How to Set Your Desired Wallpaper as Folder Background Image in Windows XP
Do you remember the good old days of Windows 98? In Windows 98, we could change the background color, background image, fonts, etc in any desired folder but this facility was removed from Windows XP. It was a good feature and many people still miss that feature in Windows XP.
So here we are posting 3 methods to set any desired wallpaper as background image of any folder in Windows XP:
Table of Contents
A. Using Desktop.ini Trick to Set a Wallpaper as Folder Background Image:
1. Open Command Prompt and set folder attribute to system using attrib command. Suppose there is a folder “Setup” in “D:\” drive, in which you want to set a wallpaper as background image. So give following command in Command Prompt:
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attrib +s D:\Setup
It’ll change the folder attribute to system.
2. Now open Notepad and paste following code:
[ExtShellFolderViews]
{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC} = {BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}
[{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}]
Attributes=1
IconArea_Image=path_of_the_wallpaper
IconArea_Text=0x00000000
Change “path_of_the_wallpaper” string to the exact path of the wallpaper which you want to set as background. Suppose the wallpaper is stored in “D:\Wallpaper\Image1.jpg”, then the code will be as following:
[ExtShellFolderViews]
{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC} = {BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}
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[{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}]
Attributes=1
IconArea_Image=D:\Wallpaper\Image1.jpg
IconArea_Text=0x00000000
NOTE: If you copy the wallpaper in the same folder which you are editing, then you can simply put the wallpaper name in the file. e.g. if you copy the “Image1.jpg” file in “Setup” folder, then the code will be as following:
[ExtShellFolderViews]
{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC} = {BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}
[{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}]
Attributes=1
IconArea_Image=Image1.jpg
IconArea_Text=0x00000000
“IconArea_Text” stands for the text color, you can change it to white, yellow, blue, black or any other color. You just need to know the hexadecimal number of the color and then replace the code in “IconArea_Text” section. A few widely used color codes are as follows:
Black – 0x00000000
White – 0x00FFFFFF
Green – 0x0000FF00
Blue – 0x00FF0000
Purple – 0x00C000C0
Red – 0x000000FF
Yellow – 0x0000FFFF
Indigo – 0x00FFFF00
3. Now save the file with name “Desktop.ini” (including quotes) and copy the file in the desired folder which is “Setup” in our example.
4. That’s it. Close the folder and re-open it. Now it should show the wallpaper as background.
B. Using the Same Method of “IEShwiz.exe” File Used in Windows 9x/NT/2000:
1. Copy “IEShwiz.exe” file from Windows 98/Me/NT/2000 and paste it in “%windir%” directory. (Here %windir% means C:\Windows directory, if your Windows is installed in C:\ drive).
2. Now Type regedit in RUN dialog box and press Enter. Now go to following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Directory\shell\
Now under this key, create a new key “Customize This Folder“. Now select this newly created key and create another key under it with the name “Command“. Select this new key “Command” and change the value of “Default” in right side pane to IESHWIZ.EXE %1
3. That’s it. Now open any folder and right-click, you’ll get an option “Customize This Folder“. Click on it and follow the wizard and you’ll be able to set a wallpaper as the background and to change font color.
C. Using 3rd Party Software “Windowpaper XP”:
1. Download “Windowpaper XP” from following link:
Download Link (Discontinued…)
2. Install the software and you can easily change the folder background and font colors.
PS: Windows Vista users can check out following article:
How to Set Your Desired Wallpaper as Folder Background in Windows Vista
nice bro you r awesome
giving awesome tricks
Nice..
But, is there any way to undone it?
just delete that desktop.ini file from the folder
good, But you haven’t provided the steps to get back to the original view.
^^ In method 1, delete Desktop.ini to restore default look. In method 2, delete the newly created key from Registry.
Completely Amazing…. Thanks to The Uploader
Now I can make my folders look more attractive
awesome! thanks for this, used first method without any problem and installing anything. works perfectly as wanted.
DIDN’T WORKED ON MY WIN 8 !!!!!
I tried the same folder name and drive & did everything as mentioned & changed the wallpaper to “Image1.jpg” but still didn’t worked
is it compulsory to change the folder to a system file,
because i had try it many times but nothing happening.
give me reason
please tell me how to use this wallpaper trick for windows 10 pro
Hello.
I have used second method, it worked perfectly.
Is there a way though to prevent it from scrolling down and lock it there?
bro sorry i found this trick useless. Give me some extra tips for this trick because there is nothing has changed when i entered the code you given.
I love this guide. I did it when I was a kid on the home pc, I put a picture of Qui Gon and played star wars the phantom menace game. Now – 10~ years in the future, I got an old netbook-laptop as a gift and I’m doing the same things. Thankxs for this
Its not working on my pc , win 7
help plssssss!!
This worked on windows 2000, but no Windows OS since then.
Ok i have done this and work just fine, but ARE MULTIPLY my photo/image more time to full the folder background. Ok, but to show up only 1 time only the photo, UP, for example how to make this, only for 1 time photo.
Windows XP are alive and work just fine from about 10 years.