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How to locate local user account image path

ALBERT HILARY 0 Reputation points
2026-04-20T20:37:07.5233333+00:00

I’m working on customizing a Windows credential provider. One of my requirements is to use the account image that Windows itself assigns to users. While I’ve been able to locate the default account image at: C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\User Account Pictures\user.bmp

I’m having trouble finding the path for images set individually by each user. Most sources suggest the location is: %appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\AccountPictures

but that doesn’t seem to be correct.

I appreciate any experiences to be worked

Windows for business | Windows Server | Devices and deployment | Other
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  1. HLBui 6,675 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-04-20T21:43:45.22+00:00

    Hi ALBERT HILARY

    The default image you found in C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\User Account Pictures\user.bmp is indeed the system-wide fallback. But when a user sets their own picture, Windows doesn’t just drop it in %appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\AccountPictures that path is often mentioned, but it’s misleading because it’s not where the OS actually pulls from during logon.

    For local accounts, the custom images are stored under the user profile in: %ProgramData%\Microsoft\User Account Pictures (for defaults) and %SystemDrive%\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\AccountPictures (for per-user images).

    The catch is that the per-user folder doesn’t always exist until the user explicitly sets a picture. Also, the files inside are GUID-named .accountpicture-ms packages, not plain .bmp or .jpg. These are essentially containers that hold multiple resolutions of the same image. If you want to consume them, you’ll need to parse the .accountpicture-ms format or use Windows APIs like IUserAccountPicture to retrieve the image in a usable form.

    So, %appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\AccountPictures is the right place, but don’t expect a simple bitmap you’ll need to handle the .accountpicture-ms format. If you’re building a credential provider, the cleaner way is to call the Windows API rather than hardcoding paths, since that ensures you get the right image regardless of how the user set it.

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  2. AI answer

    2026-04-20T20:37:18.73+00:00

    For per-user account images, Windows stores the tiles under the user’s profile, and Windows 7 and later also cache tiles under each user’s Temp folder.

    From the provided information:

    1. The default image used when no custom picture is set is at: C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\User Account Pictures\user.bmp
    2. For user-specific tiles, Windows 7 and later may place user tiles in each user’s Temp directory. Access to other users’ Temp folders requires elevation because the ACLs only allow SYSTEM, Administrator, and the current user to read them. Also, tiles in another user’s Temp folder are not guaranteed to be current; they are refreshed when that user visits the Manage Accounts subpage.

    So, for a custom credential provider that wants to use the same tiles Windows uses:

    • Use the default image from C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\User Account Pictures\user.bmp when no per-user tile is available.
    • Enumerate and read the tile images from the current user’s profile/Temp-based locations as used by Windows (and elevate if the provider needs to access tiles for other users), understanding that tiles obtained from another user’s Temp folder may be stale until that user opens Manage Accounts.

    The exact Temp-based path is implementation detail, but the key points are:

    • Tiles are stored per user.
    • Access to other users’ tiles requires elevated rights.
    • Tiles in Temp are not guaranteed to be up to date.

    References:

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