Personalization Change Lock Screen Background to Spotlight, Picture, or Slideshow in Windows 11


  • Staff
Lock_screen_banner.png

This tutorial will show you different ways to change the lock screen background to Windows Spotlight, a picture, or slideshow for your account in Windows 11.

The lock screen is the screen you see at startup and when you lock (Win+L) the PC. You will need to dismiss the lock screen to to see the sign-in screen and sign in to Windows.

You can customize your lock screen. You can change your lock screen background to Windows Spotlight, a picture, or a slideshow. You can also choose an app to show detailed status on the lock screen.

Reference:

If you have more than one display, the lock screen will only show on the main display.




Contents

  • Option One: Change Lock Screen Background to Windows Spotlight, Picture, or Slideshow in Settings
  • Option Two: Change Lock Screen Background to Picture in Photos app


EXAMPLE: Lock screen background

lock_screen.jpg





Option One

Change Lock Screen Background to Windows Spotlight, Picture, or Slideshow in Settings


1 Open Settings (Win+I).

2 Click/tap on Personalization on the left side, and click/tap on Lock screen on the right side. (see screenshot below)


lock_screen_Settings-1.png

3 Do step 4 (Windows Spotlight), step 5 (picture), or step 6 (slideshow) below for what you want as the lock screen background.

4 Change Lock Screen Background to a Windows Spotlight


A) Select Windows Spotlight in the Personalize your lock screen drop menu. (see screenshot below)​

B) When finished, you can close Settings.​

lock_screen_Settings-2.png

5 Change Lock Screen Background to a Picture

Lock screen pictures are cached in the hidden protected system folder location below.

C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\SystemData\<Account SID>\ReadOnly


A) Select Picture in the Personalize your lock screen drop menu. (see screenshots below)​

B) Select an image you want from Recent images.​

C) If Recent images doesn't have an image you want, click/tap on the Browse photos button, navigate to and select an image, and click/tap on Choose picture

D) Check (on - default) or uncheck (off) Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen for what you want.​

E) When finished, you can close Settings.​

lock_screen_Settings-3.png
lock_screen_Settings-3b.png

6 Change Lock Screen Background to a Slideshow


A) Select Slideshow in the Personalize your lock screen drop menu. (see screenshots below)​

B) Click/tap on the Browse button to Add an album for your slideshow. Navigate to and select a folder containing pictures you want for the slideshow, and click/tap on Choose this folder.​

C) Click/tap on the Remove button of any added folder of images you want to remove from the slideshow.​

D) Check (on - default) or uncheck (off) Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen for what you want.​

E) Check (on) or uncheck (off - default) Include camera roll folders from this PC and OneDrive for what you want.​

This setting above is saved to the SlideshowIncludeCameraRoll DWORD in the registry key below.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Lock Screen

1
= On (checked)
0 = Off (unchecked)


F) Check (on - default) or uncheck (off) Only use pictures that fit my screen for what you want.​

This setting above is saved to the SlideshowOptimizePhotoSelection DWORD in the registry key below.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Lock Screen

1
= On (checked)
0 = Off (unchecked)


G) Check (on) or uncheck (off - default) Play a slideshow when using battery power for what you want.​

This setting above is saved to the SlideshowEnabledOnBattery DWORD in the registry key below.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Lock Screen

1
= On (checked)
0 = Off (unchecked)


H) Check (on - default) or uncheck (off) When my PC is inactive, show the lock screen instead of turning off the screen for what you want.​

This setting above is saved to the LockScreenAutoLockActive string value in the registry key below.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop

1
= On (checked)
0 = Off (unchecked)


I) Select Don't turn off (default), 30 minutes, 1 hour, or 3 hours for what you want in the Turn off the screen after the slideshow has played for drop menu.​

This setting above is saved to the SlideshowDuration DWORD in the registry key below.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Lock Screen

1800000
(decimal) = 30 minutes
3600000 (decimal) = 1 hour
10800000 (decimal) = 3 hours
0 = Don't turn off


J) When finished, you can close Settings.​

lock_screen_Settings-4.png
lock_screen_Settings-4b.png




Option Two

Change Lock Screen Background to Picture in Photos app


1 Open the image you want to set as the lock screen background in the Photos app. (see screenshot below)

2 Perform one of the following actions:
  • Click/tap on the See more (3 dots) button.
  • Right click or press and hold on the image.
3 Click/tap on Set as.

4 Click/tap on Lock screen (Ctrl+L).

Set_as_lock_screen_Photos_app.png



That's it,
Shawn Brink


 

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I didn't have an issue with this. When I upgraded from my Win 10 my lock screen stayed the same. Which was good. But thanks for sharing this. I think this is the same as it was in Win 10.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Nitro 5
    CPU
    i7-10750H @ 2.60GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6" Laptop + 24" MSI external curved
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    512GB SSD + 2TB HDD
    Mouse
    Logitech G Gaming
    Internet Speed
    Wireless Broadband
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
I didn't have an issue with this. When I upgraded from my Win 10 my lock screen stayed the same. Which was good. But thanks for sharing this. I think this is the same as it was in Win 10.
Yeah, it's pretty much the same as W10, but W11 made it easier by having all related settings together.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self build
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING (11GB GDDR5X)
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G75 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3 wall mounted
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gbps Download and 35 Mbps Upload
    Browser
    Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender and Malwarebytes Premium
    Other Info
    Logitech Z625 speaker system,
    Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
    HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
    APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
    Galaxy S23 Plus phone
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Spectre x360 2in1 14-eu0098nr (2024)
    CPU
    Intel Core Ultra 7 155H 4.8 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB LPDDR5x-7467 MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Integrated Intel Arc
    Sound Card
    Poly Studio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    14" 2.8K OLED multitouch
    Screen Resolution
    2880 x 1800
    Hard Drives
    2 TB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
    Internet Speed
    Intel Wi-Fi 7 BE200 (2x2) and Bluetooth 5.4
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender and Malwarebytes Premium
How do I do this from a batch file, command line or registry edit?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 10 pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    several (Dell, HP, custom build, Lenovo, ASUS, etc.)
    CPU
    several
    Motherboard
    several
    Browser
    Firefox
    Other Info
    I have many computers, mostly Dell and HP.
im a 3rd line tech support analyst by profession, i know almost everything there is to know about windows, and tweaking it - and changing the lock screen wallpaper has been more difficult that it should be. Firstly, if you've tried the official method of amending the lock screen under "settings" (the new control panel in win 11) and that doesn't work for you, then its likely a bug in the windows updates. I had to resort to an extreme option, of amending the default images that my windows 11 kept defaulting to - so its not a "proper" solution, but its a solution nonetheless, and is the ONLY solution that worked for me. if you're in the same boat, then try this link:


in short, it tells you to amend the default pictures found here:

C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\SystemData\

if you take ownership of that folder and its contents,
then manually add your account, and grant full control,
and cascade those changes to all sub-folders and containers
you'll be able to edit the images to your liking.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11 home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    lenovo
I know this can be done in GPO but reg is more fun.

To set a specific picture for the lockscreen I had to do this:

REG ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP

REG ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP /v LockScreenImagePath /t REG_SZ /d "C:\Users\Public\Pictures\background1920x1080.jpg" /f

REG ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP /v LockScreenImageUrl /t REG_SZ /d "C:\Users\Public\Pictures\background1920x1080.jpg" /f

REG ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP /v LockScreenImageStatus /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f


Then had to use this guide to keep them from changing it.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo ideapad flex 14API 2 in 1
    CPU
    Ryzen 5 3500u
    Motherboard
    LENOVO LNVNB161216 (FP5)
    Memory
    12GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon Vega 8 Graphics
    Hard Drives
    256 GB Samsung ssd nvme
    Internet Speed
    800mbps down, 20 up
    Other Info
    Your awesome for reading this.
  • Operating System
    Chrome OS
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Memory
    4GB
    Browser
    Chrome ;)

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