How to Customize the Windows 8 Lock Screen

Change your background, colors, lock screen, and account picture



1. First, pull up the Charms bar by moving your mouse to the lower or upper right corners of the screen, and select Settings.

2. Select the Personalize category and select Lock screen.  Click (or tap) one of the provided background images or use the Browse button and select any image from your computer, Bing, SkyDrive, or even your camera.

Themes and desktop backgrounds
Lock screen widgets – known as “lock screen apps” in Windows 8 – allow you to view information at a glance.  Apps added to the lock screen are allowed to run in the background when your PC is locked so they can fetch new, updated information and display it on the lock screen.

You can configure the list of lock screen apps from the Lock screen apps section below the lock screen background chooser.  Click (or tap) an icon and select the app you want in that location.  You can get more widgets by installing more Windows Store apps – apps can choose to include lock screen integration.  If you do not want any lock screen apps – or just want a few – you can select the Don’t show quick status here option. 

That’s it – no need for any third party tools anymore. Changing lock screen background is something most users would heartily welcome, as this was one minor customization aspect that Microsoft omitted in the Developers Preview of Windows 8, and that would certainly give a more personal touch to your OS experience.