How to Add the Aurora Screensaver in Windows 8

How to Add the Aurora Screensaver in Windows 8

Saying goodbye to the familiar Windows Start Menu was hard enough for Windows 8 users. However, those upgrading to Windows 8 also had to say goodbye to the popular Aurora screensaver that had been a staple of the Windows operating system since the beginning. While it’s not included in the latest Windows operating system, you can download, install and tweak the Aurora screensaver in Windows 8 with these steps.

How to restore the Aurora screen saver in Windows 8

The first step to adding the Aurora screensaver in Windows 8 is to install it o n your computer.

1. Download and unzip the Aurora screensaver.

2. Right-click the “Aurora.scr” file and select “Properties”.

3. Click “Unblock” to allow Windows to utilize the file. By unblocking the screensaver file this way, you will not have to worry about having security permissions to move it into the proper area of the Windows system folders to install it. You must be logged into the Administrator account to unblock the file this way.

4. Navigate to “C:\Windows\System32?. Drag and drop the “Aurora.scr” into the folder. Once copied into the right area of your computer, you will be able to start using the Aurora screensaver in Windows 8.

5. Back to the desktop, right click the mouse and select “Personalize”. Go to the Screensaver section.

6. You can now select the Aurora screensaver from the dropdown menu.

The only settings you can change at the moment will be the generic ones. This includes choosing how long until the screensaver turns on when you are idle and whether or not to display the logon screen when you come back to your computer.

How to change the Aurora screen saver settings

These steps will allow you to change the Aurora screen saver settings in Windows 8.

1. Head back to the files you uncompressed when you downloaded the Aurora screen saver to restore it in Windows 8. Click the “Restore_Default_Aurora registry file.”

Before the file inserts itself into your registry, you may be prompted to give it permission to do so. This is to prevent malicious registry files and edits from being integrated into y our registry and causing trouble on your operating system.

2. Then, Windows will warn you about the registry insertion. Click “Yes” to add the file.

3. Click “OK” to confirm the file has been added into your registry.

The following steps will allow you to change the settings of the Aurora screensaver to your liking.

4. Open the Registry Editor by searching for “regedit” on the Start Screen.

5. Navigate to

C:\Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Screensavers\Aurora

6. Right-click in the right pane window of the Aurora registry section and click “New.”

7. Click “DWORD (32-bit) Value.”

8. Name the new DWORD value “Amplitude.”

9. Right-click on the “Amplitude” value and click “Modify….”

Based on the chart below, you will change the settings for the Amplitude in the Aurora screensaver.

10. Repeat steps 8 through 11 to create DWORD value entries for Brightness, NumLayers and Speed.

You can modify each entry, test out the Aurora screensaver and see how it looks before tinkering with the settings again. While this may seem a bit tedious to get the right look for the screensaver, the beauty of it makes up for the tedium when you can add it to your Windows 8 experience.

Conclusion

Windows 8 changed the way users interact with the operating system they had come to love. With so many changes to the Windows that people knew, it is no wonder users want to bring back some of the old things they cherished. By bringing back the Aurora screensaver in Windows 8, users can find a little bit of home they lost in the upgrade to the new version of their preferred operating system.