- Sep 30, 2016 Windows 10 Power User Tip How to change Lock screen timeout before display turn off on Windows 10 If you like to see the images and apps status on the Lock screen.
- Mar 16, 2017 Download Windows 7 Logon Background Changer. Customize the Windows 7 login screen to have it greet you with a custom background picture.
- Jul 03, 2017 How to Set a Custom Logon Screen Background on Windows 7, 8, or 10 Chris Hoffman @chrisbhoffman Updated July 3, 2017, 1:35pm EDT Windows makes it possible to change the welcome screens that appear when you start your computer to just about any image you want to use.
Oct 23, 2017 So windows 7 or really any windows that doesn't use classic logon, where you hit Ctrl+alt+Del has an auto-populated last user logged in feature, where it remembers the last logon, this isn't the last person to have typed in a name, but the last name that was logged into the machine. You can now restart, lock your screen or logout to see your new login screen. This isn’t the simplest process, and isn’t as simple as using a program like Windows 7 Logon Background Changer, but if you want to get into the particulars regarding what programs like that are doing, this is a good way to go, if a bit more complex. Mar 16, 2009 NOTE: This will let you easily change and restore the default Windows 7 log on screen automatically with another stand-alone exe program. If you have not already, download the latest version of the Tweaks.com Logon Changer for Windows 7 program, and save it to your desktop. Nov 07, 2018 As you probably now, Windows 7 allows users change the logon screen background without the help of any hacks or tools. Unlike its predecessors XP and Vista, you need not to use any third-party utilities to change the logon screen background in Windows 7.
On Windows 10, similar to Windows 8.1, the operating system features a Lock screen before you sign in to your account. The new experience showcases date and time, quick status for apps you choose, and more importantly a background image, which typically, users opt to display personal pictures or those from Windows Spotlight.
While the Lock screen provides useful information and beautiful pictures, you probably noticed that your computer's display turns off after 60 seconds when you lock your Windows 10 account. This happens even if you change the power options to never turn off the monitor or never put the computer to sleep.
The reason is that by design, the operating system includes a function that detects when the device is locked and waits for 60 seconds. After the time expires, the computer screen goes black. This is a function, which for a mysterious reason, users can't customize in Control Panel or the Settings app. However, you can modify the Registry to enable a new option in the power settings to change the time to anything you want.
In this Windows 10 guide, we'll walk you through the steps to tweak the Registry (or Command Prompt) to customize the operating system should way until turning the display off, which will give you more time to see the background, status, and interact with Cortana on the Lock screen.
How to change the time when the display turns off when your PC is locked
Important: Before diving into this guide, it's worth noting that editing the registry can be dangerous, and it can cause irreversible damage to your system if you don't do it correctly. It's highly recommended to make a full backup of your PC before proceeding. You've been warned!
- Use the Windows key + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run command, type regedit, and click OK to open the registry.
Browse the following path:
HKEYLOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlPowerPowerSettings7516b95f-f776-4464-8c53-06167f40cc998EC4B3A5-6868-48c2-BE75-4F3044BE88A7
- On the right side, double-click the Attributes DWORD.
- Change the value from 1 to 2.
Click OK.
These steps only enabled the option on Windows 10 called 'Console lock display off timeout.' Now the only thing left to do is to customize this option to any time you want. To do this, use these instructions:
- Use the Windows key + X keyboard shortcut to open the Power User menu and select Power Options.
Click the Change plan settings link for the selected plan.
Click the Change advanced power settings link.
- On Advanced settings, scroll down and expand the Display settings.
- You should now see the Console lock display off timeout option, double-click to expand.
- Change the default time of 1 minute to the time you want, in minutes.
- Click Apply.
Click OK to complete the task.
Once you complete the steps, you can test the new settings by locking your computer (Windows key + L keyboard shortcut), and now the screen shouldn't turn off until the time you set expires.
At any time, you can revert the changes by following the previous steps, but this time, on step 4 change the registry value key from 2 to 1.
How to change the Lock screen timeout using Command Prompt
The beauty of Windows is that you can configure the same feature in a number of ways. Alternatively, you can use the PowerCfg.exe utility to change you display timeout setting when your computer is locked. When it's connected to AC power or when your device is running on battery (DC power).
To change the Lock screen timeout using Command Prompt, do the following:
- Use the Windows key + X keyboard shortcut to open the Power User menu and select Command Prompt (admin).
Type the following command and press Enter:
powercfg.exe /SETACVALUEINDEX SCHEME_CURRENT SUB_VIDEO VIDEOCONLOCK 60
Important: You must change '60' in the command-line with the timeout time you want to use, in seconds. For example, if you want the screen to turned on for 5 minutes, then you need to use 300 at the end of the command.
Type the following command and press Enter:
powercfg.exe /SETACTIVE SCHEME_CURRENT
- Use the Windows key + L keyboard shortcut to lock your PC and see if the new settings work.
The command mentioned in step 2 will work when your computer is using AC power. You must replace /SETACVALUEINDEX for /SETDCVALUEINDEX if you want to change the timeout setting on your laptop or tablet running on battery.
It's worth noting that while changing the Registry settings is an advanced task, during my test, I have found that sometimes using the command lines may settings may not work as expected, but it's an alternative.
Windows 7 Background Changer
On the other hand, changing the Registry worked perfectly, and after making the tweak, I can simply go to the Power Options settings in Control Panel and adjust the Lock screen timeout without having to use any commands.
More Windows 10 resources
For more help articles, coverage, and answers on Windows 10, you can visit the following resources:
So you're still logging on with the same old Windows log-on screen, day in, day out....You're right: it's extremely boring. Can't something be done about it? Yes. You can change the Windows log-on screen, but Windows doesn't make it as easy as changing your wallpaper or even your user account picture. Still, it's simple enough to do with help from tools like Saurabhorange's Logon Screen Changer.
This free app can banish the blue and replace it with high-resolution images that don't take up much space. It comes with a gallery of images, and you can download more online or make your own, as long as you start with images smaller than 256 KB. Logon Screen Changer is an open-source freeware project.
Logon Screen Changer is portable, so it doesn't have to be installed to do its thing. The program's interface opened with a vivid science fiction scene. Logon Screen Changer has three widely dispersed buttons: About and Exit, which we skipped for the time being, and Change Login Screen (log-on, log-in, same procedure), which we pressed. A wizard opened with an image gallery displaying all installed templates, each with its own Apply button. We merely had to choose our new log-in screen and click Apply, and the program handled the rest. Logon Screen Changer asks if you'd like to log off and on again to view the change, so be sure you've saved any open windows or work. The images are about what you'd expect in such a gallery: field of tulips, group of penguins, Firefox logo, and so on. But the blandest of them is better than the plain Windows log-on screen, even if just for variety.
Windows 7 Logon Screen Customize
You can click Create Logon Screens or Download Logon Screens to broaden your choices, though you're limited to JPEGs smaller than 256KB. That's our only gripe, since other log-on screen changers we've seen fit your images to the screen just like desktop wallpaper. Keeping the screen image small helps keep log-on time down, though, so you can simply resize big pics to use them in Logon Screen Changer.
What do you need to know about free software?
So you're still logging on with the same old Windows log-on screen, day in, day out....You're right: it's extremely boring. Can't something be done about it? Yes. You can change the Windows log-on screen, but Windows doesn't make it as easy as changing your wallpaper or even your user account picture. Still, it's simple enough to do with help from tools like Saurabhorange's Logon Screen Changer.
This free app can banish the blue and replace it with high-resolution images that don't take up much space. It comes with a gallery of images, and you can download more online or make your own, as long as you start with images smaller than 256 KB. Logon Screen Changer is an open-source freeware project.
Logon Screen Changer is portable, so it doesn't have to be installed to do its thing. The program's interface opened with a vivid science fiction scene. Logon Screen Changer has three widely dispersed buttons: About and Exit, which we skipped for the time being, and Change Login Screen (log-on, log-in, same procedure), which we pressed. A wizard opened with an image gallery displaying all installed templates, each with its own Apply button. We merely had to choose our new log-in screen and click Apply, and the program handled the rest. Logon Screen Changer asks if you'd like to log off and on again to view the change, so be sure you've saved any open windows or work. The images are about what you'd expect in such a gallery: field of tulips, group of penguins, Firefox logo, and so on. But the blandest of them is better than the plain Windows log-on screen, even if just for variety.
Windows 7 Logon Screen Changer Software
You can click Create Logon Screens or Download Logon Screens to broaden your choices, though you're limited to JPEGs smaller than 256KB. That's our only gripe, since other log-on screen changers we've seen fit your images to the screen just like desktop wallpaper. Keeping the screen image small helps keep log-on time down, though, so you can simply resize big pics to use them in Logon Screen Changer.