Windows Lock Screen custom picture not working

QuicktellPro · Jun 20, 2025

Hi,
I'm running 24H2 and have changed the lock screen image to one of my photos having the same dimensions. If I type the Windows key and L, the photo is shown correctly, however, when I start the PC, the lock screen is always the default blue folding image. I know it's not really important, but is there a workaround I can use to make the lock screen always show my photo, please?

garlin · Jun 20, 2025

My impression is Settings will sometimes forget to update all the necessary reg values.

So I wrote a batch script to force it to work.

Code:

LockScreen.bat \path\to\image.jpg

QuicktellPro · Jun 21, 2025

Thank you very much, that fixed it!

QuicktellPro · Jun 21, 2025

Incidentally, the only reason I changed my lock screen picture was because Windows spotlight does not work. I tried that setting numerous times but Windows always changed it back to picture.

QuicktellPro · Thursday at 2:26 AM

garlin said:
My impression is Settings will sometimes forget to update all the necessary reg values.

So I wrote a batch script to force it to work.

Code:

LockScreen.bat \path\to\image.jpg

It's doing it again. Perhaps I didn't use your batch script correctly.
I ignored the line of code you provided because I did not know what it meant. Instead, I opened the script with Notepad and changed the 2 items I felt were relevant being USERNAME and image.jpg. After saving it with a .bat extension, I ran it as administrator. Could you check it for me please Garlin, and if I have gone wrong, let me know what needs changing.

garlin · Thursday at 2:38 AM

This should be a full pathname with file extension.

Code:

if ($args[0] -eq '') {
    $Filename = 'C:\Windows\Web\Screen\img134d.jpg'
}

I don't understand this change. What is user profile environment variable "AE"?

Code:

$SID = (Get-LocalUser -Name $env:ae).SID

The script has to lookup your account name, in order to find your SID. The reg values are written for each user, based on their unique SID.

QuicktellPro · Thursday at 2:58 AM

garlin said:
This should be a full pathname with file extension.

Code:

if ($args[0] -eq '') { $Filename = 'C:\Windows\Web\Screen\img134d.jpg' }

I don't understand this change. What is user profile environment variable "AE"?

Code:

$SID = (Get-LocalUser -Name $env:ae).SID

The script has to lookup your account name, in order to find your SID. The reg values are written for each user, based on their unique SID.

I have modified it again according to your comments. Can you check it for me please.

Also, what did you mean by this: LockScreen.bat \path\to\image.jpg

Is that something I have to run from the terminal?

garlin · Thursday at 11:26 PM

QuicktellPro said:
I have modified it again according to your comments. Can you check it for me please.

Also, what did you mean by this: LockScreen.bat \path\to\image.jpg

Is that something I have to run from the terminal?

You have to run the script from a Terminal session.

My script makes no assumptions about your current reg values (maybe they're broken?). So it forces all of the settings at the same time. If you edited the script to allow for no command-line arguments, then the image filename is now optional.

QuicktellPro · 2025-06-27T02:29:18-0400

garlin said:
If you edited the script to allow for no command-line arguments, then the image filename is now optional.

Sorry, but I do not understand what you meant by that. I am only an intermediate user and know almost nothing about command-line operations. The only change I made to your script was the precise location of the image file I want to use. I reverted the 'ae' change back to 'USERNAME' following your previous post.

garlin · 2025-06-27T02:43:36-0400

If you don't like having a command-line option to pick the image, then you can force the same image filename inside the script. Now you don't have to do anything but to run the script by hand, or double-click it from Explorer.

Code:

<# : batch script
@echo off
powershell -nop ^
"if (-not ([Security.Principal.WindowsPrincipal][Security.Principal.WindowsIdentity]::GetCurrent()).IsInRole([Security.Principal.WindowsBuiltInRole] 'Administrator')) { ^
    Start-Process 'cmd' -ArgumentList '/c start /min %~dpnx0' -Verb RunAs ^
} ^
else { ^
    Invoke-Expression ([System.IO.File]::ReadAllText('%~f0')) ^
}"
goto :eof
#>

$Filename = 'C:\Windows\Web\Screen\img134d.jpg'

if ((Get-Item $Filename -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue) -eq $null) {
    "ERROR: $Filename not found."
    exit 1
}

$FullName = (Get-Item $Filename).FullName

$SID = (Get-LocalUser -Name $env:USERNAME).SID

$Path = 'HKCU:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ContentDeliveryManager'
Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'RotatingLockScreenEnabled' -Value 0 -Force
Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'RotatingLockScreenOverlayEnabled' -Value 0 -Force
Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'SubscribedContent-338387Enabled' -Value 0 -Force

$Path = "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI\Creative\$SID"
$null = New-Item -Path $Path -Force
$null = New-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'RotatingLockScreenEnabled' -Value 0 -Force
$null = New-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'RotatingLockScreenOverlayEnabled' -Value 0 -Force

$Path = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP'
$null = New-Item -Path $Path -Force
Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'LockScreenImageStatus' -Value 1 -Force
Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'LockScreenImagePath' -Value $FullName -Force
Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'LockScreenImageUrl' -Value $FullName -Force

$Path = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Personalization'
$null = New-Item -Path $Path -Force
Set-ItemProperty -Path $Path -Name 'NoLockScreen' -Value 0 -Force
Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System' -Name 'DisableLogonBackgroundImage' -Value 0 -Force

QuicktellPro · 2025-06-27T03:12:15-0400

Isn't that the same as the modified script I last sent you?

garlin · 2025-06-27T10:49:35-0400

No, because I removed all the argument passing and checking. 4 lines have changed.

QuicktellPro · 2025-06-27T12:42:17-0400

garlin said:
No, because I removed all the argument passing and checking. 4 lines have changed.

Ok, thanks for that. I will run it again.

Windows Lock Screen custom picture not working

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