How to Back Up and Restore Your Windows Desktop Icon Layout


**Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Many Microsoft Windows users tend to keep their commonly used program shortcuts, files and folders on their desktop for easy access. And if you have a lot of items on your desktop and something gets moved or removed, it can be a hassle trying to find it mixed in with all your other desktop icons.

Even though using the Windows desktop to store your files and folders is not the best file management method you can use, it seems to work out well for many people. So it makes sense that you would want to be able to backup your icons just in case something gets moved. In this article, we will be showing you how to back up and restore your Windows desktop icon layout using a couple of free applications.

Back Up Your Windows Desktop Icon Using DesktopOK

The first tool we will be using to back up the Windows desktop is called DesktopOK and it can be downloaded here. You can use the installer which will install the app like a regular program or you can use the standalone (portable) version which doesn’t require you to install anything.

The image below shows our sample desktop will its shortcuts, files and folders organized in a specific order.

Windows 11 Desktop

We will be using the portable version and once you download the zip file and extract its contents, you just need to run the DesktopOK_x64.exe file to start the program.

DesktopOK_x64.exe

One the program opens, you just need to click on the Save button to back up the current layout of your desktop icons. You can click the Save button again if you want to save a back up a different desktop icon layout in case you made some changes and want to have a backup of that as well.

How to Back Up and Restore Your Windows Desktop Icon Layout

Now if something happens to your desktop icon layout and you want to restore it using one of your saved backups, you can simply select it from the list and click on the Restore button.

DesktopOK also has an option to export your saved desktop icon layouts to a file that you can then import back into the program if you have removed the app from your computer for some reason. You can save your layout file by clicking on the DesktopOK menu.

DesktopOK Menu

When you click on the Options menu, you will see an auto save feature which can be used to automatically back up your Windows desktop icon layout at specific intervals. You can also specify how many backups\versions you want to have saved.

How to Back Up and Restore Your Windows Desktop Icon Layout

Right clicking on a backup in the main window will give you an option to have the layout be restored when Windows starts up.

How to Back Up and Restore Your Windows Desktop Icon Layout

Back Up Your Windows Desktop Icon Layout Using ReIcon

The next app we will be using to back up our Windows desktop icon layout is called ReIcon (re-icon), and it can be downloaded here. ReIcon also has a portable version if you do not want to install the program itself.

Windows protected your PC warning

When you first run the executable, you may see a popup similar to what is shown below. This is because Windows doesn’t recognize the publisher, but you can simply click on More info and then click the Run anyway button to get past it. Then it will not appear again after that.

Once you run the program, all you need to do is click on the save icon that looks like a floppy disk, and it will save your current desktop icon layout with the date and time as well as the number of icons on your desktop. You can then save additional layouts as needed. The button at the left of the toolbar is used to restore the layout that you have selected from the main window. You can also delete the layout by selecting it and clicking on the trash can icon.

How to Back Up and Restore Your Windows Desktop Icon Layout

When you right click on a saved icon layout, you can do things such as update it with the current icon layout you have on your desktop as well as rename it, so it makes a little more sense when you have multiple saved layouts.

How to Back Up and Restore Your Windows Desktop Icon Layout

The Create Shortcut option comes in handy because you can then have the app make a shortcut that you can put on your desktop or taskbar etc. and when you double click it, your desktop icon layout will be restored to that particular backup.

For additional training resources, check out our online IT training courses.

Related Posts

© 2025 Online Computer Tips
Website by Anvil Zephyr