| Windows DreamScene | |
|---|---|
 | |
.gif) Windows DreamScene running inWindows VistaUltimate | |
| Developer | Microsoft |
| Initial release | February 13, 2007 |
| Operating system | Windows VistaUltimate |
| Type | Animateddesktop wallpaper |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | Windows Dreamscene at theWayback Machine (archived 10/18/2009) |
Windows DreamScene is a utility that allowsvideos of the.wmv and.mpg format and other optimizedanimations to be used asdesktop wallpapers. It is one of the manyWindows Ultimate Extras offered forUltimate editions ofWindows Vista.[1] Prior to its official announcement, DreamScene was rumored to be in creation under the namesMotion Desktop andBorealis.[1][2] After several months of testing, the final version wasreleased on September 25, 2007.[3]
Rendered content included with DreamScene (such as an animated realization of the Windows Aurora background) was produced byStardock,[3] while photographic content was provided by theDiscovery Channel.[4][5] Third-party video content inMPEG orWMV format may also be used.[6] In addition, AVI files can be played by altering the file extension.[7] Additionally, in partnership withDell, Microsoft released a separate DreamScene alongside itsProduct Red version of theUltimate edition of Windows Vista.[8]
One of the purported advantages of DreamScene over previous methods of desktop animation is that it makes use of theGPU for display instead of theCPU, leaving the latter free to perform user tasks.[4] To what extent this is achieved is not specified. When a full-screen program is run, such as a game or any window that is maximized, the video will automatically stop since the video will not be seen; this means it uses less GPU and CPU. The video can also be stopped manually. Content encoders need to strive for a balance betweencompression and file size; decompression requires the CPU, but larger files take up morememory and may cause the disk to be accessed more frequently.
Running a video in the background would have a significant impact on thebattery life ofmobile computers, whether or not it were rendered by the GPU, so DreamScene may display a static background when a computer is running on batteries.[6] The software relies heavily on theDesktop Window Manager (or DWM, part ofWindows Aero), and will not function without it.
InWindows 7, DreamScene was replaced by a "Desktop Slideshow" feature, which produces slideshow background wallpapers. It does not support animated backgrounds or videos; however, it can still be enabled via third-party tools. InWindows 8, DreamScene was removed entirely, and has not returned on later releases of Windows. In 2025, Sergey Kisselev, a former motion designer and 3D artist at Microsoft, unveiled plans to revive the Dreamscene feature in the22H2 and23H2 updates ofWindows 11, but this feature is only available on Education edition. However, this feature was scrapped and removed in the24H2 update. The dynamic wallpaper was only applied to thelock screen, rather than the desktop.[9]
Stardock, who provided several animated backgrounds for Windows DreamScene, offers a chargeable add-on for Windows DreamScene calledDeskScapes. This software allows the implementation of dynamic wallpapers (".dream" files).[10] A newer version of DeskScapes (3.5) has since been released, which makes the program compatible with non-Ultimate editions of Vista as well as newer versions of Windows (7, 8, 10, 11).
Wallpaper Engine is a chargeable software that replaces the desktop background with a wide selection of default and user made animated backgrounds. while also providing a complete tool set for user generated wallpapers. The software features its own Rendering engine which enables 2D video, 3D models, and even Interactive elements that respond to mouse cursor movement or keystrokes. It is available for all versions of Windows from 7 to 11.[11]
