Make Windows 11 look like Vista with Aero Glass UI

In this post, we will show you how to make Windows 11 look like Vista with Aero Glass UI. In the history of Microsoft Windows, Windows Vista was a successor to Windows XP, introduced in 2007. While the OS was criticized for performance related issues, compatibility issues, etc., it does bring some exciting features including visually appealing interface, aero glass design or glass effects of Windows Aero, smooth animations, security features like BitLocker and UAC (User Account Control), Windows Sidebar (or Windows Desktop Gadgets), enhanced File Explorer, and more. For those who want to relive the experience and like to transform their Windows 11 PC to Windows Vista, this post is handy.

From the desktop, Start menu, taskbar, Desktop Gadgets, etc., you will be able to enjoy Windows Vista features on Windows 11 with an easy process. However, it is advisable to create a system restore point before making any changes, or try it on a virtual machine first (in case of doubt).

Can you make Windows 11 look like Windows Vista?

Yes, you can make Windows 11 look like Windows Vista. While you can’t do it natively, there are some third-party tools like GadgetPack, RetroPack, Open-Shell, etc., to make it happen. You will be able to add Windows Vista taskbar, Start menu, use Vista cursors and pointers, Aero Glass effects, add Desktop Gadgets, and more on a Windows 11 PC.

Make Windows 11 look like Vista with Aero Glass UI

Here is a list of actions to perform to make Windows 11 look like Vista with Aero Glass UI:

1. Change Windows 11 Taskbar to look like Windows Vista Taskbar
2. Replace Windows 11 Start menu with Windows Vista Start menu
3. Add Windows Vista’s Aero Glass effects
4. Add Windows Vista Sidebar and Desktop Gadgets to Windows 11
5. Change Windows 11 desktop background to Windows Vista picture background
6. Add Windows Vista cursors, sounds, and icons to Windows 11.

NOTE: Before you begin, create a System Restore Point first, as you will be replacing system files.

1] Change Windows 11 Taskbar to look like Windows Vista Taskbar

To make Windows 11’s taskbar look like Windows Vista, you can use this open-source tool called RetroBar. It is available in portable and installer versions and lets you change the taskbar appearance to Windows Vista Basic, Windows Vista Classic, Windows XP Classic, Windows XP Blue, Windows 95-98, etc.

Apart from that, RetroBar tool has other interesting features like increase taskbar to 2 or more rows, change the location of taskbar (Left, Bottom, etc.), Show/hide Quick Launch, show thumbnail preview, add the Show Desktop button to taskbar, show or display seconds in taskbar clock, set the taskbar scale (between 100%-200%), and more. Now let’s check the steps to change Windows 11 taskbar to look like Windows Vista taskbar using this tool:

1. Download the installer file or portable file of this software
2. Launch the tool, and it will change your Windows 11 taskbar to the default theme
3. Right-click on the taskbar
4. Select Properties. This will open the Properties window of RetroBar with a Taskbar tab
5. In that tab, select the Windows Vista Basic or Windows Vista Aero theme in the Taskbar appearance section. Now you will see that the Windows 11 taskbar is replaced with the taskbar of Windows Vista. The change is also applied to the Start button and system tray icons
6. Select the Allow font smoothing for a better experience
7. Switch to the Advanced tab
8. Select the Automatically start at logon option so that you don’t have to start things from scratch each time Windows starts
9. Use other available options as per your needs
10. Select the OK button.

To undo the changes, right-click on the taskbar and select the Exit RetroBar option.

Read: How to Customize Windows 11 Taskbar

2] Replace Windows 11 Start menu with Windows Vista Start menu

After we have changed the Windows 11 taskbar to Vista, let’s replace the Windows 11 Start menu with the Windows Vista Start menu. For this, we will use an open-source tool called Open-Shell. It’s a collection of utilities to bring back classic features. We will also need a Vistalike Start menu theme file. The steps to add the Windows Vista Start menu in Windows 11 are as follows:

1. Grab the ZIP file of the Vistalike skin file (*.skin7) from classicshell.net and extract it in a folder
2. Now, download the Open-Shell tool from github.com and install it
3. Copy the Vistalike.skin7 file from the extracted folder
4. Access the installation location of the Open-Shell tool
5. Open the Skins folder in that location
6. Paste the Vistalike.skin7 file in the Skins folder
7. Launch the tool to open its settings window. You can also right-click on the Start button and select the Settings option for it
8. In the Settings window, switch to the Start Menu Style tab and select Windows 7 style there
9. Now switch to the Skin tab
10. From the drop-down menu, select the Vistalike skin option. As soon as you select the skin, it is applied instantly, and you can also preview it
11. To make the experience better, you can customize options in the Skin tab like Show user picture in the Start menu, use small icons, large font, enable/disable no transparency, Vista scrollbar, etc.
12. Press the OK button to save the changes.

The output looks almost identical to Windows Vista Start menu (in looks as well as functionality), and it works well to give a close resemblance to Vista. However, you might face issues like delays in search results. Also, the Lock button in the Start menu is not functional; it’s just for looks.

3] Add Windows Vista’s Aero Glass effects

Windows Vista’s Aero Glass feature, which shows glass-like window borders and translucent title bars on windows like Notepad, File Explorer, folders, etc., is one of the interesting features that we miss in Windows 11. Even Apple’s Liquid Glass design introduced in iOS 26 looks similar to the Aero interface of Vista OS, but we don’t have it on Windows 11 as it is not supported. Still, there’s a way to add the Windows Vista Aero Glass effects in Windows 11 using a third-party tool named DWMBlurGlass. Here are the steps:

1. Download this free and open-source tool from github.com
2. Launch the DWMBlurGlass tool and press the Install button available in the General tab
3. Now switch to the Symbol tab
4. Press the Download button to get the Symbol files (if not present). Make sure the status of Symbol files shows as Valid
5. Access the Advanced tab
6. Set the Blur Method to CustomBlur (IComposition)
7. In the Effect Type, select Blur or Aero using the drop-down menu
8. After selecting the Effect Type, you can set options like Blur radius (titlebar only), Blur Balance, Color Balance, etc.
9. Switch to the General tab again and select the Override DWMAPI effect (Windows 11) option
10. Press the Save button
11. Now open a window, say Notepad, Paint, Task Manager, etc., and you will see that the Aero Glass effect is visible
12. You can further make changes to adjust Effect Settings, title bar blend color for inactive and active windows, active text color, inactive text color, blur radius (global), enable/disable crossfade animation effect, etc., and save the changes to check the output.

This tool is pretty awesome, but it doesn’t work on the Start menu and Taskbar. Additionally, apps such as Calculator and those from the Microsoft Store will not follow the applied changes and will continue to display the Mica Effect.

Note: Themes like BetterAeroVistaX with WBA file type are also available to mimic the Windows Vista Aero interface, but you need to install such a theme using WindowsBlinds (a product of Stardock), which is a paid product and offers a free trial for 30 days.

4] Add Windows Vista Sidebar and Desktop Gadgets to Windows 11

To add Windows Vista Sidebar and desktop gadgets to your Windows 11 PC, you can use a free software called GadgetPack (formerly 8GadgetPack). This tool brings 30+ gadgets (including Analog Clock, old Sticky Notes, Calendar, etc.) and a sidebar that emulates the sidebar of Vista. You can also hide the sidebar separately and show only desktop gadgets.

Bonus: You can also use Rainmeter to customize your Windows desktop with widgets and skins.

Also read: Best free Desktop Clock widgets for Windows PC

5] Change Windows 11 desktop background to Windows Vista picture background

The desktop wallpaper is one of the important things to get the feel that you are using Windows Vista. Therefore, you must change your Windows 11 desktop background to Windows Vista. There are many sources to get Vista wallpapers. For example, you can get Vista wallpapers in HD quality (1920*1200) in a single wallpaper pack from deviantart.com. This wallpaper pack doesn’t include the default wallpaper and original wallpapers, but alternate versions of some of them.

The pack includes Starter, Sample Pictures, User Account Pictures, and more. Download the archive file of this wallpaper pack, extract it, and change the desktop background on your Windows 11 PC and use other wallpapers as needed.

To get the Windows Vista default and customized wallpapers in HD quality, you can jump to wallpaperaccess.com or use other trusted sources.

6] Add Windows Vista cursors, sounds, and icons to Windows 11

To make Windows 11 look as well as feel like Windows Vista, the cursors, sounds, and icons play a vital role. You can get all the related cursors, sounds, etc., from this GitHub page. From this page, you can download a pack of wallpapers, cursors, icons, and sounds in a ZIP file for Windows Vista, Windows 7, etc. Extract that file and access the Windows Vista folder, which contains sub-folders for Cursors (*.cur), Sounds (*.wav), Wallpapers, and Icons (*.ico).

Now you can manually change sounds for program events like Windows (Calendar Reminder, Close Program, Default Beep, and more), File Explorer, etc. Similarly, you can change mouse pointers and cursors for Normal Select, Busy, Text, Working In Background, etc., by accessing the Mouse Properties.

In case you want to add all the downloaded cursors, icons, and sounds to the main paths on your Windows PC, here are the locations:

C:\Windows\Cursors

C:\windows\SystemResources\<dll_name>.dll.mun or C:\windows\System32\<dll_name>.dll

C:\Windows\Media.

Though manually changing mouse pointers, icons, etc., is time-consuming, it’s worth trying. Or else, you can download a Sound Scheme, Pointer Scheme, etc., related to Windows Vista, and install them to use on Windows 11.

That’s all. Carefully perform each action, and everything should be fine. Now your Windows 11 should look like Windows Vista.

Hope this helps.

There are other features of Windows Vista, like Windows Explorer, Windows DVD Maker, etc., that aren’t included in this post. Attempts to try to add such features or themes from untrusted sources that include bundleware, malware, etc., or using the discontinued third-party apps from unsafe sites can cause serious harm to the PC.

How do I make Windows 11 look like Windows 7 Aero?

To make Windows 11 look like Windows 7, you can use the Open-Shell program that provides a Windows 7 style Start menu. You also need to change desktop wallpaper and icons, customize Windows 11 File Explorer, and take care of other things. And, to use the Aero effect, you can use a DWMBlurGlass tool. It’s a free tool with Aero and Blur effects for title bars of windows and many other customization options.

Read: How to make Windows 11 look like Windows 10.