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JSI Tip 5998. How do I hide desktop icons in Windows XP?
Jerold Schulman
November 20, 2002
1 Min Read
Windows XP provides a special way to hide desktop icons.
If you are using the Windows XP Start menu, use the Registry Editor to navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerHideDesktopIconsNewStartMenu.
If you are using the Classic Start menu, navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerHideDesktopIconsClassicStartMenu.
For each desktop icon that you wish to hide, Add a Value Name of the Class ID, HKEY_CLASSES_ROOTCLSID\{Class ID}, as a REG_DWORD data type, and set the data value to 1.
Right-click the desktop and press Refresh to see the effect of your change.
NOTE: You can use the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE key instead of HKEY_CURRENT_USER.
NOTE: Some common Class IDs are:
{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D} | My Computer |
{450D8FBA-AD25-11D0-98A8-0800361B1103} | My Documents |
{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D} | My Network Places |
{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D} | Internet Explorer |
{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E} | Recycle Bin |
{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D} | Printers and Faxes |
{D20EA4E1-3957-11D2-A40B-0C5020524153} | Administrative Tools |
{D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF} | Scheduled Tasks |
{7007ACC7-3202-11D1-AAD2-00805FC1270E} | Network Connections |
{D20EA4E1-3957-11D2-A40B-0C5020524152} | Fonts |
NOTE: See tip 5975 for adding Help and Support, Search, and Run functions to the Windows XP desktop.
NOTE: To hide all desktop icons, right-click a blank area of the desktop and press Arrange Icons By. On the context menu, uncheck Show Desktop Icons.
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