Sometimes people wonder whether they can change the drive icons too just like the other icons in Windows 10. The answer to this question is a “yes” but it is surely not as simple as we change the other types of icons. Windows 10 does not provide a direct way of customizing the drive icons rather this task can be accomplished using the Registry Editor in Windows 10. This is a bit tricky yet useful method of changing the drive icons in Windows 10. Therefore, in this article, we will look at this method in detail.
Changing Drive Icons in Windows 10
In order to change the drive icons in Windows 10, you will need to perform the following steps:
Type regedit in the search section of your taskbar and click on the search result to launch a new registry editor window. The newly opened Registry Editor window is shown in the following image:
Click on the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE folder as highlighted in the image shown above.
Now click on the Software folder located under the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE folder as shown in the image below:
As soon as you will click on it, the Software folder will expand in order to show its sub-folders.
Click on the Microsoft folder as highlighted in the image shown above.
Then click on the Windows folder under the Microsoft folder.
Now click on the CurrentVersion folder as highlighted in the image shown above.
Click on the Explorer folder under the CurrentVersion folder in order to expand it further.
Finally, click on the DriveIcons folder as highlighted in the image shown above.
So, the complete path is as follows:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ DriveIcons
It is also highlighted in the following image:
Right click on the DriveIcons folder to launch a menu as shown in the image below:
Select New from the cascading menu and then click on Key from the sub-cascading menu.
Rename the newly created key folder with the drive name whose icon you want to change. In this example, I want to change the icon of the D drive so I have renamed the newly created key folder as D. It is highlighted in the following image:
Now right click on the D drive folder in order to launch a cascading menu as shown in the image below:
Select New from the cascading menu and then click on Key from the sub-cascading menu.
Rename this newly created key folder as DefaultIcon as highlighted in the following image:
Now double click on the Default key in the right pane of the window as shown in the image below:
As soon as you will click on it, the Edit String dialogue box will appear which is shown in the following image:
In the text box corresponding to the Value Data field, you need to give the full path of the ICO file that you want as your new drive icon. ICO files are the image files that contain various icons. You can download any ICO file of your choice from the Internet and then give its complete path enclosed within quotation marks inside the Value Data text box. It is shown in the image below:
Finally, click on the OK button in order to save your settings.
As soon as you will click on the OK button, the icon of the D drive will change as specified in your Value Data text box. It is highlighted in the following image:
If you do not like this new icon and want to restore the old drive icon, simply go the drive key folder that you had created in the Registry Editor. Right click on it to launch a cascading menu and then select Delete option from this menu. As soon as you will delete this folder, your previous drive icon will be restored as highlighted in the image shown below:
Conclusion
By following the method discussed in this article, you can customize the drive icons anytime you want in Windows 10. This method is very different from the regular method of changing the icons and is a bit complex as well. Whenever you are working with the Registry Editor, you need to be very careful because if you mess up at any step, then this may cause a problem in running your PC smoothly. However, if you will carefully follow all the steps given above, then you will successfully be able to change the drive icons in Windows 10.
