
There is still a way you can determine the location and file name for the prior wallpaper if you have a backup copy of the NTUSER.DAT file from the %USERPROFILE% directory, usually C:\USERS\USERNAME, for the account by using the NirSoft RegFileExport utility to read NTUSER.DAT and export a particular part of HKCU to a file.

If you set the wallpaper to your own custom wallpaper, though, you may not In that case, I would look for any files in that directory from a backup. When I checked a Windows 8.1, system, I saw the file listed as C:\Windows\web\wallpaper\Windows\img0.jpg. I created a batch script to replace the default Windows 7 and 8.1 background image, ('C:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\Windows\img0.jpg') with a custom image. If that is what you see, then look for a prior version of that file in a backup, instead. The image stored in that location is what I see for the desktop background on that system. On a Windows 8 system, I see C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Internet Explorer Wallpaper.bmp as the value in the registry for "Wallpaper". If you see C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Themes\TranscodedWallpaper.jpg as the value for "Wallpaper", if you have backups, you should be able to replace the current TranscodedWallpaper.jpg from a backup copy of C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Themes\TranscodedWallpaper.jpg, substituting your account name for Username.

Web wallpaper windows img0.jpg code#
This code can be run both as a batch script and as a powershell script.
When you select an image to be used for your wallpaper under Windows 7, the image will be copied to that location and renamed TranscodedWallpaper.jpg. ren C:WindowsWebWallpaperWindowsWallpapername.jpg img0.jpg ReplaceOn a Windows 7 system, I see the value stored in "Wallpaper" is C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Themes\TranscodedWallpaper.jpg, where Username is the name for the currently logged in account ( example). Check the value for "Wallpaper" stored in the registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop under "Wallpaper".
