You can create a custom protocol and protocol handler to process file links including UNCs.
This recently allowed me to deploy a web application into an enterprise space with extensive dependencies on creating and editing word and excel documents (as well as pdfs).
The web application generates highly customized rtf from user submitted forms and provides links for users which, when clicked, will open word with the rtf loaded and its working directory properly set within their network file system. Therefore, the user can modify the rtf, simply press save and exit.
This is vastly superior to download / edit / upload schemes or replicating the functionality of word through this web application.
The users can access the files through UNC based methods they already understand and through the new web application. Its glue to wean the enterprise from windows binaries and UNC paths everywhere towards a unified web application.
It also very simple:
1. Name the protocol and generate links using it:
myproto:/path_to_file
3. Write a tiny handler as a binary, or even batch file, to be called by chrome when it parses the custom protocol
In the situation referenced above, the handler application just truncates out the protocol from the link and calls the shell with the resultant string. That means it properly handles all windows file associations. So, .rtf -> Word, .xls -> excel, .pdf -> acrobat, / -> file explorer.
To the user its actually quite seamless.
You do have to touch client machines once to setup the handler, but in this context its fine. This is not over the internet, but inside the enterprise.
This recently allowed me to deploy a web application into an enterprise space with extensive dependencies on creating and editing word and excel documents (as well as pdfs).
The web application generates highly customized rtf from user submitted forms and provides links for users which, when clicked, will open word with the rtf loaded and its working directory properly set within their network file system. Therefore, the user can modify the rtf, simply press save and exit.
This is vastly superior to download / edit / upload schemes or replicating the functionality of word through this web application.
The users can access the files through UNC based methods they already understand and through the new web application. Its glue to wean the enterprise from windows binaries and UNC paths everywhere towards a unified web application.
It also very simple:
1. Name the protocol and generate links using it: myproto:/path_to_file
2. Modify the windows registry to handle the protocol http://kb.mozillazine.org/Register_protocol
3. Write a tiny handler as a binary, or even batch file, to be called by chrome when it parses the custom protocol
In the situation referenced above, the handler application just truncates out the protocol from the link and calls the shell with the resultant string. That means it properly handles all windows file associations. So, .rtf -> Word, .xls -> excel, .pdf -> acrobat, / -> file explorer.
To the user its actually quite seamless.
You do have to touch client machines once to setup the handler, but in this context its fine. This is not over the internet, but inside the enterprise.