Black Windows XP Theme

June 20, 2007 at 15:48 · Tags: Design, Microsoft, themes, Usability, user experience, Vista, wallpapers, Windows, xp

Windows XP Theme - Royale Noir Microsoft has released an aesthetic black skin named Royale Noir. The skin is refreshingly different to the traditional Windows XP theme named Luna.

Download the Royale Noir Windows XP theme.

Install instructions
Extract files to "C:\Windows\Resources\Themes\royale noir" and double click on "luna.msstyles". Select "Noir" or "Black Noir" from color scheme.

Updated: Simplify the install by using this package, which also includes the most popular mac-like desktop wallpapers and backgrounds.

More on the Royale Noir and a Microsoft Zune related theme here (danish) and here.

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64 Comments »

Miguel Garcia said,

June 22, 2007 @ 6:19

beautiful theme :]
Wizz said,

June 23, 2007 @ 13:52

Hi

The Black Noir theme is the coolest theme i have seen so far for Windows XP.

But I have a question. Is it possible to get a Windows Vista looking theme for Windows XP?
Claus said,

June 24, 2007 @ 9:58

Hello Wizz,

Have a look on this site: http://www.tech-recipes.com/rx/1089/make_xp_look_like_vista_longhorn_free

The page outlines a guide on how to change the old Windows XP theme to look like Vista using MSStyles.

Further if you want the Windows XP explorer to look like the Windows Vista counterpart have a look at this page:
http://www.funwithvista.com/downloads.htm
cyclobs said,

June 26, 2007 @ 11:40

wizz.

i’v heard that if u go to http://www.windowsvista.com you can download the themes and such from there
.bootstrap » Windows XP Themes said,

July 1, 2007 @ 15:16

[...] Download the Royale theme here and the Royale Noir theme here or here (1). [...]
Mikkel said,

July 3, 2007 @ 16:36

Great theme and very nice black colors

I saw your other post of free downloadable themes for Windows XP.

http://mediakey.dk/~cc/windows-xp-themes/
ioga said,

July 5, 2007 @ 15:25

Cool, and I’m using it…
Nightmarebabe said,

July 6, 2007 @ 9:49

cool theme i love it,ok i setup the theme already am using it right now,but whenever i switch my laptop on the whole black theme is gone it changes to the classic theme,and i again change it to the black theme,its really annoying that i cant keep it that way.

can anyone tell me why?,and how to keep it the way it is????
Mr. Open Source said,

July 13, 2007 @ 13:00

It seems that someone found a matching clean and black Firefox theme:

http://magicstar.lifelogger.com/466399
Theme boy said,

July 13, 2007 @ 13:03

Hello Nightmarebabe,

Perhaps you should create some screenshots of your windows desktop properties. Then it would be easier to determine where the fail is.
Some Imperfections said,

July 16, 2007 @ 0:54

The theme is nearly perfect, if you don’t see that the “Start” button is finished totally. I think someone who knows how to skin xp should finish this theme off by correct the errors. Overall i like the original Royal theme better.
Sad said,

July 17, 2007 @ 8:28

I can’t use it =(
never satisfied said,

July 17, 2007 @ 14:36

hello,
may some one tell me, what program to use to extract the .7Z file?
Thanks.
Claus said,

July 20, 2007 @ 11:44

7z files can be extracted using the 7-Zip file archiver:

It can be downloaded here:
http://www.7-zip.org/
Mortal Kombat said,

July 21, 2007 @ 7:42

yo, man this is a cool theme,
i’m on it now
thanks!
X11 said,

July 23, 2007 @ 7:06

Damn. This theme is the coolest theme for windows xp I have ever seen.
G30 said,

July 24, 2007 @ 3:47

This theme for XP is sick (being sarcastic). I love it. Thank you very much.
Cool Windows Theme said,

July 25, 2007 @ 8:09

This black windows theme is the coolest
Hruks said,

August 9, 2007 @ 3:11

Very cool theme. Thank you very much!
Dr3z74 said,

August 14, 2007 @ 17:47

now all i need is a good wallpaper to match the kick-ass theme
Claus said,

August 15, 2007 @ 17:08

Hello Dr3z74

I found some great mac-like wallpapers on http://art.gnome.org/
.bootstrap » Free XP Themes said,

August 18, 2007 @ 12:04

[...] Download the Royale theme here and the Royale Noir theme here or here (1). [...]
WinVista said,

August 19, 2007 @ 0:40

This theme is the best i’ve yet to come across and is actually a part of Winsows, and dos not require a download or some software.

Thank you very much for sharing this file, I love the black one because it’s so mysterious and dark.

Would you perhaps mind sharing where I may find some log on screens?
(The screen where you select your user, A.K.A welcome screen.)

~ Thanks.

WinVista co. â„¢
tanel said,

September 2, 2007 @ 23:39

tnx man its realy cool, eaven my girfriend like it very well , ty man…
Tim said,

September 7, 2007 @ 12:32

Hey this is an awesome theme pretty sick
Any 1 have a mac/xp theme that i could download
It would be greatly appreciated
black said,

September 8, 2007 @ 15:05

yo dudes it comes with winxp pro, but its still an AWESOME theme. But if you dont have it, and you can’t install it, you might need a cracked copy of uxtheme.dll. Just search on google.com “.msstyles” and one of the links on the first page should be the instructions link.

Here is the link anyway: http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=339820

And if this link doesn’t work, here are some instructions:

ONLY USE FOR WINDOWS XP!

If you like what I told you, please be kind enough to donate to my Paypal account.

ONLY APPLIES IF YOU CANNOT CHANGE TO YOUR .MSSTYLES!

Download the unlocked uxtheme.dll here:
http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?act=Attach&type=post&id=122794

or here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?bg59p9dz4ip

Then, download a file called Replacer, which replaces the original uxtheme.dll file with the unlocked one.
Download here: http://www3.telus.net/_/replacer/Replacer.zip

or here: http://www.mediafire.com/?ct2wjajmwi1

After that, extract replacer and uxtheme.dll. Open replacer.

Then open this folder: C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\ (C is usually the hard drive that you have windows installed on). Find the file uxtheme.dll, and drag it onto the Replacer command prompt. Press enter.

Then go to the folder where you extracted the UNLOCKED version of uxtheme.dll. Drag it into the replacer command prompt, and press enter. Press Y, then enter again.

You will be asked to restart windows xp. Do so.

Next time when you open a good .msstyles file, it should show up in the appearance section of Display Properties.

ENJOY!
black said,

September 8, 2007 @ 15:07

If you guys like what I told you, please be kind enought to donate ANY amount to my paypal account.

Thanks!
black said,

September 8, 2007 @ 15:08

oops. never mind. Donate button doesn’t work here.
ISHBEGOGEM said,

October 10, 2007 @ 22:39

I dont know how to install this. how do u open with a 7Z file…. i dont have a .msstyles file i have a Shellstyle.dll. plus i can extract the royale noir file cause i dont have one…….everything else works the cursor, wallpaper, and icons, EXCEPT the theme bars. its sucks…… i need help if anyone has good instructions or help or a site that provides that help please email me…
T said,

October 31, 2007 @ 6:18

WOW what I have been waiting for….
Philip S. said,

December 26, 2007 @ 19:47

This theme is perfect, It is very cool !!!

Thank you,
Microsoft
INGY said,

December 31, 2007 @ 4:47

Very nice theme just put it on one of my server running windows server 2003 standard edition works gr8 i know i shunt have themes on a server but i h8 workin on them with that crap 1 lol
AV said,

January 10, 2008 @ 5:13

this theme pack is awesome! i love it1
ohad said,

February 29, 2008 @ 11:51

tnx !
very nice !
Bob said,

May 11, 2008 @ 22:31

I’ve made it to C:\Windows\Resources\Themes\, but I can’t find royal noir. What am I doing wrong?
eragafs said,

June 16, 2008 @ 22:04

could you add the vista taskbar to it? if you did that it would be the greates theme
Esmerelda said,

June 17, 2008 @ 5:56

how the fizz do you “extract” the files? i can’t figure out how to download it!
kunal said,

August 23, 2008 @ 14:33

it is ver great theme
kunal said,

August 23, 2008 @ 14:34

it is very great theme
green said,

August 28, 2008 @ 7:41

hi! cool!!!! this is amazing!! ive been looking for a black colored theme since jurassic age!=) i even tried black vista style theme but it didnt work it just crashed my system.and this one ran smoothly and perfectly!!! highly recommended! looks elegant! =) thanks a lot!!!
waqas said,

September 14, 2008 @ 4:17

was awesome and is really gorgeous
Flip said,

September 18, 2008 @ 16:28

It looks great… but how do i stop it from turning to classic mode after restart or shut down?
Jason said,

October 27, 2008 @ 18:51

How to keep your new theme after reboot:
1. Patch the uxtheme.dll file using the downloadable utility and reboot
2. Download the Vista-lookalike .MSstyles theme of your choice
3. Unzip or unrar the theme
4. Doubt-click on the .MSstyles file to enable it
5. Once enabled, right click on desktop and go to themes
6. The new theme will not show in the list
7. Click on “Save as” and give your new enabled theme a name of your choice, eg. “Vista look”
8. When asked where to save the file (which will be a .theme file), save it in C:\WINDOWS\RESOURCES\THEMES
9. The newly named theme is now added to your list of themes on display properties and can be selected like any other
10. On reboot it will not revert back to XP Classis

Hope this helps.
Windows XP themes on Wine said,

November 22, 2008 @ 18:56

[...] traditional Windows XP themes to Wine, like for instance the The Luna Theme, The Energy Blue Theme, The Royale Themes and The Zune [...]
lorni said,

December 17, 2008 @ 17:58

hell yeah!! freakin awesome.. you guys are geniuses.. my hats off to you all..
Jeff said,

December 20, 2008 @ 20:17

Wow thanks for this it looks awsome with my opera theme haha =)
Jeff said,

December 20, 2008 @ 20:18

Wow thanks for the theme it looks really good with my opera theme too
AleX! said,

February 14, 2009 @ 9:57

HI, It is lovely theme dear…… Thanxxxxx
NSIS Bilgi ve ?leti?im Teknolojileri » Blog Archive » Windows XP themes on Wine said,

April 23, 2009 @ 10:38

[...] Windows XP themes to Wine, like for instance the The Luna Theme,The Energy Blue Theme, The Royale Themes and The Zune [...]
nyeinnchannaung said,

April 26, 2009 @ 10:57

this theme is good fro windows xp
Art said,

May 27, 2009 @ 5:15

Wow thanks for the theme, it looks so nice!!! How about the the windows vista side bar, is it possible to apply on XP? Appreciate your response.

Please email me at atocruz@yahoo.com
riko said,

June 17, 2009 @ 20:26

bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb
Kobo said,

July 16, 2009 @ 22:56

Thank you.
It looks great, exactly what I was looking for.
mayur said,

August 13, 2009 @ 8:12

thats gtrey
Noone said,

October 20, 2009 @ 15:33

Hi,

This is awesome, I love it!!!
dj guddu said,

October 31, 2009 @ 17:05

this theme is rocking
hans said,

January 28, 2010 @ 13:50

thanks!
great lookin theme
alek said,

February 7, 2010 @ 2:22

how to download
Langley said,

February 21, 2010 @ 11:11

you are so helpful, thanks!
Free Themes For Windows XP | X2Q said,

April 5, 2010 @ 19:10

[...] the Royale theme here and the Royale Noir theme here or here [...]
Download Windows XP Themes | X2Q said,

April 9, 2010 @ 22:14

[...] the Royale theme here and the Royale Noir theme here or here [...]
bilal said,

June 14, 2010 @ 12:25

this theme is very good . he is perfect theme fo pc
thanks microsoft
Satish Surywanshi said,

June 28, 2010 @ 6:51

Yes, I like the themes very much.
Browsergames Liste said,

July 7, 2010 @ 22:47

Nice! I love dark themes and even if everybody now develops themes for 7 and vista I am still very comfortable with my xp

Thank you very much.

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