How to change XP login screen??

[FFactory0x]

I thought it was clear as day.

Basically I want to change my WIDOWS XP LOGIN SCREEN to something different. I downloaded some custom screens but last time i tried it did not work. I followed in structions but nothing. HOW DO i do this and whats files do i exactly need, ive dled both exe and regualt gif files

 

[NogginBoink]

What did you do to change the logon screen?
What logon screen are you talking about?
What .ini are you talking about?

Your post makes no sense. Please provide us with more information.

There is no way to change the logon splash screen. It's a bitmap resource that's part of the kernel. If you attempt to edit the kernel, WFP will kick in and change it back.

You *can* change the wallpaper during the logon screen by editing the registry.

 

[bsobel]

There is no way to change the logon splash screen. It's a bitmap resource that's part of the kernel.

What a crock. ) Sorry Noggin, couldn't resist). Actually there are some third party tools/hacks to replace the login UI. You are right, it does require modifyijng the resources of the executable and replacing it (including in the wfp cache). If you checkout ThemeXP, you can see some examples (1560 apparently) of what he's talking about.

Bill

 

[theAnimal]

It's really simple. I just did it for my brother-in-law a few weeks ago.

Make sure your downloaded file has no virus.
Backup the logonui.exe file in your \windows directory. ie logonui.bak
If the file you downloaded is not named logonui.exe, rename it (but not if it's in the \windows directory) *** also make sure you use the file for SP1 if you installed that
Boot into safe mode
Replace the logonui.exe file in the \windows directory with the one you downloaded.
Reboot and enjoy.

Disclaimer: Use at your own risk.

 

[clicknext]

The method that theAnimal mentioned worked for me when I did that about a year ago.

A word of advice: If you have SP1, do NOT change your bootscreen. That will cause windows to not start at all, not even safe mode.

 

[NogginBoink]

Originally posted by: bsobel

There is no way to change the logon splash screen. It's a bitmap resource that's part of the kernel.

What a crock. ) Sorry Noggin, couldn't resist). Actually there are some third party tools/hacks to replace the login UI. You are right, it does require modifyijng the resources of the executable and replacing it (including in the wfp cache). If you checkout ThemeXP, you can see some examples (1560 apparently) of what he's talking about.

Bill

Yes, you can edit the bitmap resources in the executable. (Actually, come to think of it, I think the bitmaps are in msgina.dll, not the kernel. Yeah, I just loaded msgina.dll in Visual Studio, the bitmaps are there.)

If you do this, as Bill says, you have to also replace the file in the dllcache.

BUT... the problem is that if you apply service packs to your system, or hotfixes, it's entirely possible that the installer won't recognize what's on your system and not apply updates.

And that could lead to system crashes. Like a STOP 0xc000021a blue screen. And no Microsoft tech support person would be able to determine that you've got the wrong version of msgina.dll on your system.

The only *supported* way of doing this is to write your own GINA. There's sample code in the SDK. (Or is it the DDK. One of the two.) It's not a trivial task.

I have no idea what logonui.exe is or does, but there's no part of the OS called logonui.exe. At least not on the NT/2K/XP operating systems. Under these OSes, the logon UI is displayed by the GINA, which by default is msgina.dll, but can be changed to a custom GINA by editing hklm\software\microsoft\windows nt\currenversion\winlogon and adding a GinaDLL value with the path to your custom GINA.

 

[theAnimal]

See MS Knowledge base article 282044 specifically part in brackets: (that is created from logonui.exe)

This file is located in the \windows directory and is signed by Microsoft

When replaced it will change your logon screen.

 

[NogginBoink]

Originally posted by: theAnimal
See MS Knowledge base article 282044 specifically part in brackets: (that is created from logonui.exe)

This file is located in the \windows directory and is signed by Microsoft

When replaced it will change your logon screen.

Hey! I didn't know that!

Absolutely all of my experience with the OS is in a domain environment, and most of my work is on the server platforms. So I guess it makes sense I wouldn't know that.

Quite interesting! It appears that, only on WinXP, and only in a workgroup environment, it's a lot easier than I thought it would be.

Too bad it's not a univeral approach, though. Writing your own GINA and setting a custom wallpaper for the default user would work across all NT/2K/XP platforms.

Good find, thanks for pointing that out to me!

 

[theAnimal]

No problem!

 

[theAnimal]

Originally posted by: clicknext
The method that theAnimal mentioned worked for me when I did that about a year ago.

A word of advice: If you have SP1, do NOT change your bootscreen. That will cause windows to not start at all, not even safe mode.

I haven't changed my boot screen yet, but it should be OK if you use the ntoskrnl file for SP1. Newer bootscreens from themexp include 2 versions, with & w/o SP1. And to be safe just add a line in your boot.ini with KERNEL=... that way you can always go back to original.