Add Logo and Support Information to Vista

As you may remember, in my “How can I change or add OEM logo and information on my computer?” article, one could easily add support information such as manufacturer information, support link and other information, plus a small image of the manufacturer’s logo. This information was inserted by manufacturers that sold pre-installed computers and laptops, and was visible when one went to the My Computer > Properties screen, or pressed the ÿ + Break key.

In Windows Vista, adding support information and a company logo is not as simple as it was in Windows XP, and it requires some Registry editing. You will also need a small logo of the company or other entity you want to display. Please follow these instructions:

The Logo

You will need to create a small logo of your choice by using any graphics editing tools. Make sure that the logo file is called OEMLOGO.BMP, and, guess what, save it in .BMP format.

Also, the logo file should not be bigger than 120X120 pixels in size.

For example:

You can place the file in any directory of your choice, but I suggest you put it in the %systemroot%system32 folder of your computer (for example – C:WindowsSystem32). Note this path, you’ll need it later.

The Registry

The next phase is to edit the local Registry and add the support information.

1. In the Start Menu type “Regedit” and press Enter. Note: As always, be very careful while the editing the Registry. A small mistake can cause huge damage that will prevent you from booting the computer. If you don’t know what the Registry is, how to edit it and how to back it up, please consult with a skilled IT professional.  
2. Navigate to the following registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionOEMInformation  
3. If the OEMInformation key does not exist you will need to create it. Right Click the CurrentVersion key and from the drop down menu click New > Key. In the Key dialogue box type OEMInformation and then press Enter.  
4. Next, create the following keys and modify them to hold the following values: Key name: Logo Key type: String Value Key value: The path to your logo file, for example: C:WindowsSystem32 Key name: Manufacturer Key type: String Value Key value: Your name, or the manufacturer’s name, for example: Daniel Petri Key name: SupportHours Key type: String Value Key value: Your support hours, for example: Sun – Thu 9am – 5pm Key name: SupportPhone Key type: String Value Key value: Your support phone number, for example: 972-3-9876543 Key name: SupportURL Key type: String Value Key value: Your support URL, for example: https://petri.com Here is my sample for your reference:  
5. Close Regedit.

Note: You can export your settings and make the addition of such settings for more computers by importing the information and OEMLOGO.BMP file to them. In order to export the information, click on the OEMInformation key. Next, go to File > Export, and give the file a name (such as settings.reg). You can then edit the file with Notepad and distribute it to other computers (don’t forget the .BMP file).

I added my example of the file for your reference, just copy, paste into a .REG file, and edit it to reflect your own information:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionOEMInformation]
"Logo"="C:WindowsSystem32oemlogo.bmp"
"Manufacturer"="Daniel Petri"
"SupportHours"="Sun-Thu 9am-5pm"
"SupportPhone"="972-50-9876543"
"SupportURL"="https://petri.com"

After editing the Registry and pasting the OEMLOGO.BMP file in the right path, go to the My Computer > Properties screen, or press the ÿ + Break key:

Done!

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• How can I change or add OEM logo and information on my computer?

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