How to Unlock Windows 7 Hidden Themes

Chances are high that you have already noticed Windows 7’s “Personalize” window that has five cool aero themes by default. But you have a surprise in Windows unlike Vista & XP! There are many awesome cool themes inside Windows 7 operating system.

There are a total of 5 themes and 30 wallpapers reside in a hidden directory deep in the Windows 7 install drive. In Windows 7 you get different wallpapers and theme for each zone (Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, United States & South Africa), but you can’t access other zone theme and wallpapers by default as they are hidden.

To access all the hidden themes and wallpapers just follow the simple procedure given below:

Start by opening up Windows Explorer. Once opened, look for the Organize button located in the upper left side of the window on the top toolbar.

Click the Organize button and select Folder and search options from the drop down menu. This should open up the Folder Options window. Click the View tab. Under the section labeled Advanced settings, look for the value Show hidden files, folders, and drivers and select it.

Next, look for the value Hide protected operating and uncheck it. If prompted with a popup window click Yes, than click the OK button.

Browse to the path WindowsGlobalizationMCT. Upon doing so, you should see five MCT- folders. Each folder represents a different country. Open up a folder of your choice, and open up the Theme folder located inside the according country folder.

You should see that country’s theme as AU, CA, GB, US, ZA, etc… Double click the theme to activate it and add it to your Windows 7 themes library.

Active any or all themes that you would like to install by clicking the according theme files via the MCT folders. After you have checked out the new themes, go ahead and change the Globalization settings back for Windows.

Launch Windows Explorer. Click the Organize tab and select Folder and search options from the drop down menu. Click the view tab and reselect Don’t show hidden files, folders, and themes. Also reselect Hide protected operating system files. Click the OK button.

That’s all there is to it. You should now have several new country themes available in your Windows 7 themes library. Right-click on your desktop and select personalize. You should now see your new themes listed.

Want to check out some more themes that Microsoft has released? Head on over to this page. Just find a theme you like and click the download button next to that theme.

It will save to your computer as a Windows 7 theme file. Double click the theme to activate and add to your theme library.

Summary

1. First open Explorer (Computer).Go to Organize > Search and folder options. Switch to View tab and do the following tasks:

*Select “Show hidden files, folders, or drives”.

*Uncheck the box named “Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)”.

*Click Apply.

2. Go to the following directory:

C:WindowsGlobalizationMCT

3. Open each zone’s “Theme” folder and double- click on it to activate theme and wallpapers.

4. Now, right-click on Desktop and go to Personalize to access all zone themes under one roof!

5. Revert the changes that you have done in the step 1.