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Named window navigation might fail to navigate the existing named window

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Warning

The retired, out-of-support Internet Explorer 11 desktop application has been permanently disabled through a Microsoft Edge update on certain versions of Windows 10. For more information, see Internet Explorer 11 desktop app retirement FAQ.

This article helps you resolve the problem that you make sure that the target URL and the URL in the target window have the same protection mode setting when calling window.open.

Original product version:   Internet Explorer
Original KB number:   2961083

Symptoms

When navigating a URL with a target window (such as a form post, a hyperlink, or a window.open call) and the target window exists, a new window might open instead or the originating window might perform the navigation instead of the target window. The behavior exists on Internet Explorer 8 and above.

Cause

This is a problem with Internet Explorer. This can happen if the target url of the new navigation and the url of the existing target window require processes with different integrity levels. In order to be in different integrity levels, they have to be in different security zones having different Protected Mode settings.

Resolution

Make sure the target URL is in the same integrity level as the url in the target window when calling window.open. You can do this by making sure the zones that the two windows are in have the same protected mode settings.

More information

If the named window for the navigation target already exists in the same integrity level as that of the originating window, then the navigation to a URL requiring a different integrity level to that named window will occur in the originating window since it can't use the existing window.  It does this by creating a new Internet Explorer process swapping the new Internet Explorer process' window in place of the existing Internet Explorer process' window.

If the named window for the navigation target already exists in a different integrity level as that of the originating window, then the navigation to a URL requiring a different integrity level to that named window will occur in a new window since it can't find the target window.

If User Account Control (UAC) is disabled, this problem won't appear in Windows 7 but Windows 8 might still display the behavior since processes are still launched as Medium or Low Integrity level for Internet Explorer.