Enable Unsigned Themes on Windows XP by Patching up UXTheme.dll

Do you want to change the standard theme of Windows into something cool like the pictures below?

Unsigned theme refers to theme that isn't originally created by Microsoft, a large collection of which can be found on site like Deviantart. Unfortunately, it is useless to download any of the themes availabe since they won't be able to be used without patching up the Windows uxtheme.dll.

How to patch... it's easy!

There are at least two ways to do the patching which both utilize small-size programs: Replacer and UXTheme-MultiPatcher. They work successfully for me. But here I'm only going to cover how to use UXTheme-MultiPatcher since it involves just a few clicks and simpler operation than the Replacer.

First, you need to download the application here. It can be used for Windows XP (includes SP1 and SP2) and Windows Server 2003 (includes SP1 and SP2). Note that I tried it on Windows XP. I have no idea whether it works well or not for Windows Server 2003.

1. When you run it, there will be a notification that it will patch your uxtheme.dll so third-party themes or other form of visual styles can be used. It is informed as well that the patched system can be unpatched by running this program again. Press the patch button when you are ready.

2. It will try to detect your OS and ask for a confirmation afterward. Press Ok if the OS detected is correct.

3. You will be instructed to wait to cancel Windows File Protection that is about to show up.

4. After cancelling, the Windows File Protection will warn you that the modified files may cause system instability if you keep them. Ignore it by pressing the Yes button. Next, you need to restart your Windows.