On this tutorial, we’ll present you discover the placement of the present Desktop Background picture in Home windows 11/10. It is extremely straightforward to set a desktop background or wallpaper. You’ll be able to set a customized picture or image, play an image slideshow, or show Home windows Highlight backgrounds as desktop wallpaper. However, relating to discovering the placement or path the place the presently displayed wallpaper is saved, then it might be troublesome generally and time-consuming as effectively particularly if you change desktop wallpaper steadily. However fortunately, there are some native methods that may enable you shortly test the placement of an lively wallpaper displayed in your Home windows desktop.
Easy methods to discover the present Desktop Background picture in Home windows 11
You should use the next built-in choices to discover the placement of the present desktop background picture file on Home windows 11/10 PC:
- Utilizing the Traditional Desktop Background window
- Utilizing Registry Editor
- Entry the present Desktop Wallpaper location utilizing Home windows PowerShell
- Add a Desktop context menu possibility to seek out the present Wallpaper.
Let’s take a look in any respect these choices one after the other.
1] Discover the present Desktop Wallpaper utilizing the Traditional Desktop Background window
Traditional Desktop Background window helps to decide on an image location (like Home windows Desktop Backgrounds, Photos Library, Prime Rated Images, and so on.) to pick out an image as a desktop background, choose a number of photos to set them as a desktop slideshow, and so on. However, it may also be used to seek out the present desktop wallpaper location. Do be aware that it’s useful to show the lively wallpaper location solely when you’ve gotten chosen an image or slideshow and never the Home windows Highlight background. Listed below are the steps:
- Press Win+R to open the Run Command field
- Paste the next path within the textual content subject and press Enter:
shell:::{ED834ED6-4B5A-4bfe-8F11-A626DCB6A921} -Microsoft.PersonalizationpageWallpaper
- Traditional Desktop Background window will open
- The presently utilized desktop wallpaper might be seen as chosen and its location will even be seen there.
2] Discover the present Desktop Background picture utilizing Registry Editor
Home windows 11 Registry Editor shops essential system settings in addition to the placement of the lively desktop background picture. As quickly as you modify the desktop wallpaper, the placement is up to date robotically. Observe these steps:
- Kind regedit within the Search field and hit the Enter key
- The Registry Editor window will open. Now entry the Desktop Registry key with this path:
HKEY_CURRENT_USERControl PanelDesktop
- On the right-hand part, search for the WallPaper title String worth. On the Information column of this worth, you will notice a path for the present desktop background
- If the trail is just too lengthy, then double-click on the WallPaper String worth, and a field will open. You will notice the total path within the Worth information subject.
- Copy and save that path to test the place the present desktop wallpaper is positioned. Don’t change something and shut that field in addition to the Registry Editor window.
Associated: The place are Wallpapers and Lock Display screen photos saved in Home windows PC
3] Entry the present Desktop Wallpaper location utilizing Home windows PowerShell
Utilizing Home windows PowerShell to seek out the current desktop wallpaper location is simpler because it requires solely two instructions to execute. Whereas the primary command is used to fetch the placement of the present desktop wallpaper utilizing the TranscodedImageCache entry saved within the Registry Editor, the second command helps to show the desktop wallpaper location (together with wallpaper title and file extension) on the Home windows PowerShell display screen.
First, open an elevated PowerShell window in your Home windows 11 PC, after which execute the next instructions:
$TIC=(Get-ItemProperty 'HKCU:Management PanelDesktop' TranscodedImageCache -ErrorAction Cease).TranscodedImageCache [System.Text.Encoding]::Unicode.GetString($TIC) -replace '(.+)([A-Z]:[0-9a-zA-Z])+','$2'
You’ll be able to execute each instructions collectively. If that doesn’t work, then execute them one after the other. After that, the lively desktop background picture path might be seen within the PowerShell window.
4] Add a Desktop context menu possibility to seek out the present Wallpaper
This selection requires possibility 3 instructions to generate a script and Registry tweaks. The Registry tweaks assist so as to add a desktop context menu possibility and the script executes PowerShell instructions to fetch the present desktop background picture location and show it within the PowerShell window. This course of is a bit prolonged however upon getting executed it efficiently, then discovering the present wallpaper location in your Home windows 11 system will simply be a matter of two to a few mouse clicks.
Earlier than utilizing this selection, create a system restore level first. After this, open Notepad and paste the next PowerShell instructions there:
$TIC=(Get-ItemProperty 'HKCU:Management PanelDesktop' TranscodedImageCache -ErrorAction Cease).TranscodedImageCache [System.Text.Encoding]::Unicode.GetString($TIC) -replace '(.+)([A-Z]:[0-9a-zA-Z])+','$2'
Save this file as find-current-desktop-background.ps1 to C:Home windows location. Or it can save you it on the desktop or one other folder after which copy and paste that file to the required location.
Now observe these steps:
- Open the Registry Editor window
- Entry the Shell Registry key current within the root key. The trail is:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOTDesktopBackgroundShell
- Create a brand new Registry key underneath the Shell key and title it DesktopBackgroundFileLocation
- On the right-hand part of this key, you will notice a Default title String worth. Double-click on that worth
- Within the Edit String field, add Discover Present Desktop Background Picture textual content within the Worth information subject. This would be the title of the choice that might be displayed when you’ll open the desktop context menu
- Press the OK button to shut the Edit String field
- Beneath the DesktopBackgroundFileLocation key, create a sub-key and title it command
- Double-click on the Default String worth obtainable on the best aspect of the command key. An Edit String field will pop up
- Paste the next path within the Worth information subject. That path calls the script that you simply saved within the C:Home windows folder earlier. The trail is:
powershell.exe -NoExit -nologo -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -command find-current-desktop-background.ps1
- Hit the OK button to shut the field
- Shut the Registry Editor window.
Now right-click in your Home windows 11 desktop and choose Present extra choices. You will notice that the Discover Present Desktop Background Picture possibility is seen. Use that possibility after which the script might be executed. Lastly, a PowerShell window will open that may present you the trail or location the place your present desktop wallpaper is saved.
Later, in case you don’t need this selection, then open the Registry Editor window, and delete the DesktopBackgroundFileLocation Registry key that you simply created within the above steps. This may take away the desktop context menu possibility that you simply added.
Hope this helps.
How do I discover earlier desktop backgrounds in Home windows 11?
In Home windows 11, you may entry the Background part within the Settings app to view current backgrounds. It reveals the present background and the final 4 backgrounds utilized by you in that part. In case you need to know the placement of beforehand used wallpapers in your Home windows 11 PC, you may entry the next path within the Registry Editor window:
HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerWallpapers
Right here, you will notice BackgroundHistoryPath0, BackgroundHistoryPath1, and different String values that include the trail of desktop wallpapers set by you earlier.
Which picture is used as a desktop background?
Home windows 11/10 helps dozens of picture codecs to set as a desktop background. You’ll be able to choose a JPG, BMP, JFIF, HEIC, HIF, AVIF, TIFF, AVCS, PNG, HEIF, DIB, GIF, WDP, and so on., format information to make use of as a desktop background picture. As well as, it’s also possible to use some free software program (like DesktopHut, VLC Media Participant, VideoPaper, and so on.) to set video as animated desktop background on Home windows 11/10 PC.
Learn subsequent: The place does Home windows retailer Themes?
