A program for changing the appearance of Windows 7. How to return the standard theme to Windows? detailed instructions
March 17, 2011 at 12:36 pmSetting up appearance Windows 7
- Windows Development
IN Lately I began to notice that most of the "seven" users use standard theme design, which the developers affectionately called Aero.
In my opinion, it is too focused on tablets. This is evidenced by the huge window control buttons and excessively wide title bars and window frames - all this makes the interface somewhat cumbersome. In addition, the developers were too clever with the variety color range: all these transparencies, shimmers, gradients and other delights create a peculiar mud effect.
Perhaps someone likes it this way, someone doesn’t care, someone is used to it, and someone simply doesn’t know that all this can be changed.
Visual Styles
Visual styles include all window graphics, controls, backgrounds and font settings. This list does not include, perhaps, only the “Start” button, the “Forward” and “Back” navigation buttons, as well as icons. Themes
A bunch of topics can be found on DeviantArt "e.Themes are simply a file describing what should be used. This includes the visual style itself, some icons, screensavers, wallpaper, cursors and some other elements.
It's worth mentioning that sometimes themes can be geared towards different settings Taskbars. So, for example, a large taskbar on the right and a small one on top can be different topics. Usually developers add an appropriate prefix to them, such as “Top” or “Left”.
Installing themes
All themes are stored in the path %SystemRoot%\Resources\Themes\. After which they can be selected in the “Personalization” window.But it's not that simple. Initially, it is prohibited to install themes that are not signed by Microsoft itself. To get around this limitation, you need to patch three dlls. For this there is a simple open-source program called Universal Theme Patcher for Windows(Official website, download, mirror).
Disable UAC, run it with administrator rights and click on the three Patch buttons. This operation it is absolutely safe, in addition, the program automatically makes backups so that you can restore the original files if something happens. For 64bit it is recommended to patch with both versions, because The system contains both 32 and 64 bit dlls.
After this, restart the computer.
Now all that's left to do is move necessary topics in %SystemRoot%\Resources\Themes\ and select them in “Personalization”. Having done this, you will see that the window design has changed, but the “Start” and navigation buttons remain. The thing is that they are tightly “hardwired” into the system files. Therefore, most themes now come with already modified files that will simply need to be replaced.
Replacing system files
They also buried our dog here. To replace system files with our modified versions, we need to become the owner of these files. To do this, we will use the TakeControl utility (download, mirror). Run as administrator and add the following files to the list:- C:\Windows\exlporer.exe
- C:\Windows\System32\ExplorerFrame.dll
- C:\Windows\System32\shell32.dll
- C:\Windows\System32\timedate.cpl
Then click on “Take control” and wait for the process to complete. There is no need to reboot.
Now all we have to do is replace original files to those available in the topic. To do this, add to source files prefix _old, then move the patched file to the place of the old one. You can do it easier and use Theme Manager, the link to which is just below. He will do everything himself.
ATTENTION:
- Theme developers usually make two versions system files: for x86 and for 64 separately.
- Don't be lazy to check the file versions! If they do not agree, then most likely you will have to do a recovery via live-cd or “System Restore”
- After replacing shell32.dll, you may lose multi-channel audio.
We reboot and see the updated appearance. 
Additional setup
Sometimes it happens that authors shove some nonsense into the topic. Cyrillic fonts, make them bold italic , or just the size is too small. This is where Color and Appearance Settings come to the rescue. In them you can change the colors, fonts and sizes used for each individual type of element. By the way, this also includes frames and headers, that is, you can change their size, although on the standard theme in some places this causes artifacts to appear.
Icons
You probably didn't quite notice standard icons in my taskbar. This can be done in two ways: manually create a bunch of shortcuts, change the icons in them and push them onto the panel, or use the 7conifier utility (download, mirror).It automatically replaces icons required applications based on the rules described in package.xml. Everything here is quite simple, so there is no point in explaining it manually.
And on the same deviart there are ready-made packs that almost completely replace system icons. One of the most popular is Faenza IconPack, which is so hated on ENT.
Simplifying your life
Below I will give short review some useful programs, which can help you set up.Theme Manager (Official website, download, mirror)
Allows you to install themes with just one click. All you have to do is indicate necessary files and install the theme, specify the name and apply. A special feature of the program is that you can save topics with all resources in zip containers. Moreover, this feature is, as it were, hidden from view - it can only be evoked with the help of hot Ctrl keys+ E and Ctrl + I.
Logon Screen Changer (download, mirror)
And with the help of this software you can change the background of the welcome screen, as well as change some other parameters.
Navigation Panel Customizer (Official website, download, mirror)
This is an easy way to remove unnecessary items from the left menu of Explorer.
Taskbar Item Pinner (Official site, download, mirror)
And with this thing you can attach absolutely any element to the Taskbar, be it a folder, a file, or even a separator.
IN latest version Microsoft has done a lot with its operating system to improve the appearance of Windows 7. However, everything, even the best, gradually gets boring and users begin to look for an opportunity to change the usual work environment. A banal change of desktop wallpaper does not count - today we will talk about a deeper change in the “windows”.
Themes and styles
The program does not require installation, but you must run it as an administrator ( Right click - Run as administrator). After this, the utility will automatically patch your system by doing available installation various topics registration Then you need to specify the path to the necessary files from the theme you downloaded and click on the Install Theme button. The topic will appear on the right in the list installed themes. Now just select the desired design option from the list and click Apply Theme to change the appearance of your system.
Start button
To change the appearance of the Start button, use the program Windows 7 Start Button Changer. The utility comes with ten design options for the start button. After selecting the appropriate option, Explorer will restart and you will see the updated Start button.
Program icons
Change icons installed applications it is possible standard means Windows - by selecting in the file properties the desired picture. But for everyone installed programs this will take quite a long time, so it’s better to use the application 7conifier, which not only allows you to change many icons in one fell swoop, but also comes with several eye-pleasing themes.
You can easily switch between sets of icons in the program interface, and also restore the default set if you followed the program’s advice and did backup copy at first start. With 7conifier you can create your own icon sets.
Well, as a result, after applying all the above programs, your system will become completely the new kind. For example, this one.
You bought a computer, or just switched to "Windows 7" (8, 10), or standard view Are you already bored?
Let's try to figure out how to configure the OS so that the magnet works with it.
We change the theme from the "Windows 7" set.
When the user is new or wants to change everything at once, then it is better to use a tool such as choosing themes for Windows 7.
The list of topics can be accessed in the Personalization window.
To do this, just use Windows Explorer by clicking right click right on your desktop.
Attention! Don't fall for any shortcut!
In the window that appears, use the mouse pointer to select “Personalization” and click.
A window will open with established themes for "Windows 7". Now you can try out all the topics one by one.
Clicking on the selected topic will change the appearance of the desktop, folders and the appearance of the mouse cursor will also change.
Having made your choice, do not forget to confirm by clicking the left mouse button on the inscription “Save theme”.
If there is no good theme inside "Windows 7".
At first, the set of themes already installed inside the OS is quite enough for you to study and enjoy working with your computer. What should you do if you’re tired of this or not? interesting topic? Then you can find on the Internet what best suits your taste and install it on your PC. This can be done in the same “Personalization” window.
If you've been paying attention, you'll have noticed "More topics on the web" (or in the Microsoft Store).
This is what is needed now. Click on it.
Next, you will go to the Microsoft website web page; a large arsenal of themes is presented for copying and installing in operating system. The choice is so wide and varied that for better search sorted into topics and genres.
Having decided on your preference and made a selection with the mouse, you find yourself in a gallery of themes with captioned images. You can get acquainted with the topic in more detail by clicking on the inscription “More details”.
If you are satisfied with it, you can copy it to your PC by selecting “Download”.
Installing personal themes for Windows 7.
If the user is sufficiently prepared, you can independently install themes for Windows 7, which are not available either in the OS or on the Microsoft website.
For those who are not familiar with this entry - "SystemRoot/Ressources/Themes", let me explain - this is the path (the route of your movement through the OS folders) where the files with installed themes for the design of the operating system are located.
Attention! This method is only suitable for trained users. The OS does not allow installation of programs without a Microsoft signature, so it is necessary to use specialized utilities, "Universal Theme Patcher for Windows".
Using this utility, UAC is disabled (for those who don’t know, find information in search engine), starting with administrator rights, in the program we click on 3 buttons for Patch.
There is no need to worry about unexpected accidents; the utility automatically creates a previous configuration file - Backup.
In case of using 64-bit Windows versions, you need to do this twice, because the OS has libraries for the 32-bit and 4-bit versions of Windows.
Removing the theme for "Windows 7" from the OS.
To remove unused themes, use the learned method of logging into the Personalization folder.
Select the topic you want to delete. Right-click in the window that opens Windows Explorer, click on the inscription “Delete topic”. That's all.
The delete operation is necessary tool from cluttering your OS, especially during training and long searches best topic OS design for Windows.
Having mastered this small course-guide into the world of "Windows 7", there will be no thought that the appearance of the OS will soon get boring.
At any time, you can choose a theme to design inside "Windows 7". Or add third party products.
Setting up the appearance for Windows 8 and Windows 10 is practically no different from what was described above.
Hello!
Every computer user (especially the female half :)) tries to give their Windows originality and customize it for themselves. It's no secret that basic settings not everyone likes them, and besides, they can even slow down your PC if it is not particularly powerful (by the way, such effects include the same Aero).
Other users want to disable various graphical bells and whistles, because... we’re simply not used to them (after all, all this didn’t exist in Windows 2000 and XP before. I, for example, am generally quite ascetic about this, but I have to help other users...).
So, let's try to change the appearance of the seven a little...
How to change the theme?
Where can you find a lot of new topics? At the office Microsoft website has a sea of them: https://support.microsoft.com/ru-ru/help/13768/windows-desktop-themes
Theme - in Windows 7, a theme refers to everything you see. For example, the picture on the desktop, window color, font size, mouse cursor, sounds, etc. In general, the entire display and sound accompaniment related to the chosen topic. A lot depends on it, which is why we’ll start setting up our OS with it.
In order to change the theme in Windows 7 you need to go to personalization settings. To do this, it is not necessary to go to the control panel; you can simply right-click anywhere on the desktop and select “personalization” from the menu (see Fig. 1).
There are quite a lot of other topics on the Internet; just above, under the title of this subsection of the article, I provided a link to the office. Microsoft website.
By the way, important point! Some themes may even cause your computer to slow down. For example, topics without Aero effect(I talked about it here:) work faster (usually) and require lower computer performance.
How to change the background, wallpaper on your desktop?
Large selection of ready-made wallpapers: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/17780/featured-wallpapers
The background (or wallpaper) is what you see on your desktop, i.e. background picture. Very big influence It is this picture that influences the design. For example, even the taskbar bar changes its color depending on what picture was selected for the wallpaper.
To change standard background, go to personalization (note: right click on the desktop, see above), then at the very bottom there will be a link “” - click it (see Fig. 3)!
By the way, the background on the desktop may be displayed differently, for example, there may be black stripes along the edges. This happens because your screen has a resolution (more about this here -). Those. roughly speaking, a certain size in pixels. When it doesn't match, then these black stripes are formed.
But Windows 7 may try to stretch the picture to fit your screen (see Fig. 4 - the lowest red arrow: “Fill”). True, in this case, the picture may lose its entertainment value...
How to change the size of icons on the Desktop?
Change icon size- very simple! To do this, right-click anywhere on the desktop, then select the “view” menu, then select from the list: large, medium, small (see Fig. 5).
How to change the sound design?
To do this you need to open in control panels Personalization tab, and then select Sounds.
Here you can change the usual soundtrack to various others: landscape, festival, heritage, or turn it off altogether.
How to change the screensaver?
We also go to the personalization tab (note: right-click anywhere on the desktop), select the screensaver item below.
How to change screen resolution?
Option #1
Sometimes you need to change screen resolutions, for example, if the game is slow and you need to launch it with more low parameters; or check the operation of a program, etc. To do this, right-click on the desktop, and then select screen resolution from the pop-up menu.
Option No. 2
Another way to change the screen resolution is to configure it in video drivers (AMD, Nvidia, IntelHD - all manufacturers support this option). Below, I will show how this is done in ItelHD drivers.
First you need to right-click on the desktop and select “ Graphic characteristics"(see Fig. 12). You can also find the video driver icon and go to its settings in the tray, next to the clock.
Rice. 12. Graphic characteristics
Rice. 13. Resolution, display section
How to change and customize the START menu?
To customize the START menu and taskbar, right-click on the "START" button in the lower left corner of the screen, then select the properties tab. You will be taken to the settings: in the first tab you can configure the taskbar, in the second - START.
It probably doesn’t make much sense to describe every checkbox in the settings. It’s best to set it up experimentally: if you don’t know what the checkbox means, turn it on and see the result (then change again - look, at random you will find what you need :))..
Setting up showing hidden files and folders
Here, it is best to enable the display of hidden files and folders in Explorer (many beginners get lost and don’t know how to do this), as well as showing file extensions of any file types (this will help avoid some types of viruses that disguise themselves as other types of files).
This will also allow you to know for sure what kind of file you want to open, and also save time when searching for some folders (some of which are hidden).
To enable display, go to control Panel, then to the tab design and personalization. Next, look for the link “ Show hidden files and folders"(in the Explorer settings section) - open it (Fig. 17).
- uncheck the box next to “ hide extensions for registered file types«;
- move the slider to “show hidden files, folders and disks" (see Fig. 18).
Desktop gadgets
Gadgets are small information windows on the desktop. They can notify you about the weather, about visitors mail messages, show time/date, exchange rates, various puzzles, slides, CPU load indicators, etc.
You can use the gadgets installed in the system: go to control Panel, enter “gadgets” into the search, then you just have to choose the one you like.
By the way, if the presented gadgets are not enough, then you can additionally download them on the Internet - there is even special link under the list of gadgets (see Fig. 19).
Important note! A large number of active gadgets in the system can cause a decrease in computer performance, slowdowns and other delights. Remember that everything is good in moderation and do not clutter your desktop with unnecessary and unnecessary gadgets.
That's all for me. Good luck to everyone and bye!
Hello, dear readers.
When talking about “themes,” it’s worth first understanding what exactly they are. So, in Microsoft's OS, one such unit is a set of some graphical components for changing the appearance of the shell. In addition, it often provides an individual scheme for voicing various events. In a typical distribution, developers provide several design options so that users have a choice. True, sometimes some craftsmen try to change the appearance in their own way. And as a result, many people have problems, because they don’t know how to return the standard Windows theme 7. And unfortunately, this happens often, because the “masters” think that their design will be better. Sometimes problems arise as a result system error. In any case, I will try to tell you how you can return everything.
It is immediately necessary to clarify that different versions Microsoft's OS needs to operate in different ways.
So, in Windows 7 on empty space desktop, right-click and select "".
True, sometimes we can observe a situation where the window we need does not have the usual translucent designs. And often users want to know how to return Aero themes. If required components not in the above menu, click on the line to search on the Internet. A page will open with many different designs. We need to select the appropriate ones and save them to our computer. Next, we return to the personalization menu, where we select new options.
After this, the appearance should change. In addition, the sounds will also be different.
If the above does not help, we try other options.
( )
How to restore everything to its place if standard methods don't help? If everything was fine with you before, but at some point this changed, you should use the built-in tool. To do this, we go to " Start" and write "" in the search bar. We are interested in the point regarding the system. Having selected it, a wizard will appear where we need to specify the desired return date. We read the prompts, agree and launch the program. After some time, the main parameters of the operating system should return to their previous state.
Service( )
Sometimes it is this component that causes the failure of tools responsible for appearance. How to return the service to its original state?
