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Unable to Change Windows Desktop Background

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This document pertains to computers with Windows Vista or Windows XP.
If the Windows Desktop background color cannot be changed or you cannot add a picture as your Windows desktop background (wallpaper), then your computer has likely been infected with some sort of spyware in the past. Even if you have cleaned your system of spyware, you still cannot change your desktop background.
To fix this problem, perform the following steps in the exact order given.
NOTE:You must be logged into an administrative logon account to perform these steps. The logon account is the name that you select when opening Windows. Normally, on a home computer, the first account that was initially created will work. Do not use a standard user, limited user, or guest account.
  1. If your computer uses Windows Vista , click Start , and enter regedit into the Start Search field.
    If your computer uses Windows XP , click Start , Run , and enter regedit into the Open field.
    A registry editor window opens.
  2. Select My Computer (Windows XP) or Computer (Windows Vista) from the top of the list in the main window.
    Figure 1: My Computer and Computer in the registry list
    Side-by-side comparison views of Windows XP and Windows Vista registy list with My Computer and Computer highlighted respectively
  3. Click File , Export , type a filename that is easy for you to remember, and click Save .
    A copy of the registry is saved for back-up purposes to the My Documents/Documents folder. In the unlikely event that an incorrect key is deleted or problems occur after using these steps, you can browse to the exported file and double-click it to restore the registry.
  4. Click the plus sign (+ ) next to the following items in the list:
    • HKEY_CURRENT_USER
    • Software
    • Microsoft
    • Windows
    • CurrentVersion
    • Policies
  5. Look for an ActiveDesktop key listed under Policies:
    If an ActiveDesktop key is not listed, continue to next step.
    If an ActiveDesktop key is listed, click the ActiveDesktop key, double click the NoHTMLWallPaper value to the right, enter 0 for value data, and then click OK .
    Figure 2: Value data for NoHTMLWallPaper registry value
    Registry Editor showing Edit DWORD Value window
  6. Look for a System key listed under Policies:
    If a System key is listed, select the System key and continue to the next step.
    If a System key is not in the list, skip to step 8.
  7. Look for a Wallpaper value under the name column to the right:
    If Wallpaper is not in the list, skip to step 8.
    If Wallpaper is listed, select the Wallpaper value and press the Delete key. Confirm the deletion by clicking Yes .
    Figure 3: Wallpaper registry value inside Policies registry key
    Registry Editor with Wallpaper value highlighted and Delete menu item selected
  8. Close the registry editor and restart the computer.
    If any changes were made to NoHTMLWallPaper or WallPaper values, you should now be able to change your desktop background.
    If you did not change the NoHTMLWallPaper value or delete the Wallpaper value, this document will not help. Try searching the Internet for an alternate solution.