mess and got out of it, I'll describe it here in case it helps.

-I'd used the Pack for years but recently realized that the full version of MediaInfo has more features than MediaInfo Lite bundled with the Pack.
-I installed MediaInfo and configured it, but I soon noticed that MediaInfo was no longer on the context menu. This was likely a Registry thing, and since MediaInfo is all over the Registry, I didn't want to try battling it that way.
-I uninstalled MediaInfo and manually deleted its profile directory under the Roaming directory in case it mattered to the situation.
-I then ran the K-Lite Codec Pack installer and did a "Fast Update" reinstall of it, which is quick and easy. This restored my context menu for MediaInfo, though of course it was for the version in the Pack, so I was just back to where I started.
-I now extracted the portable version of MediaInfo and configured it. This automatically inherits the context menu item for MediaInfo, so when I use that now I get this one and not the Lite version.

I don't actually know whether users of K-Lite Codec Pack are meant to be able to use the installed version of MediaInfo and it was just my bad luck that it didn't work, or whether the portable version is recommended, but that's the only one that worked for me.

Oh wow @rseiler , you just made my day! THANK YOU!!

I now understand what was going on:

• I have indeed the K-Lite Codec Pack (I would never have realized this was the cause )
• I remember that around Christmas (so around the same time when I messed with the context menu), UniGetUI told me about a new version of MediaInfo (24.12)
• So I just updated it, forgetting that it was the Lite version bundled with the K-Lite Codec Pack
• That's probably what made my context menu option disappear, so I guess something must be wrong within MediaInfo installer

I have followed your method and it has restored my context menu option perfectly. MANY THANKS!!!

EDIT - I have also disabled MediaInfo updates via UniGetUI, to prevent this from happening again. I'm curious about what will happen with MediaInfo and the next K-Lite Codec Pack update. Will it revert me to the Lite version? Will it update my full version?

It will most likely replace the current MediaInfo entry with it's own (the one you call "lite version"). But you can simply run the portable version of MediaInfo and it will replace the context menu entry again with the full version. At least that's how it works on my system.

On the question of what the next install of the Codec Pack will do, it does revert it. But one way around that is to run the Codec Pack installer in its Update/Modify mode and on the first screen of the wizard deselect Mediainfo Lite and finish stepping through the wizard to remove Lite. There's no point in having it as long as you have the full version of Mediainfo, which also handles the context menu (with no interference now).

For future Codec Pack updates you can just do a "Fast update" type install and not have to think about it again.

Just another example of the mess and confusion that totally unnecessary codec packs can wreak on a system

Using Daum Potplayer (and on the extremely very rare occasion, VLC player) I have never ever needed a codec pack of any kind, and simply use MediaInfo in its own right. No other bells and whistles are needed.

Please refrain from pointlessly criticizing when you don't know the specifics.
Thank you.