Customizing the lock screen of your Windows 11 computer is a first step to make the system look like you. Microsoft has made the Lockstreen more customizable with Windows 11 in addition to adding several other features and improvements.
With this, Microsoft has updated the interface of Windows 11. Apart from customizing the Start menu, you can also customize the lock screen. This means that your previous lock screen customization settings were reset when updating to the new operating system.
However, simplified menus make customizing your operating system easier than ever. Keep reading to see exactly how you can change the look and functionality of your lock screen.
How to customize your lock screen
While Windows 11 lets you customize the lock screen, Microsoft has removed some things. For starters, Windows 11 no longer supports multiple lock screen widgets, but you can use widgets in other ways on your computer. That said, you can use a widget that will appear at the bottom. Here's how:
Step 1: Right-click on an empty space on your desktop to bring up the context menu and select Personalize.
Step 2: Click on the Lock Screen option from the personalization settings menu.
Step 3: Select the drop-down menu next to "Customize your lock screen" option to choose between Windows Spotlight, Picture or Slideshow.
Keep in mind that for Windows Spotlight to work, your computer must be connected to the Internet as it automatically downloads new backgrounds daily.
The Slideshow option allows you to choose a folder containing photos and automatically rotate them from time to time. Finally, Picture will let you choose an image file from your computer and set it as your lock screen wallpaper.
Step 4: Click the lock screen state drop-down menu to choose the widget you want to display at the bottom of the lock screen
The widgets you will see in the list depend on the apps you have installed. If you just updated, the only widget options will be the stock ones like Mail to show your emails and Calendar to show your appointments.
Productivity, financial, or shopping apps offered through the Microsoft Store are more likely to contain lock screen widgets. Currently, software installed manually using executable files does not appear in the list of widgets.
You will only see the PIN security screen if you have set a password for your user account. Also, the themes you install and apply will have no impact on your lock screen.
Additional settings you can change
The lock screen customization page also contains related settings that affect how your lock screen behaves. You can change how long the screen stays on when you're not using your computer by doing the following:
Step 1: Open the Settings app, click Personalization and select Lock screen from the right pane. Then click Screen Timeout.
Step 2: Select the Screen and sleep option.
Step 3: You can change the two values and set the timeout between 5 minutes and Never.
Some of these settings will only be useful if you are using a laptop. You can also set a screensaver to appear on your screen when you're not using your computer:
Step 1: Open the Settings app, click Personalization and select Lock screen from the right pane.
Step 2: Select the screen saver from the lock screen customization page.
Step 3: Open the drop-down menu under the Screen Saver section. This will open another pop-up window.
Step 4: Select a screen saver from the list.
Step 5: Change the wait value to set how long Windows 11 waits before showing the screen saver. This means that the screensaver will only appear after the time you specified.
You can also check the option "On resume, show the login screen" which will display the login screen option each time you want to use your computer again.
Customize the lock screen
Although Microsoft has reduced some of the customization freedom offered by Windows 10, you can still tweak the operating system to look the way you want.
Everything from the Start menu to the taskbar and cursor can be customized. Follow the steps presented above and make your Windows 11 installation reflect your personality.