The Pros and Cons of Using the Aero Theme for Windows 7

With Windows 7, Microsoft introduced a really unique and beautiful appearance for the operating system. Windows Vista already had some features like transparent window frames with glass (blur effect) but Windows 7 introduced a glass taskbar and a glass Start Menu which follows the Aero color. They were very well received by most users. With Windows 8, Microsoft removed the glass effect from window frames and the blur effect from the taskbar. In Windows 10, the appearance has become even less 3D, minimalistic and uses completely flat colors without any gradients. Many users are missing the good old look of Windows 7. Let's see how to get the Windows 7 theme in Windows 10.

First, you need to unlock third party themes support in Windows 10 because Microsoft has locked it down so only digitally signed themes can be used. Read the following article carefully: How to install and apply third party themes in Windows 10. It involves installing UxStyle so you can use unsigned, third party themes.

aero theme for windows 7

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The author of this theme recommends using the AeroGlass mod for Windows 10 to have a more genuine look. To get transparency and rounded borders, you will have to follow this guide. After that, you can get something like this:

The theme is claimed to be compatible with Windows 10 x86 and Windows 10 x64 however with Windows 10 following the new continuous updating model, this theme can break on future Windows 10 builds. If you plan to upgrade Windows 10 RTM build to later Insider builds, it is better don't use any third-party theme. At the moment of this writing, it works as expected under Windows 10 build 10240.

The theme is AWESOME!!! You should also write download Ux Style theme Patcher from to make the theme work. I got the theme. I have found and made features from Windows 7 for Windows 10. Check it out -7-Theme-for-Windows-10-660930329

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An issue I saw a number of times at customers was that the Windows 7 Aero theme was not enabled after deployment. I saw this numerous times in early workshops and pilots for customers and completely forgot about it until I saw the question asked again a few weeks ago. So here is a post describing the sort of symptoms you might see and how to workaround it.

But there is another, more important reason to keep the Aero themes active on your SolidWorks workstation, even if you prefer the Windows Basic themes. Because the Non-Aero themes are intended for systems lacking dedicated GPUs, those themes disable certain 3D acceleration settings within Windows. Those setting being disabled will have a anywhere from a negative to disastrous effect on SolidWorks performance.

Injecting graphics drivers into your images is a big step towards deploying Aero. Once you have done this, you can script a command to enable the Aero interface. How do you do this? The solution is VERY simple. Just call one of the Aero theme files that are located in the C:\Windows\Resources\Themes folder.

After you create or commit your changes to the image, then you should deploy it and test that (1) driver configuration takes place after first reboot cycle and (2) your custom Aero theme gets applied.

Even if I select the Windows Aero theme, it still remains as Windows 7 basic. How do I fix this? Also, hardware acceleration seems to be not turned on and I can't change that in display settings. How do I fix that too?

If you are running RecMaster on Windows 7, and you hope to record program windows with transparent properties, for example, program windows with rounded corners, you will have to choose an Aero theme or enable the Record transparent window option in Settings. Here are the steps about how to enable Aero theme in Windows 7, and how to enable the record transparent windows option.

Starting TBC classic results in Windows 7 Aero theme being disabled and forcing Windows 7 basic theme . This results in me being unable to full-screen my windowed wow.exe without seeing the windows tool bar. Additionally, desktop VSYNC is disabled under Windows 7 basic theme; it is not possible to override at the application level using NVIDIA control panel. I have verified this with vsync tearing tests. GPU memory is not an issue, as I am running a 6GB 2060. I had no problems prior to the TBC classic patch. The same bug was listed on the US forums:

In Windows-speak, a desktop theme is simply a collection of settings that control the way Windows looks and sounds. When you choose a desktop theme in Windows 7, you could be changing the desktop background, the look of icons, and the Windows color scheme all at once.

Windows 7 includes three types of themes: Aero Glass, Basic and High Contrast themes. Aero Glass is the premier theme that includes effects such as semi-transparency of window border along with the ability to utilize desktop effects such as Aero Peek, Snaps, Taskbar Thumbnail Previews and others such as Flip 3D. Aero Glass requires that you have a GPU (graphical processing unit otherwise known as your video card) powerful enough to compose the desktop. To run Aero Glass, you need a video card that supports DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver.

The following issue has occurred in a Windows 7 based computer: Windows changed to the basic theme and the user cannot change the theme because, when the personalization settings are opened, all of aero themes are greyed out. Instead of that, all the other settings in the personalization panel are enabled (Desktop Background, Windows Color, Screen Saver, etc.), expect to select a different theme.

The first step to resolve the problem "cannot change basic theme", is to ensure that your system is virus/malware free. For that task follow the instructions in this guide: How To Scan Your Computer for Viruses and other Malicious Programs.

4) Adjust Windows for best appearance: Control Panel -> System and Security -> System -> Advanced system settings -> Performance -> Settings -> Visual Effects -> Adjust for best appearance5) Set Aero theme: Control Panel -> Appearance and Personalization -> Change Theme -> choose Windows 7 Aero Theme.

Part of the beauty of the Windows 7 operating system comes from its "Aero effects", which were first introduced (in a smaller scale) with Windows Vista. Part of the Aero experience is the "transparent glass" that surrounds program windows, and makes the taskbar and start menu.In reality, as you can tell from the screenshot, these effects are more translucent than transparent: objects and text in the background are blurred out to prevent them from becoming too distracting. But, if you find transparency distracting, Windows 7 lets you have the best of both worlds by using opaque windows / taskbar / start menu, which retaining the rest of the rich Aero effects.

If you decide to go back to transparent windows, start menu, and taskbar, no problem: Windows 7 lets you switch back to the full Aero effects at any time. Just use the same steps explained above, but this time, check the "Enable transparency" checkbox before clicking on "Save changes"! 2ff7e9595c