How to change your screensaver on a Windows 10 computer to a custom animation or slideshow

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You can customize the screensaver on your Windows 10 computer to make it more personalized.

• You can change your screensaver on a Windows 10 computer through your "Personalize" settings.
• The screensaver is the animation that plays when you leave your computer idle. In Windows 10, you can change it to whatever animation or slideshow you'd like.
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Windows 10 comes preloaded with default screensavers to protect your monitor from degradation. Certain monitors can be damaged by leaving the same image on too long.

The screensaver isn't just a functional tool, though, but a very personalized means of expressing yourself. You can make your screensaver a more personal expression by following these simple steps.

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How to change your screensaver on a Windows 10 computer

1. Either press the Windows logo on your keyboard, or press the icon at the bottom left of your screen and search "screen saver." Click the result that says "Change screen saver."

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The icon should look like this, and open a Windows utility window.

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2. From the utility window that opens, you can pick from a number of preset animations, as well as set the timer for long your computer needs to be idle before the screensaver activates.

3. You can also choose "Photos" to set your screensaver to a slideshow of pictures instead of an animation. You can select the folder and the speed of the slideshow by pressing the "Settings" option.

Ross James/Business Insider

Here I've changed my screensaver to pull from my Pictures folder in order, and to play at a medium pace.

4. If you don't like the default animations available, you can download new screensavers online that use are .scr files. Download the .scr file and place it in the folder: "C:\Windows\System32." The downloaded file should now appear in the dropdown bar.

Ross James/Business Insider

I downloaded and dropped a Matrix screensaver into System32. You'll need to close and re-open the "change screen saver" window if you placed the .scr into the folder while it was open.

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

• How to turn off the touch screen on certain Windows 10 devices, or turn it back on

• How to invert or change the colors on your Windows computer, to make icons and links easier to see

• How to set a default printer in Windows 10 so that it's easier and quicker to print documents

• How to change the font size on a Windows 10 computer, to make it easier to read text displayed on your screen

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