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Back in the day, when Windows XP was brand new and shiny, one of the New Features was the Desktop Cleanup Wizard. The idea was to help you keep your desktop tidy and un-cluttered.

Personally I never used it. I pride myself in maintaining a strict Desktop Clutter Policy and rarely allow any programs I install to take occupation on my desktop. Therefore I never needed the DCW, and could remove that annoying popup reminder all together.

Here’s how you do it

  • Right click an empty area on the desktop.
  • Click Properties and select Properties.
  • Click the Desktop tab.
  • Click Customize Desktop.
  • In the Desktop Items dialog box, clear the checkbox labeled “Run Desktop Wizard every 60 days.”
  • Click OK to close the dialog boxes.

You can still run the wizard manually should you want to, by clicking “Clean Desktop Now” in the Desktop Items dialog box.



About Thomas

Computer geek from the age of 7, which amounts to 30 years of computer experience. From the early days (when every computer company had their own OS) of DOS, Windows 1.0 through Seven...

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Comments

7 thoughts on “XP: Disable the automatic desktop cleanup wizard [How To]”

  1. Idd00jea says:

    Using WXP Pro: I can’t follow instructions after second step.

    1. Thomas says:

      having problems ?
      Please be a little more specific.

      1. Idd00jea says:

        I can’t find the checkbox labeled “Run Desktop Wizard every 60 days” when pressed “Customize Desktop” button.

      2. Thomas says:

        Take a look at the image I added, it shows you the window you should see when following the instructions.

      3. Idd00jea says:

        That new image you added is what I never find when following your first steps of instructions, so I suppose these instructions ARE NOT for Windows XP Pro operating system.
        Isn’t it the reason ?. Just try using Windows XP and you will see the difference.

    2. ABC123 says:

      +1 Also cannot see that option on a clean install of XP.

  2. Idd00jea says:

    Sorry, … I have just found the frame for “Desktop Items” and unselected the “Run Desktop Wizard every 60 days.” checkbox.

    Sorry again.

Comments are closed.


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