In this blog post, I will show you the steps to set desktop and lock screen wallpaper using Intune. Large organizations often standardize desktop and lock screen wallpapers for branding, guidance, or security messaging. With Microsoft Intune, you can enforce wallpapers centrally, so the images are applied consistently across devices and users without relying on manual changes.
Users can set wallpapers on their own, but managing desktop wallpaper from a central place like Intune ensures a consistent look across all devices. Besides this, it also provides:
Security Information: Managing desktop and lock screen wallpaper could help organizations enforce security-related reminders and provide emergency contact information.
Corporate Environment: Setting corporate wallpaper on all devices can foster a sense of a corporate environment. The company logo, colors, and brand on the wallpapers can show the company’s identity. It also helps the clients and visitors showcase the brand.
Contents
Ways to Configure Desktop and Lock Screen Wallpaper
There are multiple ways to configure desktop and lock screen wallpapers on Windows devices using Intune. You can use: 1)a Settings Catalog policy, 2)a Device Restrictions template, or 3)a Win32 app, PowerShell script, or Intune device remediations combined with a Settings Catalog policy. These policies work best with the Windows 10/11 Enterprise or Education editions. For the Professional (Pro) Edition, you can configure the desktop wallpaper using Method 3 (a Win32 app, PowerShell script, or Intune device remediations combined with a Settings Catalog policy). Method 3 also only supports managing the desktop screen image, not the lock screen image.
When you use Settings catalog, you will find two ways to configure desktop and lock screen wallpaper. The first one is using the Personalization Category, which uses PersonalizationCSP, and the second one is using ADMX template settings in the Settings catalog under Administrative Templates\Desktop\Desktop and Administrative Templates\Control Panel\Personalization categories. I have explained more details about the second method, which uses ADMX templates, in my other post, Set Desktop & Lock Screen Wallpaper using Intune Win32 App.
A common requirement across all methods is to provide a path to the desktop and lock screen image files. The Settings Catalog (PersonalizationCSP) and Device Restrictions templates expect a URL for the wallpaper files, which could be an HTTP://, HTTPS://, or file:// URL that must be accessible from the device. When you use a file:// based URL, ensure that the wallpaper files are copied to the target device before providing the local path. PersonalizationCSP only works on Windows 10/11 Enterprise/Education editions and does not work on the Pro edition.
With the Settings Catalog (ADMX-based policy), you do not need to specify a URL in the form of http://, https://, or file://. You can directly provide the local fully qualified file path of the wallpaper on the device, such as C:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\DesktopWallpaper.jpg, or use a UNC path such as \\server01\wallpaperstore\desktopwallpaper.jpg. When using a local path for configuring desktop and lock screen wallpapers, ensure that the wallpaper files are copied on the target devices first and then use the file path to configure it.
With the ADMX approach, you can also configure the wallpaper style, for example, Fill or Stretch, which is not possible when using the PersonalizationCSP based Settings Catalog policy.
ADMX based desktop wallpaper setting (Desktop Wallpaper (User)) works with Windows 10/11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education, and Force a specific default lock screen and login image policy only with Windows 10/11 Enterprise and Education editions.
The table below highlights different options for configuring desktop and lock screen wallpaper via Intune on Windows 10/11 devices.
Simple to configure but does not work on Pro Edition
Settings Catalog
Administrative Templates (ADMX-backed)
ADMX
Local file path (e.g., C:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\DesktopWallpaper.jpg or UNC path)
✅ Yes (Fill, Stretch, etc.)
Windows 10/11 Pro, Enterprise, Education
Desktop Wallpaper setting works with Pro edition but lock screen setting only works on Enterprise and Education editions
Device Restrictions Template
Device Restrictions
CSP-based
URL required (http://, https://, or file://)
❌ No
Windows 10/11 Enterprise, Education
Simple to configure but does not work on Pro Edition
Win32 App / PowerShell / Device remediations + any of the above Settings catalog policy
Script-based deployment
File copy + policy
Local file path or UNC path after copy
✅ Yes (via ADMX)
Windows 10/11 Pro, Enterprise, Education
ADMX based Desktop Wallpaper setting works with Pro edition but lock screen setting only works on Enterprise and Education editions
In the following sections, I will demonstrate both the Settings Catalog (my preferred) and Device restrictions template approaches for configuring wallpapers. You can use either method, as these have similar requirements of providing a wallpaper image file URL.
An alternative is to copy the files to the target devices using PowerShell scripts and then use a Settings Catalog policy to point the desktop and lock screen wallpapers to the local file path. If you prefer the Win32 app approach, refer to the post Set Desktop & Lock Screen Wallpaper using Intune Win32 App.
Requirements
Before configuring desktop and lock screen wallpapers using Intune, ensure that the required image files and hosting location are prepared.
Two wallpaper images: one for the lock screen and one for the desktop wallpaper.
Both wallpapers must be in PNG, JPG, or JPEG format.
The wallpaper files must be stored in a publicly accessible location or copied to the target device.
To securely host publicly accessible wallpaper files, you can use an Azure Storage container. Alternatively, you may use other services such as SharePoint Online or Dropbox, provided they allow public access to the wallpaper files. If you want to take the local wallpaper image store approach, first copy the files locally on the target devices. To copy, you can use the PowerShell scripts from this post: Set Desktop & Lock Screen Wallpaper using Intune Win32 App.
Copy the wallpaper images either to a location (wallpaper store) that is publicly accessible or at least accessible from the target devices so that the images can be downloaded and configured on the device. You can also copy the images to the device first and then provide the local file path as file:// in the Intune policy.
In this example, I will use Azure Blob Storage as the wallpaper hosting location.
Create a new storage account or use an existing one in the Microsoft Azure portal by searching for Storage accounts, selecting Create, and providing the required details.
After the storage account is created, navigate to Containers, click + Container, provide a name, and set the Public access level to Blob (anonymous read access for blobs only) so the wallpapers can be accessed publicly.
Upload the lock screen and desktop wallpaper images to the container.
If you are unable to set anonymous read access for the blob, it is likely disabled at the storage account level. Enable the Allow blob anonymous access setting on the storage account, and then return to the container settings to allow anonymous access at the container level.
Click on each of the files and copy the URLs. Test the URLs to confirm if they are accessible from the target devices. Below are the example URLs from my Azure blob storage:
If you are using a local file path instead of a publicly accessible location, then copy the location where you are storing the files. For example: C:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\DesktopWallpaper.jpg and C:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\LockScreenWallpaper.jpg.
Step 2: Configure Desktop and Lock Screen Wallpapers
In this step, we will create an Intune policy to configure desktop and lock screen wallpaper for the target devices. Depending upon where the wallpaper files are stored, provide the appropriate location by specifying the http://, https: or file:// prefix.
You can use any of the approaches explained earlier. I prefer using a Settings Catalog policy (PersonalizationCSP) because it offers a more consolidated approach, with most related settings available in one place. However, you can also use a Device Restrictions policy or ADMX-based settings from the Settings Catalog. All of these approaches work well and meet the requirement of setting desktop and lock screen wallpapers.
Option 1: Using a Settings Catalog Policy (PersonalizationCSP)
My first and preferred option is to use a settings catalog policy from PersonalizationCSP. It works only with Enterprise and Education editions. For the Pro edition, use ADMX based settings.
Sign in to the Intune Admin Center > Devices > Configuration > +Create > New Policy.
Select Platform type as Windows 10 and later. Select Profile type as Settings Catalog.
Click on Create.
On the Basics tab, provide a name and description of the policy. Click Next.
On the Configuration settings tab, click + Add settings. In the Settings picker, search for Personalization. Click on the Personalization category and select Desktop image Url and Lock Screen Image Url.
Desktop Image Url: Provide http://, https://, or file:// URL, which points to the jpg, jpeg, or png file that needs to be downloaded and set as the desktop wallpaper image.
Lock Screen Image Url: Provide http://, https://, or file:// URL, which points to the jpg, jpeg, or png file that needs to be downloaded and set as the lock screen wallpaper image.
The screenshot above shows the configured Desktop image URL and Lock screen image URL values, which point to the Azure Blob Storage location where the wallpaper files are hosted. If you prefer to use a local path for the wallpaper files, you can use a file URL and append the local path to the wallpaper file as shown below:
Scope tags (optional): A scope tag in Intune is an RBAC label that you assign to resources such as policies, apps, and devices to control which administrators can view and manage them. For more information, see How to use scope tags in Intune.
Assignments: Assign the policy to Microsoft Entra security groups that include the target users or devices. As a best practice, start with a small pilot group, and once validated, expand the assignment more broadly. For guidance on assignment strategy, see Intune assignments: User groups vs. Device groups.
Review + create: Review the deployment summary and click Create.
Option 2: Using Device Restrictions Template
Instead of using a Settings Catalog policy (as shown above), you can use a Device Restrictions template to configure the desktop and lock screen wallpapers. This approach works only on Windows 10/11 Enterprise and Education edition devices. Similar to the Settings Catalog policy, you can specify the wallpaper file locations using http://, https://, or file://–based URLs. The URL you will specify must be accessible from target devices.
Sign in to the Intune admin center > Devices > Configuration > + Create > New Policy.
Platform: Windows 10 and later. Profile type: Templates.
Under Template name, select Device restrictions.
Basics: Provide a name and description of the policy.
Configuration settings: Select these two settings:
Locked screen picture URL (Desktop only).
Desktop background picture URL (Desktop only).
Locked screen picture URL (Desktop only): Provide the location of the lock screen image. For example, https://cloudinfrasa01.blob.core.windows.net/wallpapers/Cloudinfra-LockScreenwall.jpg.
Desktop background picture URL (Desktop only): Provide the location of the desktop screen image. For example, https://cloudinfrasa01.blob.core.windows.net/wallpapers/CloudInfra-desktopwall.jpg.
Scope tags (optional): A scope tag in Intune is an RBAC label that you assign to resources such as policies, apps, and devices to control which administrators can view and manage them. For more information, see How to use scope tags in Intune.
Assignments: Assign the policy to Microsoft Entra security groups that include the target users or devices. As a best practice, start with a small pilot group, and once validated, expand the assignment more broadly. For guidance on assignment strategy, see Intune assignments: User groups vs. Device groups.
Review + create: Review the deployment summary and click Create.
Option 3: Using Settings Catalog Policy (ADMX based)
This is another option for configuring desktop and lock screen wallpapers on Intune-managed devices. When you use the ADMX-based approach, you can specify the fully qualified local file path or a UNC path for the wallpaper files instead of using URLs, as required in the previous approaches. This method works best when the wallpaper files are already pre-staged or copied to the target devices, and you simply reference their locations in the Intune policy. For example, C:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\DesktopWallpaper.jpg.
For the desktop wallpaper, use the Desktop Wallpaper (User) ADMX-based setting.
For the lock screen image, use the Force a specific default lock screen and login image setting.
An important point to note is that Desktop Wallpaper (User) works on Windows 10/11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions. However, during my testing, I found that Force a specific default lock screen and login image works only on Enterprise and Education editions and does not work on the Professional edition.
Sync Intune Policies
The device check-in process might not begin immediately. If you’re testing this policy on a test device, you can manually kickstart Intune sync from the device itself or remotely through the Intune admin center.
Alternatively, you can use PowerShell to force the Intune sync on Windows devices. Restarting the device is another way to trigger the Intune device check-in process.
End User Experience
After applying this policy to all Intune-managed devices, let’s check the status to confirm whether the desktop and lock screen backgrounds have changed. We will also verify whether non-administrator users can modify the backgrounds. After restarting the device and waiting a few minutes, the device configuration profile was applied successfully. The screenshots below confirm that both the desktop and lock screen backgrounds have been updated.
Desktop Background
Desktop wallpaper changed by Intune
Locked Screen background
Locked Screen background updated by Intune
Next, verify whether a standard (non-administrator) user account can change the desktop and lock screen backgrounds after they are configured through Intune. As shown in the screenshot below, the desktop background is managed by Intune and cannot be changed by the user. The option to browse for a file and all related background settings are greyed out.
Similarly, the lock screen background is also managed by Intune, as shown in the screenshot below. The user cannot change the lock screen background, and the option to browse for a file, along with all other related settings, is greyed out.
Desktop and Lock Screen Wallpaper Config in Registry
Desktop and lock screen configurations can be found in the Windows registry at the following path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\PersonalizationCSP. You will see below list of registry entries under the PersonalizationCSP registry key:
Registry value
Type
What it represents
DesktopImageUrl
REG_SZ
Source URL/file URI configured for desktop wallpaper (https://… or file:///…).
DesktopImagePath
REG_SZ
Local cached/copied path Windows uses to apply the desktop wallpaper.
DesktopImageStatus
REG_DWORD
Processing status code for DesktopImageUrl (download/copy/validation result).
LockScreenImageUrl
REG_SZ
Source URL/file URI configured for lock screen image (https://… or file:///…).
LockScreenImagePath
REG_SZ
Local cached/copied path Windows uses to apply the lock screen image.
LockScreenImageStatus
REG_DWORD
Processing status code for LockScreenImageUrl (download/copy/validation result).
DesktopImageStatus or LockScreenImageStatus
Meaning
1
Success (downloaded/copied and applied).
2
In progress (download/copy running).
3
Failed to download/copy.
4
Unknown/unsupported file type.
5
Unsupported URL scheme (not http(s) or file:///).
6
Max retry failed.
7
Blocked by SKU/scenario (setting not allowed on this edition/mode).
Desktop and lock screen configuration in Windows registry
Verify Desktop/Lock Screen Wallpaper Configuration in Logs
You can also verify the desktop and lock screen wallpaper configuration by using MDM diagnostic logs. To review these logs, you must have access to one of the target devices.
Create MDM Diagnostic report file:
Go to Settings > Accounts > Access work or school > Click on the connected organization > Info.
Scroll down and click on Create report under the Advanced Diagnostic Report option.
The report will be generated and saved at the C:\users\public\Documents location.
Open the MDMDiagReport.html file and locate the two settings for desktopimageurl and lockscreenImageurl applied to the device. These settings will provide information about the desktop and lock screen backgrounds configured on the device.
If you are experiencing difficulties deploying a device configuration profile to a target device, generate full diagnostic reports for further troubleshooting and analysis using below command.
After configuring desktop and lock screen wallpapers on the target devices, you may need to update or replace them with new images. Copy the new wallpaper files to the existing wallpaper storage location, such as Azure Blob Storage or a local path where the wallpapers are hosted. Then open the existing Intune policy and update the image paths to point to the new wallpaper files. I have tested this scenario and was able to successfully update the wallpapers via the above Intune policies.
Conclusion
In this blog post, we’ve learned how to set desktop and lock screen wallpapers using Intune. The wallpapers will be centrally managed once you deploy this device configuration profile. Just update the wallpapers in your Azure storage account whenever you want to deploy new desktop backgrounds and lock screens on the devices.
27 thoughts on “Set Desktop and Lock Screen Wallpaper Using Intune”
Hey I’m having an Issue with this method,
Everything seems fine and the registry key is updated and shows the image’s URL as well as the file path which contains the image.
However, The desktop image is not changed this works fine for the lock screen but no changes are happening on the desktop image.
Let me mention that we have recently migrated our users and their machines to a different domain, when logging in with the same user account no changes but different domain accounts logging in to the same machine are seeing the new wallpaper
For Desktop Wallpaper – I am working on a solution and about 90% there. Not yet started on Lock screen image yet. I will Share the updates with you soon.
on my test machines it’s also not happening. I only want the lock screen. Registry looks fine. The export to the public documents doesn’t have any trace of the image URL. That’s strange.
Hello Ebrima, Yes the policy will not allow users to change Desktop and Lock screen images as it’s managed by the Administrator. I will have to check if it can be managed and at the same time allow users to change it if they want. I will update you here once I confirm the same.
Hey,
Any updates on this yet? I am also trying to remove the configuration settings for the lock, but the settings do not change on the device. The profile is not applied anymore, but the user cannot change the lock screen picture. It says, ‘manage by your organization”. I did everything possible but could figure out how to change this.
Could you share the solution for Desktop Wallpaper ?
Jatin, any ideas what could be conflicting with this policy?
I found that this could be set elsewhere too, in settings catalog instead of Device restrictions. Even if I remote that from the former, the latter won’t apply. All screens are default windows blue, yet both the file path and the URL is accessible and the image does get downloaded.
If you then later on change the wallpaper image in container (but keep same name), does it automatically update on the device? The config policy would see the file already exist and not replace it, no?
Hey Damain, Replacing the wallpaper file and keeping the same file name should update the wallpaper. A restart of the computer will be required. I will test this scenario and confirm.
[Update]: You can also try to change the file name and update the targeting to check if the wallpaper is updating on the target devices.
I tried updating the image and keepinf the same name. It doesn’t seem to be working without updating the file name on the storage blob and lock/wallpaper URL. Have you noticed otherwise?
Hi, Did anyone get this working without changing the file name?
Thanks
Hi Jatin. Were you able to successfully test this? That is changing the image on the blob, but keeping the same filename? I am not having any luck.
@Dave – If there are any issues, please try create Win32 app which includes the wallpapers. When you want to update them you can simply recreate the package and deploy it on the end user devices.
Please refer to the steps for same in this blog post: https://cloudinfra.net/set-desktop-lock-screen-wallpaper-using-intune-win32-app/
How can i set Wallpaper style? I can see, its fit now. I wanted to change this to Fill
I’ve spotted “Path to lock screen image: (Device)” which I presume will do the local device path for the lock screen. Struggling to spot the equivalent for desktop background
Id have a question regarding the “publicly accessible location” remark.
Would it suffice to have a Sharepoint Online where only “my” users have read access to?
If Microsoft actually requires the URL to be fully publicly accessible, than what’s the point of the policy in the first place? This Policy is only available for an Enterprise license and Id assume most Enterprises would push Wallpapers/Lockscreen with Corporate Brandings which they would not like to have them public
Hey I’m having an Issue with this method,
Everything seems fine and the registry key is updated and shows the image’s URL as well as the file path which contains the image.
However, The desktop image is not changed this works fine for the lock screen but no changes are happening on the desktop image.
Let me mention that we have recently migrated our users and their machines to a different domain, when logging in with the same user account no changes but different domain accounts logging in to the same machine are seeing the new wallpaper
Are you aware of if is possible to set a policy like that but somehow not block the user to change if he wants?
Hey Wag, I need to check and confirm on this.
For Desktop Wallpaper – I am working on a solution and about 90% there. Not yet started on Lock screen image yet. I will Share the updates with you soon.
on my test machines it’s also not happening. I only want the lock screen. Registry looks fine. The export to the public documents doesn’t have any trace of the image URL. That’s strange.
I recently deployed a lock Screen to all Intune users, and now I want to let the users choose to change the picture, but the options are greyed out.
Hello Ebrima, Yes the policy will not allow users to change Desktop and Lock screen images as it’s managed by the Administrator. I will have to check if it can be managed and at the same time allow users to change it if they want. I will update you here once I confirm the same.
Hey,
Any updates on this yet? I am also trying to remove the configuration settings for the lock, but the settings do not change on the device. The profile is not applied anymore, but the user cannot change the lock screen picture. It says, ‘manage by your organization”. I did everything possible but could figure out how to change this.
Hi Ebrima,
I have found a solution for Desktop Wallpaper but not for Lock Screen Image yet. I am working on it and share a solution with you.
Hi Jatin,
Could you share the solution for Desktop Wallpaper ?
Jatin, any ideas what could be conflicting with this policy?
I found that this could be set elsewhere too, in settings catalog instead of Device restrictions. Even if I remote that from the former, the latter won’t apply. All screens are default windows blue, yet both the file path and the URL is accessible and the image does get downloaded.
Is it work only to Windows 10 or 11 Enterprise?!
Hey Sergio, This Policy is applicable only for Windows 10/11 Enterprise and Windows 10/11 Education.
If you then later on change the wallpaper image in container (but keep same name), does it automatically update on the device? The config policy would see the file already exist and not replace it, no?
Hey Damain, Replacing the wallpaper file and keeping the same file name should update the wallpaper. A restart of the computer will be required. I will test this scenario and confirm.
[Update]: You can also try to change the file name and update the targeting to check if the wallpaper is updating on the target devices.
I tried updating the image and keepinf the same name. It doesn’t seem to be working without updating the file name on the storage blob and lock/wallpaper URL. Have you noticed otherwise?
Thanks for the article.
Did you manage to test this? It doesn’t seem to be working for me.
Try to change the file name and update the targeting to check if the wallpaper is updating on the target devices.
Hi, Did anyone get this working without changing the file name?
Thanks
Hi Jatin. Were you able to successfully test this? That is changing the image on the blob, but keeping the same filename? I am not having any luck.
@Dave – If there are any issues, please try create Win32 app which includes the wallpapers. When you want to update them you can simply recreate the package and deploy it on the end user devices.
Please refer to the steps for same in this blog post: https://cloudinfra.net/set-desktop-lock-screen-wallpaper-using-intune-win32-app/
How can i set Wallpaper style? I can see, its fit now. I wanted to change this to Fill
You can try this method: https://cloudinfra.net/set-desktop-lock-screen-wallpaper-using-intune-win32-app/
Does it work with local file paths also?
I’ve spotted “Path to lock screen image: (Device)” which I presume will do the local device path for the lock screen. Struggling to spot the equivalent for desktop background
Hello Jatin great blog you got here!
Id have a question regarding the “publicly accessible location” remark.
Would it suffice to have a Sharepoint Online where only “my” users have read access to?
If Microsoft actually requires the URL to be fully publicly accessible, than what’s the point of the policy in the first place? This Policy is only available for an Enterprise license and Id assume most Enterprises would push Wallpapers/Lockscreen with Corporate Brandings which they would not like to have them public
You can try this method of configuration of desktop and lock screen wallpaper which does not require placing the files at public location: https://cloudinfra.net/set-desktop-lock-screen-wallpaper-using-intune-win32-app/
HI, thx for the HowTo but unfortunately its not working for me.
Followed step by step exactly the same like your advises…but no success.
Lockscreen is flipping back to default and wallpaper shows black screen