Special links

  1. What are special links and protocol handlers?
  2. How do I set Yandex.Mail as the mailto protocol handler?
  3. How do I set Yandex.Calendar for handling the webcal protocol?
  4. Changing assigned protocol handlers
  5. How do I prohibit protocol handling?
  6. How to send a link in an email

What are special links and protocol handlers?

Special links are links that open certain programs. For example, when you click a link with an email address, it launches a mail program and creates a message to this address.

Special links use the following protocols:

  • mailto — for opening an email application
  • webcal — for adding events to a calendar

Protocol handlers are programs or web services that open when you click special links.

Protocol Protocol handler
Program Web service
webcal Outlook Yandex.Calendar
mailto Outlook, The Bat! Yandex.Mail
Protocol Protocol handler
Program Web service
webcal Outlook Yandex.Calendar
mailto Outlook, The Bat! Yandex.Mail

You can set the default web service for email and calendars in the Yandex.Browser settings.

Note. If you have not assigned web handlers yourself, special links are handled by the program that is set on your computer as the default program for email and calendars.

How do I set Yandex.Mail as the mailto protocol handler?

Yandex.Mail offers to set the protocol handler itself:

  1. Log into your account in Yandex.Mail.
  2. Click the icon in the right half of the SmartBox:
  3. Flip the switch to Allow.
  4. Click Done.

How do I set Yandex.Calendar for handling the webcal protocol?

  1. Go to the Yandex.Calendar page.
  2. Click Ctrl + Shift + J to open the JavaScript console.
  3. Type the following command in the console, then press Enter: 
    navigator.registerProtocolHandler("webcal","https://calendar.yandex.ru/import?url=%s","Yandex.Calendar");
  4. Confirm by clicking Allow in the dialog window that opens.
Tip. You can close the JavaScript console using the  icon or by using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Shift + J (on Windows) or ⌘ + ⌥ + J (on macOS).

Changing assigned protocol handlers

To view the list of assigned protocol handlers:

  1. Tap  → Settings.
  2. At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
  3. In the Privacy section, click Content settings.
  4. In the Handlers section, click Manage handlers.

All the assigned protocol handlers are listed in the open Protocol Handlers window.

In this window, you can:

Change the website specified as a protocol handler
  1. Expand the drop-down list and select one of the installed handlers.
  2. Click Done.
Disable the selected protocol handler.
  1. Open the drop-down list and select the option (none).
  2. Click Done.
Delete a specific website from the list of handlers for the selected protocol
  1. Select a service from the list and click the link remove this site.
  2. Click Done.

How do I prohibit protocol handling?

If you do not want a program or web service to open when you click a special link, prohibit protocol handling on all websites:

  1. Tap  → Settings.
  2. At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
  3. In the Privacy section, click Content settings.
  4. In the Handlers section, select Do not allow any site to handle protocols.

How to send a link in an email

To send an email with a link to an open browser page:

  1. Click in the SmartBox.
  2. On the right side of the SmartBox, click Share → Send via email. A new email opens with an embedded link to the page.
  3. Enter your recipient's email address and send the email.

This command works if the mailto handling protocol is configured in the browser. To check if it is set up:

  1. Tap  → Settings.
  2. At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
  3. In the Privacy section, click Content settings.
  4. In the Handlers section, the Allow sites to ask to become default handlers for protocols (recommended) option should be enabled.
  5. In the Handlers section, click Manage handlers. The handler should be specified next to the mailto protocol.