Lock Desktop Wallpaper easily, for free, and COMPETELY
Ok I've seen many threads about this and I have the best fix I've seen on here so far.
This fix will block users from the changing the background with any of the following:
Using the Display tab from properties or control panel.
Right clicking a thumbnail and choosing set as desktop background.
Using Internet Explorer or Firefox to find a picture, right click it, and choose set as background.
And it blocks other ways to.
Ok, there are 2 things you need to do. First one is in the registry. Login as the user you want to lock the wallpaper on and go to Run and type in regedit.
Navigate to the following key:
My Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies
In the Policies key, you should have another key called System, if you don't, right click in the Policies key and make a new one called System.
Once your in the System key, make two new String Values, one called Wallpaper and the other WallpaperStyle. Make the value of Wallpaper the path for the picture you want and make WallpaperStyle 0, 1, or 2 depending on the style you want it to be.
0 - centered
1 - tiled
2 - stretched
Now, that locks most of the ways. The only way around this is by finding an image with a web browser and using the web browser's right click menu to choose set as desktop background. Here's how to fix that.
Make sure you have set the desktop background at least once with the web browser in order to make the file for it's backgrounds.
For Internet Explorer:
Navigate to the following folder where USERNAME is the name of the user who you wish to restrict:
C:\Documents and Settings\USERNAME\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer
Now, right click on the file called "Internet Exlorer Wallpaper.bmp" and go to the Security Tab. Then go to the user group that the USER is in or simply select the users name (you can only do that if your logged in as that user) and then go to the Deny check boxes and check them all. Click OK and now when they try to set the desktop background with IE it will say "Permission Denied" or something like that.
NOTE: If you don't have the Security tab, go to Control Panel > Folder Options > View and uncheck the last box, it's called Use simple file saring, then click OK and you should have the Security tab.
Repeat the above if you have Firefox only go to C:\Documents and Settings\USERNAME\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox
And change the Security settings for the file called "Desktop Background.bmp".
I have not been able to find any way around the above, and as long as you set the account as "Limited" they can't go back and change the registry keys. And as long as you Deny the user Full Control to the IE and FF picture files, they can't go back and allow it. But it's better that they not know that anyways..
Lock Desktop Wallpape
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