Microsoft KB Archive/941052

= Error message in Internet Explorer when you click a hyperlink that links to a file whose name contains UTF-8-encoded characters: &quot;The page cannot be displayed&quot; =

Article ID: 941052

Article Last Modified on 11/8/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Windows Internet Explorer 7
 * Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0
 * Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0
 * Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.5 128-Bit Edition

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SYMPTOMS
Consider the following scenario. You use Windows Internet Explorer to visit a Web page. Then, you click a hyperlink on the Web page. In this scenario, you receive the following error message:

The page cannot be displayed

Additionally, the Address bar may include some incorrect characters.

This issue occurs if the following conditions are true:
 * The hyperlink is a uniform resource identifier (URI) that links to a file.
 * The file name contains UTF-8-encoded characters.



CAUSE
In the URI, the UTF-8-encoded characters are interpreted as a byte according to the current codepage. The meaning of the UTF-8-encoded characters in non-US-ASCII varies, depending on the locale in which the document is viewed.



WORKAROUND
To work around this issue, do not use percent-encoded octets to represent non-US-ASCII characters. To represent a non-US-ASCII character, you must use that non-US-ASCII character directly in the encoding of the document in which you write the URI.

For more information, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/2006/12/06/file-uris-in-windows.aspx



STATUS
This behavior is by design.

Keywords: kbprb kbexpertiseadvanced KB941052

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