How create a custom browser URI scheme and C# protocol handler client that supports opening and editing of remotely hosted documents through WebDAV
Recently I came across a situation where I needed to create a one-click web-based solution, that allows clients to open and edit PhotoShop, AutoCAD, WordPerfect, PDF, LibreOffice and other files hosted remotely from my WebDAV enabled Apache web server by using their own desktop tools. Essentially I needed a solution for opening and editing remotely hosted documents (located on my web server) through a simple HREF link on a web page. This link, when clicked, would automatically open the PSD file hosted on my server, but do so in the PhotoShop installed on the client’s Windows computer, allowing them to seamlessly open and edit such files, without any need to download and upload the files back and forth to my server. Initially, it seemed like an impossible, task, but then I realized that I should be able to create my very own custom browser URI scheme and some kind of a Windows-based client that handles opening of remote files in local installation Photoshop. After a bit of playing around with it, I got it working and created a solution capable of opening for remote editing not only PhotoShop files, but virtually any other remotely hosted file types in their associated applications, meaning in the software installed on the client’s desktop computer . The following article is how I went about it. [Read more…]
