#Windows xp skin file how to#
#Windows xp skin file install#
#Windows xp skin file archive#

While I included it in the archive, I suggest you to read this article: Windows XP support has ended today: A farewell to the venerable OS. Now, it is a good idea to apply the genuine bliss wallpaper. The window frame/title bar color also matches the taskbar. The taskbar will have an almost authentic XP look. You will get something like this: Click OK to apply the Start button image. Again, browse for the file XPButton.png you downloaded and extracted from the archive. Then click 'Button image' and then click the button. There, tick the option 'Replace Start button' and then click the option 'Custom button'.

Next, go to the Start button tab (the tab to the left of the Taskbar tab in Classic Shell).

In horizontal stretching below, set 'Tile': This will make the taskbar look like in Windows XP.

Click the option 'Taskbar texture' and then click the button to browse for the file xp_bg.png that you extracted from the archive:.

There, you will find a number of options which you need to change.

Now, go to the tab called Taskbar and enable the 'Customize taskbar' option.

By default, the Settings dialog opens in basic mode: You need to switch it to the extended mode by ticking the 'Show all settings' checkbox to get the following look:.

Right click the Start menu button to open Classic Start Menu Settings:.

#Windows xp skin file archive#

The archive contains the taskbar texture, the wallpaper and the Start button to be used with Classic Shell.

Download the following archive: Download Classic Shell XP suiteĮxtract all its files to any folder you like.

#Windows xp skin file install#

Install Classic Shell you downloaded earlier and do the following. Scroll down and enable the option Show color on title bar:.In Settings, go to Personalization -> Colors.When the Settings app opens, turn on the option called Use small taskbar buttons as shown below:.Right click the Taskbar and pick Settings from the context menu:.To proceed, you need to download Classic Shell 4.2.7 from its official web site (use the red button 'Download Beta'):Īfter that, you need to prepare Windows 10 for a better XP look and feel. The user can change the taskbar text color, change the color to make it different from the title bar color, change its transparency or set a background image or texture for the Windows taskbar.Īs of this writing, only the beta version 4.2.7 of Classis Shell allows doing this. Recently, its developer implemented the ability to skin the taskbar in Windows 10 and earlier versions of Windows too.

#Windows xp skin file how to#

Today, we will see how to skin Windows 10's taskbar to give it a Windows XP appearance without using patches or themes.Īll we need is everyone's favorite Start menu replacement and system enhancement tool, Classic Shell. The appearance can be changed to some extent using UxStyle and third party themes, but in Windows 10, Microsoft prevents the taskbar from being skinned using visual styles (themes). Users who remember and like the appearance of Windows XP might not be very impressed by the default look of Windows 10. RECOMMENDED: Click here to fix Windows issues and optimize system performance