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How can I change the default ActiveX component download location?

A. By default, when Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) installs an ActiveX control on your machine, Windows stores the component in the \%systemroot%\downloaded program files folder (e.g., C:\windows\downloaded program files). To change this location, perform the following steps:

  1. Start a registry editor (e.g., regedit.exe).
  2. Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings registry subkey.
  3. Double-click the ActiveXCache value, change the path in the value data to a new location, then click OK.
  4. Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\ActiveX Cache registry subkey.
  5. Double-click the 0 value, change the path in the value data to the same location you specified in Step 4, then click OK.
  6. Restart IE for the changes to take effect.

Valid registry values can be a folder on the local hard disk, a Universal Naming Convention (UNC) location, or a mapped network drive. However, be aware that running the ActiveX cache from a network location can degrade performance.

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