How to Change the ICON of an EXE file
Some times it becomes necessary to change the ICON of an executable (.exe) file so that the exe file get’s a new appearence. Many of the Tools such as TuneUP Winstyler does this job by adjusting the Windows to display a custom icon to the user. But in reality when the file is carried to a different computer, then it shows it’s original ICON itself. This means that inorder to permanantly change the ICON, it is necessary to modify the executable file and embed the ICON inside the file itself. Now when this is done the exe file’s ICON is changed permanantly so that even if you take file to a different computer it show’s a new icon.
For this purpose I have found a nice tool which modifies the exe file and will embed the ICON of your choice into the file itself. ie: The tool changes the exe ICON permanantly.
I’ll give you a step-by-step instruction on how to use this tool to change the icon.
1. Goto www.shelllabs.com and download the trial version of Icon Changer and install it (Works on both XP and Vista).
2. Right-click on the exe file whose ICON is to be changed.
3. Now you will see the option Change Icon. Click on that option.
4. Now the Icon Changer program will open up.
5. Icon changer will search for all the ICONS on your system so that you can select any one of those.
6. Now select the ICON of your choice and click on SET.
7. Now a popup window will appear and ask you to select from either of these two options.
- Change embeded icon.
- Adjust Windows to display custom icon.
Select the first option (Change embeded icon).
8. You are done. The ICON get’s changed.
By using/following this site you agree to our Legal Disclaimer
Cool,thanks for the info,was looking for something like this
Great but need more.
@ zenith
What more u need? If u have ny problem share it…
Icon changer is cool application but it has a problem.
It changes icon of the exe, but when I minimize the exe, it shoes previous icon in the taskbar.
Any suggestions for this?
Regards,
Saj
@ Saj
Restart the system and try…
make sure you select the option (Change embeded icon) while changing the icon
it doesn t works i tryed but doens t works i pressed change embeded icon and it doesn t works im on linux …
@ me, comming with problems
It only works on Windows and not on Linux..
hats offto u srikanth
Very Thanks…
hello srikanth i am using Torbo C++ to compile .c file however i am not able to change the ico nof the generated .exe file ?? which compiler do you use ???
@ Neel
You need to use a 32-bit compiler to change the icon of the compiled executable. I guess you are using a 16-bit compiler…
It’s great.. tnx bro..
good think…… but i can’t change c prog .exe file icons…
sorry i got it…. sir
@ karthi
You need to compile C progras in 32-bit compiler to change the .exe icon. I suppose you’re using a 16-bit compiler.
Thanks, its so easy and useful.
Great stuff…
very usefull application…thnx…keep it up…
Thanks for sharing nice information.
I have not tried but i know it will work becouse you are genious
First of all thank you for this awesome tool, but I’ve encountered a problem when i try to change icon for a large .exe file. It doesn’t seem to change even after rr
any suggestions?
Nice tool. Thanks for sharing.
hi!!!!! sir i am following your site and i want to know how did you do this i mean is their any institute which teaches this if yes then sir please tell me or if you can mail me please sir i will wait for your mail
sorry, i read your guide to make a trojan horse that occupys disk space, but i am afraid of damaging my computer because im a noob, can you help me plz?
wonderful!!
hi it is nice tool.
can u tell me the direct website to download the
linux operating system ? please tell me.
nice and coll,hot and spicy tricks want some more….
hats off
Thnx yar
thanks helped a lot man
hiee…. srikant
m new to ur site n’d it’s very much interesting…..
thnk’s 4 sharing ur knowledge…
can u let me know which book i must refer in order to make viruses….
in c or c++ n’d also 4 creating d desktop applications???
hai srikanth
i liked ur creativities bt how can i change a 16bit compiler to 32 bit compiler.
hai sir,
will this work in win7
@ shreeprakash
It should work on Win 7 32-bit edition. But not sure about 64-bit.
thanks dude grt work.
Great work sir……….im ur fan…….but can u give some more detail explanation of the logic (c code)………..not for this one……all.
Many thanks, Srikanth.. I love you
This worked Indeed.
I am waiting for further tricks.
i must confess that this site has been of great benefit to me as a visitor. i’m luking 4wrd 2 becoming one of u guyz. how do i register?
Worked on many exes, but some exes dont work!
When i run the program an alert prompts me:’Not a valid win32 application’.
I have choosed ‘change embedded icon’
I have not a trial.
What to do?????!
@ Ølars
The exe file must be a Win32 application, that means it should be 32-bit only. You get the above error only if the executable file is not of 32-bit (may be it is 16/64 bit).
You cannot change the icon of an executable file if it has been compressed. When I say compressed, I mean packed like UPX exe packer and not archived like zip or rar.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Executable_compression
Therefore, not all executables’ resources like icons can be changed by resource editors like Icon Changer.
thanx………..
to share useful information.
nice tools.. it works like shooting star..it helps me alot
@ n33r0
Thanks for your input
Thanks
hi, i’m running win7 x64.
i’m not able to change the icon for VLC application. it keeps givin me the error that
“cannot open vlc. close any program that might be using the file”
i’ve tried restarting the pc and closing everything, but stil it dsnt work. any ideas??
really its work thank U frinz
Hi thanx for this cool application but the window did not poped up (Point No 7)as u said and it can be used for only 3 changes. And when u uninstall it; it reverse all changes. Any help for this
@ Mahesh M. Kadam
Use the full version of the software so that it should work fine…
When I want to change an icon of EXE file…it warns can not change some icon(s)… please help me.
Nice work,i was looking for this since 2008 finally am there thanks for your effort…
i want to change the icons back to its earlier position, now what shall i do?
also u doing a commendable job…
Hai Mr.srikanth , not only this but also every informations given by you are very useful to every one who are in my level. I realy say thanks for providing the basic knowledge about virus, ip address detection,etc.,
@ Rohini
Thanks you for your feedback
Leave your response!
EMAIL SECURITY »
How Do Email Spam Filters Work
If you are the one who works with emails on a daily basis, you are most likely to be using a SPAM FILTER to ease the job of sifting through a large number of spam emails …
HOW STUFFS WORK »
How Antivirus Software Works
Due to ever increasing threat from virus and other malicious programs, almost every computer today comes with a pre-installed antivirus software on it. In fact, an antivirus has become one of the most essential software package for every computer.
Even though every one …
HOW-TO GUIDES »
How to Retrieve Clipboard History in Windows
Ever copied a code snippet or text from the web and forgot to paste it before you copied something else? Well, all of us will have an experience of something like this, where we want to …
INTERNET SECURITY »
Access Your Facebook Account with 3 Passwords
Did you know that you can login to your Facebook account using 3 different passwords? Seems interesting isn’t it? Yep! Unlike any other online account which has only one password to access, Facebook lets you …
NETWORK HACKS »
Access Your Facebook Account with 3 Passwords
Did you know that you can login to your Facebook account using 3 different passwords? Seems interesting isn’t it? Yep! Unlike any other online account which has only one password to access, Facebook lets you …
Categories
I am the author and founder of GoHacking.Com. It all started in November 2007 as a small blog with just a few pages.
However, with the passage of time, the blog picked up more traffic and the response from the readers was also increased. This made me take up blogging more seriously.
You can read more about me or get in touch with me on Google+ or contact page.
Most Commented
Blogroll