# Setup
1. Install brave with [scoop.sh](https://scoop.sh/)
```
scoop install brave
```

2. Open Brave and set it as default from Settings->Set Brave as your default browser. You can also open settings with `brave://settings/`
3. Open Windows settings, go to Apps->Default apps and click on Brave in the "Set defaults for applications" list. Click on "Set default" next to "Make Brave your default browser"

# Problem
1. Scoop keeps your Brave User Data folder under `%USERPROFILE%\scoop\persist\brave\User Data\` instead of default `%APPDATA%\Local\BraveSoftware\Brave-Browser\User Data\` when installing Brave system wide.
2. Scoop creates a StartMenu shortcut for you that passes a `--user-data-dir=` to the executable to open the browser with a correct data dir
3. This flag is not passed when setting Brave as your default browser app, causing Brave to create a new empty profile under `%APPDATA%` when handling user clicked links

# Fix
1. Need to pass the same `--user-data-dir=` flag to the command that starts the default browser
2. Run the registry editor and navigate to `Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\` and search for an entry starting with `BraveHTML`. In my case:
```
Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\BraveHTML.EZFHM3RMMULEVXSSUS2XFITXRI\shell\open\command
```
3. Modify the value to include the correct User Data path.

From:
```
"C:\Users\USER\scoop\apps\brave\current\brave.exe" --single-argument %1
```
To:
```
"C:\Users\USER\scoop\apps\brave\current\brave.exe" --user-data-dir="C:\Users\USER\scoop\apps\brave\current\User Data" --single-argument %1
```
4. Do the same for the `Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\BraveFile\shell\open\command` to fix the "Open with -> Brave" context menu. 
5. Click on a link in any application rather than Brave itself.