Because installing Windows 7 shell themes is for some still a daunting task, I developed a theme installer that can install Windows 7 shell themes and replace a lot of system files. It is still some work to install themes, but significantly less than installing them manually!
Must-have for everyone who’s truly interested in customizing Windows 7!
So, how does this work? The Windows 7 theme installer by http://windows7themes.net is basically capable of replacing system files and applying Windows 7 themes with only a few clicks.
Replace System Files Hassle-Free
Replace .theme, explorer.exe, OobeFldr.dll, explorerframe.dll, shell32.dll, imageres.dll, ehres.dll, shellstyle.dll
Replace Windows 7 32-bit system files on Windows 7 64-bit (SysWOW64)
If you are on Windows 7 64-bit, you can even insert 32-bit files that will copied to SysWOW64 (this is sometimes required in order to install Windows 7 shell themes)
Built-in Theme Manager (Beta):
Your installed Windows 7 themes will be listed and can be applied:
Advanced Users Can Replace More System Files
If you are an advanced user, you can create a shortcut and add the option advanced (simply advanced not -advanced) and you will be able to replace even more system files:
TimeDate.cpl, MyDocs.dll, Wmploc.dll, Ieframe.dll, Basebrd.dll (We will add more dll files on request)
To enable the advanced mode add “advanced” to the shortcut target:
If you want it to be able to replace any other system file, let me know!
Download Portable Windows 7 Theme Installer (Beta)
Windows 7 Theme Installer by http://windows7themes.net is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Only allowed to share if you provide a link to our site. Free for personal use.
Important MUST-READ before downloading:
1. Step Run this program as administrator only (right-click on .exe, run as Admin)
2. StepYou MUST patch your UXtheme.dll files or this tool will not work. Read more here
3. StepClose all other programs before installing themes (highly recommended!)
4. Step After installing a theme, you have to click on the Apply button (!) or it will not work
5. Step It is recommended to set a system restore point before using this tool and/or create backups of the original system files
6. Step Use SFC.exe to restore the original system files . Read more here
7. Step This is a beta and can contain bugs, please report at http://www.windows7themes.net
8. StepUse at your OWN risk! (This program will modify system files)
9. Step Only download themes from trustworthy sites
Advanced Users:
You can launch this program with advanced options. To do this, add the option advanced to the launch options.
This will allow you to modify even more system files like TimeDate.cpl, Basebrd.dll, etc.
We need your feedback!
There’s still a lot to do to improve the theme installer. As of right now, you should only use the theme installer to install themes and not to apply/change themes. This will be added in the next beta version 0.8.
Tips:
- You can use the theme installer to install files individually. You don’t have to actually install a complete theme.
- Always click on Apply theme after installing a theme. This will then apply the theme. This is going to be fixed in the next version as well.
- Don’t forgot to patch your UXtheme files or the installer won’t work at all.
I thought all you had to patch was:
themeui.dll
uxtheme.dll
themeservice.dll
OR
shsvcs.dll
themeui.dll
uxtheme.dll
Das, you patch those files to enable 3rd-party Windows 7 themes. By default, Windows 7 will not allow you to install 3rd-party themes.
After patching the files (themeui, uxtheme, themeservice) you can then install other themes and that’s the more difficult part.
Other themes often involve system files like shell32.dll, explorer.exe, explorerframe.exe, OoebeFldr.dll and other system files listed above. Because replacing system files can be completely overwhelming for beginners, I thought this Windows 7 theme installer would help a lot, because it will do all the dirty work, take permissions, replace the files and apply the theme.
Because the program modifies system files (yes, Windows 7 themes modify CRITICAL system files) it might be recognized as a virus. However, this program is free of anything and it is a false positive. Most antivirus software will warn you if programs can modify system files, that is very normal.
If you don’t want to use the program, I suggest you read through some of the tutorials on our site. I have written tutorials on how to replace explorer.exe, shell32.exe, etc. manually.
http://windows7themes.net/how-to-replace-shell32-dll.html
Manually installing themes is more work for sure.
I hope this will help you to get started.
I could not even run this program. It says “need more memory” when I try to run programm as admin… x64 Win 7
Wow. I cannot run any of my programms as admin!
Hasan, I will look into this and fix it as soon as possible. Thanks for the feedback. Btw, I’m also on Windows 7 x64.
Can you send me the log file that is being created?
This is the log:
Starting
System.IO.FileNotFoundException: Dosya bulunamadı. (means: file not found)
konum (location): Microsoft.VisualBasic.Interaction.Shell(String PathName, AppWinStyle Style, Boolean Wait, Int32 Timeout)
I had lost all my admin privileges. That really scared me. I don’t know why did this happen. I was just trying to change some dlls in win32.
Anyway I opened windows in safe mode, ran theme installer. Changed dll files with program. And now everything is okay. I can run any of the programs as admin. The theme is installed.
I don’t think theme installer caused this. It must be my fault.
Thanks for reporting back, very much appreciated. I’m glad you were able to install the Windows 7 themes with the theme installer.
Nonetheless, I will look into this issues as soon as possible.
thanks to u all ….
hey i am using win7 ultimate 32 so can u please send me the log file that is being created.
hey!!!,,,
may I ask, on how to change background in windows 7 starter?
ren, of course you may ask. And here’s your answer:
http://windows7themes.net/how-to-change-your-desktop-background-in-windows-7-starter.html
I hope this will help you to change the background. Apparently, the registry fix it’s kinda difficult for some, so you may want to scroll down and download the Starter background changer tools.
Have fun!
i downloaded Universal theme manager and ran it(as administrator).Then i rebooted my system and i was having some problems finding a theme i wanted to download so i restored Universal. As of now the is nothing in the current section for the themeui.dll and when ever i press restore or patch nothing happens. How to i get the themeui.dll back???
p.s. i have a 7 x64
jp, open a command prompt (tutorial on our site, use search box) and then enter sfc.exe /scannow .. let it finish and reboot. That’s how you restore ALL original system files.
Anyway, you might have downloaded the wrong Universal theme patcher, there’s a one for Windows 7 64-bit.. did you download that one?
i use windows 7 starter..where can i get software for my theme?
zack, try this:
http://windows7themes.net/how-to-change-your-desktop-background-in-windows-7-starter.html
scroll down to the bottom and read the comment from judy. Should help..
Hey, I’ve been using Theme Installer for a while problem-free. Suddenly, I get an error message that says this when trying to press a “browse” button.
“Unhandled exception has occurred in your application. If you click Continue, the application will ignore this error and attempt to continue. If you click QUit, the application will close immediately.
Creating an instance of the COM component with CLSID {DC1C5A9C-E88A-4DDE-A5A1-60F82A20AEF7} from the IClassFactory failed due to the following error: 80040111.”
Pressing the “details” button on the error message brings up this:
See the end of this message for details on invoking
just-in-time (JIT) debugging instead of this dialog box.
************** Exception Text **************
System.Runtime.InteropServices.COMException (0x80040111): Creating an instance of the COM component with CLSID {DC1C5A9C-E88A-4DDE-A5A1-60F82A20AEF7} from the IClassFactory failed due to the following error: 80040111.
at System.Windows.Forms.OpenFileDialog.CreateVistaDialog()
at System.Windows.Forms.FileDialog.RunDialogVista(IntPtr hWndOwner)
at System.Windows.Forms.CommonDialog.ShowDialog(IWin32Window owner)
at ThemeManager.MainFormThemeManager.ButtonBrowseShell32Click(Object sender, EventArgs e)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.OnClick(EventArgs e)
at System.Windows.Forms.Button.OnMouseUp(MouseEventArgs mevent)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.WmMouseUp(Message& m, MouseButtons button, Int32 clicks)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.ButtonBase.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.Button.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.ControlNativeWindow.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.NativeWindow.Callback(IntPtr hWnd, Int32 msg, IntPtr wparam, IntPtr lparam)
************** Loaded Assemblies **************
mscorlib
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.NET/Framework64/v2.0.50727/mscorlib.dll
—————————————-
WindowsThemeManager
Assembly Version: 1.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 1.0.0.0
CodeBase: file:///C:/Users/Matthew/Desktop/WindowsThemeManager.exe
—————————————-
System
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.dll
—————————————-
System.Core
Assembly Version: 3.5.0.0
Win32 Version: 3.5.30729.5420 built by: Win7SP1
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Core/3.5.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Core.dll
—————————————-
System.Windows.Forms
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Windows.Forms/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Windows.Forms.dll
—————————————-
System.Drawing
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Drawing/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Drawing.dll
—————————————-
System.Configuration
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Configuration/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Configuration.dll
—————————————-
System.Xml
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Xml/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Xml.dll
—————————————-
Microsoft.VisualBasic
Assembly Version: 8.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 8.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/Microsoft.VisualBasic/8.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/Microsoft.VisualBasic.dll
—————————————-
System.Management
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Management/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Management.dll
—————————————-
CustomMarshalers
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_64/CustomMarshalers/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/CustomMarshalers.dll
—————————————-
************** JIT Debugging **************
To enable just-in-time (JIT) debugging, the .config file for this
application or computer (machine.config) must have the
jitDebugging value set in the system.windows.forms section.
The application must also be compiled with debugging
enabled.
For example:
When JIT debugging is enabled, any unhandled exception
will be sent to the JIT debugger registered on the computer
rather than be handled by this dialog box.
Matthew, have you changed anything on your PC recently? Maybe installed an Internet Explorer addon?
I will look into it, thanks for posting the debugging information, appreciate it.
Hello,
Ditto to the above post. I’m having the same exact error, line for line. I’m running Windows 7 x64. It happened when adding a new component other than the theme itself. When I hit apply, the command window flashed on the screen, then the task bar vanished. I was abble to get it back by simply logging off then back on again. “Whew” I know it did something to the registry, but not sure where. Any ideas?
Thanks
I am Windows 7 starter (32) user.
I patched the 3 files as instructed,
then downloaded and ran the installer tool,
my system freezed so I forced shutdown a couple of times,
now I can not log in,
I got a message my shell32.dll file is missing,
I have no idea what went wrong,
Can you help me to solve this problem, please ?
There is no need to tell you how scared I am.
Thanks
I am also having problems with editing themes, I emailed it to you using the link at the top of the site, but to be safe I’ll post it here too. Whenever I’m trying to edit a theme, I get an unexpected application error. Sometimes the taskbar disappears, but I can restore it by running explorer.exe through the task manager. This is the error that pops up whenever I hit browse.
See the end of this message for details on invoking
just-in-time (JIT) debugging instead of this dialog box.
************** Exception Text **************
System.Runtime.InteropServices.COMException (0x80040111): Creating an instance of the COM component with CLSID {DC1C5A9C-E88A-4DDE-A5A1-60F82A20AEF7} from the IClassFactory failed due to the following error: 80040111.
at System.Windows.Forms.OpenFileDialog.CreateVistaDialog()
at System.Windows.Forms.FileDialog.RunDialogVista(IntPtr hWndOwner)
at System.Windows.Forms.CommonDialog.ShowDialog(IWin32Window owner)
at ThemeManager.MainFormThemeManager.ButtonBrowseShell32Click(Object sender, EventArgs e)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.OnClick(EventArgs e)
at System.Windows.Forms.Button.OnMouseUp(MouseEventArgs mevent)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.WmMouseUp(Message& m, MouseButtons button, Int32 clicks)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.ButtonBase.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.Button.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.Control.ControlNativeWindow.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.NativeWindow.Callback(IntPtr hWnd, Int32 msg, IntPtr wparam, IntPtr lparam)
************** Loaded Assemblies **************
mscorlib
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5466 (Win7SP1GDR.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/Microsoft.NET/Framework64/v2.0.50727/mscorlib.dll
—————————————-
WindowsThemeManager
Assembly Version: 1.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 1.0.0.0
CodeBase: file:///C:/Users/Abraham/Desktop/Windows8Theme%20Ultimate%20Edition/DO%20THIS%20THIRD%20STEP/Theme%20Installer/WindowsThemeManager.exe
—————————————-
System
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5467 (Win7SP1GDR.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.dll
—————————————-
System.Core
Assembly Version: 3.5.0.0
Win32 Version: 3.5.30729.5420 built by: Win7SP1
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Core/3.5.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Core.dll
—————————————-
System.Windows.Forms
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5467 (Win7SP1GDR.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Windows.Forms/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Windows.Forms.dll
—————————————-
System.Drawing
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5467 (Win7SP1GDR.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Drawing/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Drawing.dll
—————————————-
System.Configuration
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Configuration/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Configuration.dll
—————————————-
System.Xml
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Xml/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Xml.dll
—————————————-
Microsoft.VisualBasic
Assembly Version: 8.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 8.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/Microsoft.VisualBasic/8.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/Microsoft.VisualBasic.dll
—————————————-
System.Management
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Management/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Management.dll
—————————————-
CustomMarshalers
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///C:/Windows/assembly/GAC_64/CustomMarshalers/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/CustomMarshalers.dll
—————————————-
************** JIT Debugging **************
To enable just-in-time (JIT) debugging, the .config file for this
application or computer (machine.config) must have the
jitDebugging value set in the system.windows.forms section.
The application must also be compiled with debugging
enabled.
For example:
When JIT debugging is enabled, any unhandled exception
will be sent to the JIT debugger registered on the computer
rather than be handled by this dialog box.