Special links
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.
How do I set Yandex.Mail as the mailto protocol handler?
Yandex.Mail offers to set the protocol handler itself:
- Log into your account in Yandex.Mail.
- Click the icon
in the right half of the SmartBox:
- Flip the switch to Allow.
- Click Done.

If the Mail extension is enabled, mail links will open in Yandex.Mail.
To enable the extension:
- Click .
- In the Yandex services section, enable the Mail extension.

If the icon did not appear in the page title, you can use the handler to assign Yandex.Mail yourself:
- Go to the Yandex.Mail page.
- Click Ctrl + Shift + J to open the JavaScript console.
- Type the following command in the console, then press Enter:
navigator.registerProtocolHandler("mailto", "https://mail.yandex.com/compose?mailto=%s", "Yandex.Mail");
- Confirm by clicking Allow in the dialog window that opens.


How do I set Yandex.Calendar for handling the webcal protocol?
- Go to the Yandex.Calendar page.
- Click Ctrl + Shift + J to open the JavaScript console.
- Type the following command in the console, then press Enter:
navigator.registerProtocolHandler("webcal","https://calendar.yandex.ru/import?url=%s","Yandex.Calendar");
- Confirm by clicking Allow in the dialog window that opens.

Changing assigned protocol handlers
To view the list of assigned protocol handlers:
- Tap .
- At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
- In the Privacy section, click Content settings.
- 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:
- Expand the drop-down list and select one of the installed handlers.
- Click Done.
- Open the drop-down list and select the option (none).
- Click Done.
- Select a service from the list and click the link remove this site.
- 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:
- Tap .
- At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
- In the Privacy section, click Content settings.
- 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:
- Click in the SmartBox.
- On the right side of the SmartBox, click . A new email opens with an embedded link to the page.
- 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:
- Tap .
- At the bottom of the Settings page, click Show advanced settings.
- In the Privacy section, click Content settings.
- In the Handlers section, the Allow sites to ask to become default handlers for protocols (recommended) option should be enabled.
- In the Handlers section, click Manage handlers. The handler should be specified next to the mailto protocol.