GNOME-exe-handler

The gnome-exe-handler is a small utility used by other applications to launch programs inside the GNOME environment. It checks to see if a file is executable, then prompts users to be sure they want to run it before executing the file. While it can be invoked directly from the command line, it is more likely to have been invoked by another program, often the Nautilus file manager, by double-clicking on a file name or icon.

Typically, gnome-exe-handler will be invoked for the execution of a binary file in a case where the file's permissions have not been set to allow user execution. The gnome-exe-handler will first try to determine the type of file. If it appears to be executable, it will then prompt the user to determine whether the user wants to start the program, then change the permissions to allow the program to be executed.