Can't change icon in shortcut

[Tim Zych]

I create a shortcut. Right click -> Properties -> change icon. Browse to
"mypic.ico". Ok. Apply.

Good. The shortcut now has a icon.

Now I modify "mypic.ico". I open it with MS Paint and change something.
Repeat the first step (browse to the mypic.ico, etc).

But this doesn't work. The icon picture doesn't change in the shortcut. So I
try again by deleting the shortcut and repeating the first step. That
doesn't work either. The FIRST icon is always in every new shortcut I
create, even if that image is no longer to be found.

How can I change the icon picture?

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

I create a shortcut. Right click -> Properties -> change icon. Browse to
"mypic.ico". Ok. Apply.

Good. The shortcut now has a icon.

Now I modify "mypic.ico". I open it with MS Paint and change something.
Repeat the first step (browse to the mypic.ico, etc).

But this doesn't work. The icon picture doesn't change in the shortcut. So I
try again by deleting the shortcut and repeating the first step. That
doesn't work either. The FIRST icon is always in every new shortcut I
create, even if that image is no longer to be found.

How can I change the icon picture?

Maybe you do not have the required access to modify that shortcut.

 

[Tim Zych]

Tried it at work and home, both with Administrator privileges.

My coworker (developer) has same problem. He has admin privileges too.

Are you saying you can do it?

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

Sure can - just tried it under Win2000.

Tried it at work and home, both with Administrator privileges.

My coworker (developer) has same problem. He has admin privileges too.

Are you saying you can do it?


shortcut.

 

[Geir Klemetsen]

I create a shortcut. Right click -> Properties -> change icon. Browse to
"mypic.ico". Ok. Apply.

Good. The shortcut now has a icon.

Now I modify "mypic.ico". I open it with MS Paint and change something.
Repeat the first step (browse to the mypic.ico, etc).

But this doesn't work. The icon picture doesn't change in the shortcut. So I
try again by deleting the shortcut and repeating the first step. That
doesn't work either. The FIRST icon is always in every new shortcut I
create, even if that image is no longer to be found.

How can I change the icon picture?

First: The icon that you see on the shortcut is actually stored in a
iconcache file.

When you change the icon, windows iconcache doesn't utdate itself just like
that. You have to set a new icon file for your shortcut (clicking all those
"ok" buttons), and then change it back to the image file that you have
changed.

 

[Tim Zych]

Thanks. I tried that and when I changed it back it reverted to the old (but
no longer existing) icon.

The only way it seems to work is to rename the icon to a never-before-named
..ico file.

Maybe i am not following your advice correctly? I simply repointed the
shortcut's icon to a new icon. That changed it. Then I repointed the
shortcut icon back to the old (but updated in MS paint) icon. THAT reverted
the icon to the old (prior to being updated in MS Paint) icon. Even though
the old icon no longer exists.

 

[Bob I]

Still the same name attached to the "old" image in IconShellCache file.
Delete the hidden IconShellCache file and Windows will rebuild it with
the altered image.

 

[Tim Zych]

thanks. I did that and it worked.

After some reading about "ShellIconCache", some people believe that deleting
it will cause problems. I deleted it and restarted and had no problems.

The KB article http://support.microsoft.com?kbid=132668 says that Windows
will automatically recreate the ShellIconCache by changing the colors in the
Settings tab of the Display properties.

By changing it to 256 and then back to 32 bit, that solved the problem.

Thanks a lot.

 

[Bob I]

Good to hear you have it doing as you wished. IIRC the "no delete"
reference was based on a discussion some one apparently had with a MS
tech at some time but I've never seen documentation to that effect.