How to Show Your Windows 10 & 11 Version and Build Number on the Desktop

By Timothy Tibbetts

on 06/15/2023

There are many ways to find your Windows 10 & 11 version and build number, but if you find yourself looking this information up frequently, you can display the version and build number directly on your Desktop.

While a simple registry edit, you should always back up your registry.

You can also download batch files if you'd instead not edit the registry.

How to Show Your Windows 10 & 11 Version and Build Number on the Desktop - Current User

Open regedit and type Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop in the address bar.

Double-click on PaintDesktopVersion and change the Value data to 1.

Click on your Desktop and press the F5 key:

To remove the version and build, follow the steps above and change the Value Data back to 0.

How to Show Your Windows 10 & 11 Version and Build Number on the Desktop - All Users

Follow the same steps as above except find DisplayVersion located at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows

How to Show Your Windows 10 Version and Build Number on the Desktop - Command Prompt

Open PowerShell or the Command Prompt.

Current user:
Add - REG ADD "HKCU\Control Panel\Desktop" /V PaintDesktopVersion /T REG_DWORD /D 1 /F
Remove - REG DELETE "HKCU\Control Panel\Desktop" /V PaintDesktopVersion /F

All users:
Add - REG ADD "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows" /V DisplayVersion /T REG_DWORD /D 1 /F
Remove - REG DELETE "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows" /V DisplayVersion /F

You can also download batch files if you'd instead not edit the registry or use the Command Prompt.

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How to Find Your Current Version and Build of Windows 10

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