Displaying Your Own Logo Before The Windows XP Login Screen

Displaying Your Own Logo Before The Windows XP Login Screen 

Three-step Process 

First, design an appropriate bitmap and save it in the “C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data” directory as LogoName.BMP. Use the 8.3 naming convention. Since the Application Data directory is a hidden directory, you may need to unhide it by opening Windows Explorer and going to Tools > Folder Options, click on the View tab and check the 'Show hidden files and folders' option. Click on Apply and then on OK. 

Next, open the registry editor by going to Start > Run, typing “regedit” and pressing [Enter]. Navigate to the key “HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\ControlPanel\Desktop”. In the right pane, double-click on the string called “Wallpaper”. Under ‘Value Data’ enter the full path to your bitmap image—for example, “C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\LogoName. BMP”. Now doubleclick on the string called “TileWallpaper”, and change the value according to your preference— the value ‘0’ will not tile the image, while the value ‘1’ will tile it. 

Next, doubleclick on the string called “Wallpaper Style” and change the value according to your choice; here the value ‘0’ is normal, while the value ‘2’ will stretch the image to fit the screen. If you don't want to tile or stretch your wallpaper, and would rather choose its position on the screen, you will need to create two new data strings in this same registry directory. 

When at “HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\ControlPanel\Desktop”,right-click on the right pane and select New > String Value. Name the string “WallpaperOriginX” and set the value to the number of pixels from the left edge of the screen that you want the picture to be located. Now, create another String Value, call it “WallpaperOriginY” and set its value to the number of pixels from the top of the screen. Close the Registry Editor, and reboot your machine to see your work. 

If you find any problem in doing this tweak, then please e-mail me to get clarified.

Posted in: How to, Tips and Tricks, XP