Show Your Desired Text on Desktop by Customizing Windows Vista & 7 Watermark (Build Number Info)

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Each Windows OS has its own build number which is shown in its Beta builds but not shown in RTM versions. This build number on Desktop is also called Watermark. For example, Windows Vista SP1 shows its build number as "Build 6001" on Desktop.

In this tutorial, we'll change this build number to our custom string and will show that custom string on Desktop. You can put your name, your website URL or anything which you want to show.

It might also become very useful to customization pack creators who can show their customized text like any beta build number or their pack version/name on Desktop.

So here we start our tutorial:

1. First thing is to enable "Build Number" on Desktop. There is a simple registry trick to show it.

Type regedit in RUN or Startmenu Search box and press Enter. It'll open Registry Editor. Now go to following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop

In right-side pane, change value of "PaintDesktopVersion" DWORD to 1 (Create the DWORD value if its not present).

Now log off or restart your system and you'll see the Build number on Desktop:

2. We have completed first step. Now we have to customize this Build number. For this task we'll need to edit a system file "user32.dll.mui" in Resource Hacker.

If you don't know about Resource Hacker, you can read following tutorial:

All About Resource Hacker in a brief Tutorial

To edit the file, we'll need to take ownership of this file otherwise we'll not be able to save our changes. Taking ownership is very easy. First follow the instructions given in following topic:

Add Take Ownership Option in File / Folder Context Menu in Windows XP, Vista and 7

Now open My Computer and go to following folder:

%windir%\System32\en-US

You can paste the above string in addressbar and press Enter. It'll open the folder. Now look for the "user32.dll.mui" file. When you find it, right-click on it and select "Take Ownership":

NOTE: If your Windows language is different, then replace en-US in the above path with your language code.

3. Now open "user32.dll.mui" file in Resource Hacker. You can simply drag-n-drop the file in Resource Hacker window.

Once you open the file, go to "String Table -> 45". In right-side pane, look at the 715 and 716 entries. The 715 entry contains the first line of Build number i.e. "Windows Vista (TM)" and the 716 entry contains the second line i.e. "Build 6001".

We need to change their text so that we can show our own desired text. That's very simple. Simply delete the text within double-quotes "" and type your own desired text in both entries as shown in following screenshot:

After changing the text, click on "Compile Script" button and at last save the file.

4. That's it. Now restart your system and your desired text will be displayed on Desktop:

PS: Please be very careful while editing any file in Resource Hacker. Changing Build number is completely safe and it'll not cause any problem.

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This article was posted by VG in following section: Resource Hacker, Windows 7, Windows Vista.

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Someone

Already taken ownership, using Windows 7 RC.
Mac Pro

How do we edit the win32k.sys file in XP? What are we supposed to do?
Mumy

I change the ownweship and edit the file. Its gone wel. If I reopen the file user32.dll.mui, I see the changes wich i ve done. But it has no any effect. The watermark stays without any changes. I ve restart 2, 3 times... NAH... nothing.. It is a Windows 7 build 7100 32bit English wich is downloaded from Microsoft site and installed without any problems. have any idea?... thnx.
VG

Our readers claimed that they successfully changed Build number in Windows 7 builds using this tutorial. Thats why we mentioned it should also work for Windows 7 but we have not tested it.
J-P

Hello all I also try it with windows 7RC
file renamed sucessful but no change on the desktop.
I try the pach 'Water mark remover" now water mark is gone, went back and edite user32.dll.mui, Line 715 and 716 are gone, i put them back compiled save and reboout, no water mark on the desktop ...
hope that will help to understand someone ...
Avinash

Hi vishal. Thanks for this tutorial. This worked for me, in my XP Sp3, Vista & even in my Windows 7. Its perfectly worked in all editions.

When i edit the Build Number, in XP SP3, suppose in future, if XP Sp4 comes, den wil it able to recognize it & successfully installs ? Same question applies in Vista & 7.

(I don have Xp sp2, otherwise i would have tested it myself :))
VG

^^ yes.
Avinash

Thanks VG :)
mrkent

thanks VG
I am using windows 7 64bit Simplified Chinese
i can edit user32.dll.mul ,and save as to other path , checked the file was changed.

But, when i try to replace that file in %windir%system32/zh-cn , system allways recover the file ,WHY??
VG

^^ First take ownership of the file in "zh-cn" folder. Then rename it to some other name. At last copy your modified file to this folder and restart your system. it should work.