The color of elements, such as scroll bars, text, and buttons, are customizable. The.theme file specifies the RGB values to change for these elements. The values override the default values of the visual style and are used when your theme is based on Windows Classic, Windows 7 Basic, or High Contrast themes. Once you have patched Windows, copy your desired theme folder (containing a.theme file and a folder containing.msstyles file) to 'C: Windows Resources Themes ' folder. Now double-click on.theme file and it'll apply the theme or you can apply it using Desktop Properties.
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This document discusses the format of Theme (.theme) files. A .theme file is a .ini text file that is divided into sections, which specify visual elements that appear on a Windows desktop. Section names are wrapped in brackets ([]) in the .ini file.
A new file format, .themepack, was introduced with Windows 7 to help users share themes. Themes can be selected in the Personalization Control Panel only in Windows 7 Home Premium or higher, or only on Windows Server 2008 R2 when the Desktop component is installed.
The following topics are discussed in this article.
Creating a Theme File
A .theme file enables you to change the appearance of certain desktop elements. You can create or modify a .theme file in two ways:
To make your theme available to other users, you must supply your .theme file, as well as the background picture, screen saver, and icons files. You can do this with a theme pack.
Description of a Theme File
Theme files have a number of required and optional sections. The following describe the sections of .theme files and provide examples of how to specify changes for the different elements.
[Theme] Section
Note
This section is optional. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system uses default settings.
The [Theme] section identifies the name of your custom theme and specifies your theme's brand logo and desktop icons.
The first part of the [Theme] section contains the following two elements:
The rest of the [Theme] section specifies custom icons for desktop features like Computer, My Documents, Network, and Recycle Bin. If you do not specify custom desktop icons, the desktop displays the system default desktop icons.
The following are two examples of how a .theme file sets the Computer icon.
The following are values for the default desktop icons in Windows 7.
[Control PanelColors] Section
Note
This section is optional. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system uses default settings. If your theme uses the Aero visual style, you should avoid overriding the default values in this section.
The color of elements, such as scroll bars, text, and buttons, are customizable. The .theme file specifies the RGB values to change for these elements. The values override the default values of the visual style and are used when your theme is based on Windows Classic, Windows 7 Basic, or High Contrast themes.
Following is an example of how colors are set.
[Control PanelCursors] Section
Note
This section is optional. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system uses default cursors.
A theme can also change the appearance of cursors. To do so, you create .cur files to replace the default Windows cursors. The following example is from a .theme file that defines the cursors for a theme called Sports.
[Control PanelDesktop] Section
Note
This section is required. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system ignores your Theme and does not display the Theme in Control Panel.
You can create a custom desktop background and specify a path to the image file. The following example shows how to modify the desktop appearance.
[Slideshow] Section
Windows 7 and later.
Note
This section is optional. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system uses the desktop background image specified in the [Control PanelDesktop] section. If you include this section, you must specify slide show settings here.
Your theme's background can be a slide show either of images stored locally or of images served by an RSS feed. The [Slideshow] section of the file contains the following attributes:
The following examples show how a .theme file specifies the slide show to include a set of images stored locally.
The following example is a template for a .theme file that creates a desktop background slide show using images from an RSS feed. Follow these steps to customize the template:
[Metrics] Section
Note
This section is optional. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system uses default visual style settings.
You can specify system metrics in a .theme file. System metrics are the dimensions of various display elements, such as the window border width, icon height, or scroll bar width. The NonclientMetrics and IconMetrics values are binary structures defined by NONCLIENTMETRICS and ICONMETRICS in winuser.h. Following is an example of how to change system metrics.
[Visual Styles] Section
Note
This section is required. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system ignores your Theme and does not display the Theme in Control Panel.
You can supply specific information concerning the size and color of desktop elements in .msstyles files. The color and size sections of .theme files can be replaced by .msstyles files which enable you to modify desktop elements in more detail. These files are specified in the visual styles section of a .theme file. Following is an example of a visual styles section.
Adding a Path element to a .msstyles file is optional. If you supply a path, you should remove the metrics and color sections from the .theme file. When these sections are removed, the colors, fonts, and sizes for a theme come from the .msstyles file and match the .msstyles author's intent. Failing to remove the metric and color sections can cause Windows or applications to have drawing problems.
Windows Vista / Windows 7: When the path points to Aero.msstyles, you can specify the desired Glass Color, as shown in the following example.
Windows 7: When the path points to Aero.msstyles, you can also specify the desired Transparency value, as shown in the following example.
If the ColorizationColor and Transparency values exactly match a system color, the Personalization Control Panel displays the system name for the color. Otherwise, the color is labeled 'Custom.'
The following shows a VisualStyles section for the Windows 7 Basic theme.
The following shows a VisualStyles section for the Windows Classic theme.
The following shows a VisualStyles section for a High Contrast Black theme.
[Sounds] and [AppEvents] Sections (Sounds)
Note
This section is optional. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system uses default sound settings.
The user can select the Sound icon in Control Panel to associate sounds with events that occur in applications. For example, a .wav file can play when an application is opened. A .theme file can specify .wav files to replace the default ones. The following example shows how to do this.
Windows 7 and later: A sound scheme name can be specified instead of listing each sound separately.
The SchemeName value specifies the sound scheme name or the localized sound scheme name, as shown in the example above.
[Boot] Section
Note
Screen Savers are deprecated in the Windows 10 Anniversary Update and beyond.
Note
This section is optional. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, no screen saver is used.
In the .theme file, you can specify the screen saver for Windows to use. The following example shows this.
[MasterThemeSelector] Section
Note
This section is required. If you do not include this section in your .theme file, the system ignores your Theme and does not display the Theme in Control Panel.
The master theme selector section of the .theme file should always be included as a tag that indicates the file is valid. You do not have a choice of values for this parameter. The following shows this.
Example of a Theme File
The following example shows a complete .theme file.
Installing Theme Files
When Windows is initialized, the operating system enumerates the first-level subdirectories of %WinDir%Resources to identify available themes. The system default theme files are located in %WinDir%ResourcesThemes. The user theme files are stored in %WinDir%UsersAppDataLocalMicrosoftWindowsThemes.
A .theme file has file associations; therefore, theme installer applications can call ShellExecute on a .theme file to open the Personalization window in Control Panel to the specified theme.
Theme Packs
Windows 7 and later. A theme pack is a .cab file that contains not only the .theme file but also the files needed to implement the theme on another computer, such as sound files and images. Users can create theme packs through the Personalization Control Panel.
Supported file types include the following:
Related topics
A Windows theme, otherwise a visual style, is a set of preconfigured wallpaper, screensaver, audio and color scheme options. Windows 10 includes some default themes to select from, but you can add many more from websites or by creating your own.
New themes enable you to give the operating system a more unique look and feel. This is how you can customize Windows 10 with themes. Add a new Theme with Windows 10âs OptionsTo set up your own theme with Windows 10âs options, you can right-click the desktop and select Personalize. That will open the Settings app from which you can select Themes Theme Settings to open the Control Panel tab in the snapshot directly below. That tab includes all your saved themes, and you can change the theme by selecting one from there.To set up your own theme, click Unsaved Theme. Then you can select its wallpaper by clicking Desktop Background.
Next, click the Background drop-down menu and select Picture, Slideshow or Solid Color from there. If you select Picture or Slideshow, press the Browse button to choose a single background wallpaper or folder containing a group of images for a slideshow. Provides further details about how you can set up slideshows in Windows 10.To adjust theme colors, click Color on the Personalization tab. That will open the window below that includes a palette from which you can select an Accent color for the theme.
Alternatively, you can select the Automatically pick an accent color from my background option, which alters the color to match the desktop wallpaper.Select Sounds to add new audio effects to the theme. That opens the window directly below which includes a Sound Scheme drop-down menu.
Click the Sound Scheme drop-down menu and select an audio scheme from there. Press Apply and OK to confirm your selected settings.You can also add a screensaver to Windows by clicking Screen Saver on the Personalization tab.
Click the Screen saver drop-down menu and choose one from there. To further configure a selected screen saver, press its Settings button. Click Apply OK to confirm the screen saver settings.Once youâve finished the new theme, click Save theme to open a Save Theme As window.
Then enter the title of the new theme in the text box. Press the Save button to save the theme on the Personalization tab.Alternatively, you can save a theme from the Microsoft site by clicking Get more themes online on the Personalization tab. That opens which includes loads of themes to choose from. Click Download under a theme and press its Save button.
That will save it to your Downloads folder where you can click the theme to unpack it. Then you can apply the theme from the Personalization tab. Add a Third-Party Theme to Windows 10However, the Microsoft-signed themes alter just the desktop background, taskbar and Start menu colors and sound schemes, which doesnât really give Windows a whole new look and feel. There are a variety of third-party themes that customize Windows a little more by adding new buttons, title bars, transparency effects, window background colors and other visual elements.
For example, you can add Aero 7 and Steam third-party themes that replicate Windows 7 Aero and the Steam UI in Windows 10.To add third-party themes to Windows 10, first youâll need to patch your system with UltraUXThemePatcher. You can save that softwareâs setup wizard to Windows by clicking UltraUXThemePatcher 3.2.0 button on. Then you should right-click its setup wizard and select Run as administrator to open the window in the shot directly below. Go through the setup wizard to install the software, and restart Windows after closing the installer.Next, youâll need a third-party theme to add to Windows. The includes third-party themes for Windows.
And press the Download button on that page to save the Aero 7 theme to Windows.The themes will have either a Rar or Zip compressed file format. You can extract a Zip in File Explorer by selecting it, pressing the Extract all button and choosing a path for the decompressed folder. To extract a Rar, youâll need a third-party utility such as 7-Zip, which is a freeware package you can download. When youâve opened 7-Zip, select the Rar theme and press the Extract button.Next, copy the third-party theme to C:WindowsResourcesThemes. Open the themeâs extracted folder in File Explorer, and copy the Windows Theme File by right-clicking it and selecting Copy.
Open the C:WindowsResourcesThemes path, right-click an empty space within the Themes folder and select Paste to copy the theme to it as shown below. Then copy the full third-party theme folder to Themes.Now open the Personalization tab again. Youâll find the new third-party theme listed under Installed Themes. So you can select that theme to apply it as shown in the snapshot below. The Unity theme selected below alters the Control Panel window buttons and scroll bar.Add new Themes to Windows 10 with Skin PacksSkins packs can be considered enhanced themes that give the Windows UI an entirely new look and feel you donât always get with standard themes. Theyâre not entirely the same as themes as you need to install them, but they give Windows a much more extensive overhaul. Skins add new icon sets, buttons, lock screen wallpapers, Start menus and even UI elements to Windows.
For example, includes some snapshots that show you how the macOS Sierra skin pack transforms Windows.Before you add a new skin to Windows, set up a system restore point just in case something unexpected happens. Enter âsystem restoreâ in the Cortana search box and select Create a restore point.
Then you can press the Create button on the window below to set up a restore point.This includes a good selection of skin packs for Windows. Click a skin there and press the Download it with adds for free button to save it to Windows.
Then you can extract the skinâs Rar or Zip folder with 7-Zip. Note that these skins also have a password included on their download pages. Youâll need to enter that password after extracting the skin pack.Next, run the skin packâs installer as an administrator. The skin packâs installer might include a few third-party software installation offers you can deselect. The installation options might also include a Restore Point check box you can select to set up a restore point. Then go through the rest of the setup wizard to add the new skin to Windows 10. Add New Themes with WindowBlindsThere are also third-party software packages that apply new themes to Windows 10.
WindowBlinds is one program you can add themes with new taskbar and Start menu styles to Windows. Note that this is not freeware software, but you can have some fun with the 30-day trial package. Press the Try it Free button on to save the softwareâs installer. Youâll also need to enter an email address to activate the trial package through email.Once youâve launched WindowBlinds, click Style on the sidebar to choose a new theme preset. For example, you can select Win8 that replicates the look and feel of Windows 8 as shown in the snapshot directly below. Select a theme and press the Apply style to desktop button to add it. The theme might also have a few substyles you can choose from the Substyle drop-down menu.Click Modify style to open further configuration settings.
Then you can customize the themeâs color, transparency, font and texture. For example, click Textures to open a palette of textures you can apply to the taskbar and window title bars as in the shot below. You can also apply textures from images by clicking Edit effect and pressing the Create new from image button to select a picture.
When you select an image, a Create texture window opens from which you can generate new textures by selecting an area from the picture. Click File Save texture to save the texture for use in WindowBlinds.So new themes can customize Windows in many ways. You can apply themes with the more basic Windows 10 options, or give the platform a whole new look with third-party themes, skin packs and WindowBlinds. This also provides further details for how you can customize the Windows 10 desktop.
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