Taskbar and apps

On Windows, iconwright can change any app's icon, and pin, unpin and reorder taskbar apps. This page explains what each change does and what you'll see.

Change app icons#

Give Spotify a white icon on a dark circle.

iconwright makes the icon and puts it on the app's Start menu shortcut and its pinned taskbar shortcut (app_apply_icon). The app's own files are never touched.

• Open windows update right away.
• Pinned apps that aren't running keep their old picture until Explorer restarts. iconwright tells your agent when that's the case, and the agent can restart Explorer once at the end of all your changes (taskbar_refresh).
• Many apps at once cost the same as one. Ask for all of them in one sentence.

Restyle each app's own icon#

Make all my taskbar icons white.

Instead of one shared picture, iconwright takes each app's current icon and restyles it: recolored, on a background, in a shape. This is how you get a uniform taskbar while every app keeps its recognizable logo. Under the hood that's source: "app".

Preview first if you're unsure:

Show me what Spotify, Steam and Discord would look like in white, and in white on dark circles.

Use an icon file you already have#

Use C:\Icons\notes.ico for Notepad.

Any .ico works, and so do icons inside .exe and .dll files.

Pin, unpin and reorder#

Pin Notepad and Calculator, unpin Edge, and put Notepad first.

All of that happens in one step (taskbar_pins). Windows only reads the pinned-apps list when Explorer starts, so iconwright restarts Explorer once:

• The taskbar and desktop blink for a second or two.
• Open File Explorer windows close. Other apps keep running.
• Tray icons may take a moment to come back.

Before every change, iconwright backs up the pinned-apps list. If anything fails halfway, it puts everything back exactly as it was.

Not sure what the result will be? Ask for a dry run:

What would my taskbar look like if I pinned Notepad at position 3?

Undo a pin change#

Undo my last taskbar change.

That restores the pinned-apps list from just before the latest change (taskbar_restore_backup). To go all the way back to how it was before you ever used iconwright, ask for the original backup.

Check what's pinned#

What's on my taskbar?

This lists your pinned apps in order with their icon files (taskbar_status). To find an app's exact name, or to see where its shortcuts are, ask for its details (find_apps).

Things to know#

• App updates can undo custom icons. Some apps rewrite their Start menu shortcut when they update. Apply the icon again.
• Store apps (like Apple Music) get their pinned icon changed, but a running window may still show the app's own icon in some places.
• The first pin needs an existing pin. iconwright copies part of the pin format from an app that's already pinned. If your taskbar has no pins at all, pin any app by hand first.
• Taskbar styling tools such as TranslucentTB can turn themselves off after Explorer restarts quickly twice in a row. iconwright notices, restarts them, and can space out restarts on request. See Safety and risks.

Undo icons#

Put Spotify's original icon back.

Undo every icon change.

(restore_icons.) iconwright recorded each original before changing it.