How to change or restore default icon for a Folder

You can change or restore Folder default icon in Windows 11/10 using any of the following methods:

Change Folder default icon in PropertiesChange Folder default icon in desktop.ini fileRestore Folder default icon in PropertiesRestore Folder default icon in desktop.ini file

In this post, we will be putting the focus on the Documents folder. But the procedure applies to any other personal folder. Now, let’s take a look at the description of the process involved in changing or restoring Folder default icon, as it concerns each of the methods.

1] Change Documents Folder default icon in Properties

To change the Documents folder default icon, do the following:

Press Windows key + E to open File Explorer.Open your Documents folder’s current location (in this case C:\Users\Chidum.Osobalu) in File Explorer.Next, right-click the Documents folder, and click Properties.Click the Customize tab.Click the Change Icon button.Click the Browse button.Navigate to and select the icon library .dll or .ico file you want to use.

The %SystemRoot\System32\shell32.dll and %SystemRoot\System32\imageres.dll files contain most of Windows default icons.

Click Open.Select the icon you want to useClick OK.Click OK to apply changes.

2] Change Documents Folder default icon in desktop.ini file

To change the Documents Folder default icon in desktop.ini, do the following:

Press Windows key + R to invoke the Run dialog.In the Run dialog box, copy and paste the environment variable below and hit Enter.

If you changed the default location of your Documents folder, then you will need to substitute %UserProfile%\Documents in the path above with the actual full path of your Documents folder’s current location instead.

In the text file that opens up, on the IconResource= line in the desktop.ini window, change the full path to the full path of the icon you want to use.

If you do not have the IconResource= line, then you will need to add it.

Next, press CTRL + S to save changes.Exit the text file.Restart the explorer process or sign out from your profile current session and sign back in to apply.

3] Restore Documents Folder default icon in Properties

To restore the Documents Folder default icon in Properties, do the following:

Open File Explorer.Open your Documents folder’s current location (in this case C:\Users\Chidum.Osobalu) in File Explorer.Next, right-click the Documents folder, and click Properties.Click the Customize tab.Click the Change Icon button.Click the Restore Defaults button.

4] Restore Documents Folder default icon in desktop.ini file

To restore Documents Folder default icon in desktop.ini file, do the following:

Invoke the Run dialog.In the Run dialog box, copy and paste the environment variable below and hit Enter.

In the text file that opens up, on the IconResource= line in the desktop.ini window, change the full path to the following:

Next, press CTRL + S to save changes.Exit the text file.Restart the explorer process or sign out from your profile current session and sign back in to apply.

TIP: These free software to change Folder icon color in Windows 10 are sure to interest you. That’s it!