Change the Default Logon Screen Saver (Windows NT/2000/XP)

Registry Guide for Windows
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Registry tweaks, tricks & hacks to optimize, enhance and secure Microsoft Windows.

Change the Default Logon Screen Saver (Windows NT/2000/XP)
Category: Home > Windows > Login and Authentication

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Windows has a default screen saver which is shown over the login screen even when no screen saver has been selected. These settings allow you to configure the default login screen saver.

Open your registry and find the key below.

Enable or Disable the Screen Saver
Change the value of "ScreenSaveActive" to "0" to disable or "1" to enable the login screen saver.

Change the Screen Saver
Change the value of "SCRNSAVE.EXE" to the full path and filename of the screen saver .SCR file.

Change the Sreen Saver Timeout
Change the value of "ScreenSaveTimeOut" to equal the screen saver timeout in seconds.

Restart Windows for the change to take effect.


(Default)	REG_SZ	(value not set)
ScreenSaveActive	REG_SZ	1
ScreenSaveTimeOut	REG_SZ	600
SCRNSAVE.EXE	REG_SZ	login.scr


	HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop

Settings:

User Key: [HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop]
Name: ScreenSaveActive, SCRNSAVE.EXE, ScreenSaveTimeOut
Type: REG_SZ (String Value)
Value: (0 = disabled, 1 =enabled)

Disclaimer: Modifying the registry can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. We cannot guarantee that problems resulting from modifications to the registry can be solved. Use the information provided at your own risk.

Last Modified: October 10, 2002

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