How to change the wallpaper position or fit using python script?

Question

How to change the wallpaper position or fit using python script?

Meet V 1

Hello,

Using the SystemParametersInfoW(SPI_SETDESKWALLPAPER, _ , _ , _ ) parameter, we can change the desktop wallpaper programmatically using following python script:

import ctypes
path = "your_wallpaper_path"
SPI_SETDESKWALLPAPER = 20
ctypes.windll.user32.SystemParametersInfoW(SPI_SETDESKWALLPAPER, 0, path , 0)

However, this only changes the wallpaper file. How do we change the wallpaper position or fit? viz. Fit / Fill / Span / Tile / Centered etc.

2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

@CmdrKeene 131 Volunteer Moderator

I can't find any reference to a public API for accomplishing it directly that way, but I can at least offer one alternative of this PowerShell command, perhaps you can execute this from within your script.

New-ItemProperty -Path "HKCU:\Control Panel\Desktop" -Name WallpaperStyle -PropertyType String -Value 10 -Force

Answer 2

Hello,

there is a lot of information around on how to create the script according to the windows version, etc. You can see in the thread the text of a archived MSDN page documentation:

The following steps walk through a demonstration of the code sample.

Step1. After you successfully build the sample project in Visual Studio 2008,
you will get an application: CSSetDesktopWallpaper.exe.

Step2. Run the application on a Windows 7 system. The form consists of a
button to browse to an image, a picture box to preview the selected image, a
group of radio buttons to configure the style, and a button to set the
desktop wallpaper as that image.

The Fit and Fill wallpaper styles are not supported before Windows 7, so if
the current operating system prior to Windows 7, e.g. Windows XP, only the
Tile, Center and Stretch styles are enabled.

Step3. Click the Browse... button to select an image file. You will see a
preview of the selected image in the picture box.

Step4. Check the Title style, and click the Set Wallpaper button. The
wallpaper is tiled across the screen. If you check the Stretch style, and
click the Set Wallpaper button, the wallpaper is stretched vertically and
horizontally to fit the screen.

Step5. Close the application.

Implementation:

Step1. Create a new Visual C# Windows Forms project named
CSSetDesktopWallpaper. Add controls to the main form. The form consists of a
button to browse to an image, a picture box to preview the selected image, a
group of radio buttons to configure the style, and a button to set the
desktop wallpaper as that image.

Step2. Design the Wallpaper helper methods in Wallpaper.cs.

Wallpaper.SetDesktopWallpaper(string path, WallpaperStyle style)

This is the key method that sets the desktop wallpaper. The method body is
composed of configuring the wallpaper style in the registry and setting the
wallpaper with SystemParametersInfo.

1) Configuring the wallpaper style in the registry

Desktop wallpaper can use one of three (or five, if the operating system is
Windows 7 or later) different sizing styles for display.

Tile: Wallpaper is tiled across the screen.
Center: Wallpaper is centered on the screen.
Stretch: Wallpaper is stretched vertically and horizontally to fit the
screen.
Fit: Wallpaper is resized to fit the screen while maintaining the
aspect ratio. (Windows 7 and later)
Fill: Wallpaper is resized and cropped to fill the screen while
maintaining the aspect ratio. (Windows 7 and later)

In order to support these three styles in an object-oriented way, an
enumerated type was created.

public enum WallpaperStyle
{
Tile,
Center,
Stretch,
Fit,
Fill
}

Two registry values are set in the Control Panel\Desktop key. Based on
which style is requested, numeric codes are set for the WallpaperStyle and
TileWallpaper values:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb773190(VS.85).aspx#desktop'>http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb773190(VS.85).aspx#desktop

TileWallpaper
0: The wallpaper picture should not be tiled
1: The wallpaper picture should be tiled

WallpaperStyle
0: The image is centered if TileWallpaper=0 or tiled if TileWallpaper=1
2: The image is stretched to fill the screen
6: The image is resized to fit the screen while maintaining the aspect
ratio. (Windows 7 and later)
10: The image is resized and cropped to fill the screen while maintaining
the aspect ratio. (Windows 7 and later)

RegistryKey key = Registry.CurrentUser.OpenSubKey(@"Control Panel\Desktop", true);

switch (style)
{
case WallpaperStyle.Tile:
key.SetValue(@"WallpaperStyle", "0");
key.SetValue(@"TileWallpaper", "1");
break;
case WallpaperStyle.Center:
key.SetValue(@"WallpaperStyle", "0");
key.SetValue(@"TileWallpaper", "0");
break;
case WallpaperStyle.Stretch:
key.SetValue(@"WallpaperStyle", "2");
key.SetValue(@"TileWallpaper", "0");
break;
case WallpaperStyle.Fit: // (Windows 7 and later)
key.SetValue(@"WallpaperStyle", "6");
key.SetValue(@"TileWallpaper", "0");
break;
case WallpaperStyle.Fill: // (Windows 7 and later)
key.SetValue(@"WallpaperStyle", "10");
key.SetValue(@"TileWallpaper", "0");
break;
}

key.Close();

2) Setting the wallpaper with SystemParametersInfo

At this point, the sizing options have been set, but the actual image path
still needs to be set. The SystemParametersInfo function exists in the
user32.dll to allow you to set or retrieve hardware and configuration
information from your system. The function accepts four arguments. The
first indicates the operation to take place, the second two parameters
represent data to be set, dependant on requested operation, and the final
parameter allows you to specify how changes are saved and/or broadcasted.

[DllImport("user32.dll", CharSet = CharSet.Unicode, SetLastError = true)]
[return: MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.Bool)]
private static extern bool SystemParametersInfo(uint uiAction, uint uiParam,
string pvParam, uint fWinIni);

In addition to importing the function, you will need to define some
constants for use with it. The first constant represents the wallpaper
operation to take place in this sample, to be used in the first argument.
The other two constants will be combined together for the final argument.

private const uint SPI_SETDESKWALLPAPER = 20;
private const uint SPIF_UPDATEINIFILE = 0x01;
private const uint SPIF_SENDWININICHANGE = 0x02;

The operation to be invoked is SPI_SETDESKWALLPAPER. It sets the desktop
wallpaper. The value of the pvParam parameter determines file path of the
new wallpaper. The file must be a bitmap (.bmp). On Windows Vista and later
pvParam can also specify a .jpg file. If the specified image file is
neither .bmp nor .jpg, or if the image is a .jpg file but the operating
system is Windows Server 2003 or Windows XP/2000 that does not support .jpg
as the desktop wallpaper, we convert the image file to .bmp and save it to
the %appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Themes folder.

string ext = Path.GetExtension(path);
if ((!ext.Equals(".bmp", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase) &&
!ext.Equals(".jpg", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase))
||
(ext.Equals(".jpg", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase) &&
!SupportJpgAsWallpaper))
{
using (Image image = Image.FromFile(path))
{
path = String.Format(@"{0}\Microsoft\Windows\Themes{1}.bmp",
Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.ApplicationData),
Path.GetFileNameWithoutExtension(path));
image.Save(path, ImageFormat.Bmp);
}
}

// Set the desktop wallpapaer by calling the Win32 API SystemParametersInfo
// with the SPI_SETDESKWALLPAPER desktop parameter. The changes should
// persist, and also be immediately visible.
if (!SystemParametersInfo(SPI_SETDESKWALLPAPER, 0, path,
SPIF_UPDATEINIFILE | SPIF_SENDWININICHANGE))
{
throw new Win32Exception();
}

Setting pvParam to ******************** or null in the above call reverts
to the default wallpaper.

Of course everything written and explained here:

MSDN: SystemParametersInfo Function
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms724947(VS.85).aspx

MSDN: Theme File Format
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb773190(VS.85).aspx#desktop'>http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb773190(VS.85).aspx#desktop

Setting Wallpaper