User Folders - Change Default Icon

How to Change Default User Folder Icons in Windows 7 and Windows 8​

   Information

This will show you how to change the default folder icon with the icon of your choice for all of your personal User folder icons to display with it in both the Start Menu and C:\Users\(user-name) locations in Windows 7 and Windows 8.

   Tip

If you would prefer to use the Vista user folder icons instead, then see Everlong's post for how.

EXAMPLE: Default Personal User Folders Icons

OPTION ONE

To Change the User Name Profile Folder Icon

1. Open the change Desktop Icon Settings window. (See screenshot below)
2. In the lower box, click/tap on your User Name folder to highlight it in blue. (See screenshot above)

3. Click/tap on the Change Icon button. (See screenshot above)

4. Click/tap on the Browse button and navigate to the folder location of were the icon that you want to use for this user folder is at. (See screenshot below)
5. Select the icon in the lower window box, and click/tap on OK. (See highlighted in blue icon in the screenshot above)

6. Click/tap on OK. (See screenshot below step 1)

   Tip

If you want to restore the default User Name folder icon, then see OPTION ONE at this link:

How to Restore Default User Folder Icons in Windows 7 and Windows 8

OPTION TWO

To Change User Folders Icons

   Note

This option will be for all of the user folders in the C:\Users\(user-name) folder except the User Name folder itself (OPTION ONE).

   Tip

To be able to change the Contacts and/or Desktop user folder icon, you can click on the Download button below to download the .reg files that enable the Customize tab in these user folders Properties page. After you download the .reg file, double click on it to merge it. You can then follow the steps in this OPTION below to change the icon.

You must be logged in as an administrator to be able to merge the REG files below.

• To Restore (remove Customize tab) Default Contacts User Folder

Download

• To Enable (add Customize tab) Changing Contacts User Folder Icon

Download

• To Restore (remove Customize tab) Default Desktop User Folder

Download

• To Enable (add Customize tab) Changing Desktop User Folder Icon

Download

1. Open the C:\Users\(user-name) folder.
WARNING: This must be done at this location. It will not work by opening the user folder from the Start Menu location.
2. Right click or swipe down on the user folder icon that you want to restore default, and click/tap on Properties. (See screenshot above)

3. Click/tap on the Customize tab, and click/tap on the Change Icon button. (See screenshot below)
4. Click/tap on the Browse button and navigate to the folder location of were the icon that you want to use for this user folder is at. (See screenshot below)
5. Select the icon in the lower window box, and click/tap on OK. (See highlighted in blue icon in the screenshot above)

6. Click/tap on OK. (See screenshot below step 3)

   Tip

If you want to restore the default User folders icons, then see OPTION TWO at this link:

How to Restore Default User Folder Icons in Windows 7 and Windows 8

That's it,
Shawn

Related Tutorials

---

• How to Restore Default User Folder Icons in Windows 7 and Windows 8
• How to Change a Library Icon in Windows 7
• How to Pin Your User Files Folder to the Windows 7 Taskbar
• How to Create Your Own Special User Folder
• How to Restore the Default Location of User Folders in Windows 7 and Windows 8
• How to Change the Default Location of User Folders in Windows 7 and Windows 8
• How to Change Windows 7 Default Control Panel Icons
• How to Change the Windows 7 Default Folder Icon
• How to Change Windows 7 Default Folder Icons using Resource Hacker
• How to Change the Open Folder Icon in Windows 7
• How to Change the Default Libraries Icon in Windows 7
• How to Add or Remove your User Folder from the Windows 7 Navigation Pane
• How to Change Windows 7 System Icons Using Resource Hacker
• How to Change the Default Location of a User Profile in Windows 7 and Vista
• How to Change the User Folder Name of a User Profile in Windows 7

 

[Brink]

Hello Omnia X, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Are you logged in a administrator account?

Which REG file did you use?

 

[Omnia X]

I've tried the contacts and the desktop reg files, and I made sure I downloaded the enable reg file, although I am not logged on as admin I would like to simply change it for the non admin User account so my admin account has default settings intact.

 

[Brink]

Omnia X,

Not being an administrator is why the REG file is unable to merge since it makes changes to a key in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE section of the registry to add the Customize tab to their properties page. Only an administrator can do this.

You will have to ask the administrator of your computer to run this for you if they wanted to allow it.

 

[Omnia X]

ok thanks, since it is my computer i can log in as the admin, but then how will it affect my computer if i do so?

 

[Brink]

Omnia X,

The REG files will only add the Customize tab for the Contacts and Desktop user folders. After merging them in the administrator account, you can log back into the other account that you want to change the icon of them in and do the steps in the tutorial to do so.

 

[Infinite]

Hi Brink, I do not have Change Icon on any user files (Just Choose Icon And Restore Defaults under Folder Pictures along with Optimize this folder for bit).

 

[Brink]

Hello Infinite,

Did you open them from the default C:\Users\(user-name) folder location?

Could you post a screenshot of Windows Explorer for where these folders are at, and the options that you have?

 

[Infinite]

Oh whoops, I just opened my UserFolder not the whole thing. Sorry

 

[Brink]

LOL, no problem.

 

[audaxferox]

No "change icon" Button

Hi,

I followed the turtorial for changing the standard folder, this worked fine,
however, in the properties of for instance the "my music" folder there is indeed a customize tab, but no "change icon" button or text, just the "which file do you want to display" and beneath that nothing, empty space. My pc is just a couple of months old, acer, has normal home premium version windows 7 installed. Could this be an annoying windows update or should I change a setting or something ?

grtz,
AudaxFerox

 

[audaxferox]

, I just noticed that the answer to my last reply is in a post above,
a little stupid, thx anyway, opening from the users map does work.
Also Thx for the great turtorials, changing folders without any suspicious app, well done!!!

 

[Brink]

That's great news AudaxFerox. Welcome to Seven Forums.

 

[barterking85]

Hey Brink
I made an account just to tell you you did a great job with the tutorial and your very professional and polite glad I am a member now!

 

[Brink]

I'm glad it was able to help barterking, and welcome to Seven Forums.

 

[ronthai]

Thanks for this.

Is it correct that even when the icons are changed via C:\Users\username,
that within the "This PC" folder still will have the standard icons

 

[Brink]

Hello Ronthai,

The icon will be changed everywhere in Windows.

 

[ronthai]

Unfortunately it doesn't, not even after a restart (just in case)

Image of my username folder: Username.jpg

and of my "This PC" folder: This PC.jpg

 

[Brink]

Sorry, I had thought that you meant OPTION ONE for your username instead.

You should be able to manually change the icons for these user folder in "This PC" by going to the DefaultIcon subkey in the registry locations below for each folder. When there, change the (Default) value to be the full path of the .ico file you want as the icon of the folder.

This will change the icon for all users on the PC though.

[B][COLOR=red](music) [/COLOR][/B]
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{1CF1260C-4DD0-4ebb-811F-33C572699FDE}
 
[COLOR=red][B](downloads)[/B][/COLOR]
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{374DE290-123F-4565-9164-39C4925E467B}
 
[B][COLOR=red](pictures)[/COLOR][/B]
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{3ADD1653-EB32-4cb0-BBD7-DFA0ABB5ACCA}
 
[B][COLOR=red](videos)[/COLOR][/B]
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{A0953C92-50DC-43bf-BE83-3742FED03C9C}
 
[B][COLOR=red](documents)[/COLOR][/B]
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{A8CDFF1C-4878-43be-B5FD-F8091C1C60D0}
 
[B][COLOR=red](desktop)[/COLOR][/B]
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{B4BFCC3A-DB2C-424C-B029-7FE99A87C641}