Change icon for software

zooburner · Jan 22, 2022

Hi there

I wonder if it is possible to force windows to accept an icon of your choosing for a start menu shortcut, I've tried the usual method going via the properties box but the 'change icon' is greyed out. The weird thing is the icon shows fine as a desktop shortcut, but everywhere else it appears as a generic picture icon and cannot be changed.

this is the normal desktop icon, and appears normally in the programs folder (the exe file)

here is how it appears in the start menu and the 'all apps' section.

Thing is I've not found a way to change it, or even know if it is possible. It's an old program i rarely use but would be nice to have an icon of my choosing, or even the correct icon. if i choose to pin the shortcut to the start menu it reverts to the generic ico on the start menu.

Thanks in advance.

glasskuter · Jan 23, 2022

At one time there was a registry tweak to allow you to change the icons but I believe it no longer works. MS has pretty much locked the start menu down in Windows 11 unless you want to use a third party tool. Chances are, even if you do MS will make changes to the interface that will break it at some point.

There is a program called Tile Iconifier that worked in Windows 10. I am not recommending it since I do not use it in Windows 11 but you can get it here on Github if you want to try it. Releases · Jonno12345/TileIconifier. I'm sure there are others that fellow posters can recommend.
It's not a straightforward app so this article walks you through how to use it. StackPath
Like I said, use it at your own risk. If it were me, I would leave it alone. I would certainly make a system backup first.

zooburner · Jan 23, 2022

glasskuter said:
At one time there was a registry tweak to allow you to change the icons but I believe it no longer works. MS has pretty much locked the start menu down in Windows 11 unless you want to use a third party tool. Chances are, even if you do MS will make changes to the interface that will break it at some point.

There is a program called Tile Iconifier that worked in Windows 10. I am not recommending it since I do not use it in Windows 11 but you can get it here on Github if you want to try it. Releases · Jonno12345/TileIconifier. I'm sure there are others that fellow posters can recommend.
It's not a straightforward app so this article walks you through how to use it. StackPath
Like I said, use it at your own risk. If it were me, I would leave it alone. I would certainly make a system backup first.

Hi there glasskuter, thanks for your reply. I'm going to make a backup and play around (after of course making an image), the program itself works fine and I've had problems like this with Serif products, including the rebranded Infinity line before on Windows 10 and 11.

So ultimately I will simply leave it be if I can't permanently fix it.

Thanks for your reply and the links.
zoo

EDIT: I tried Iconifier and it does not work for me unfortunately (just for information) , but again I do appreciate anyone who tries to help, sometimes finding what does not work is as valuable a lesson as finding out what does.