This utility returns the full glass effect to the window frame like glass8, but with deeper control over blur, reflections, and theme integration.
- Windows 10 1809-22H2
- Windows 11 21H2-26H2
Important
OpenGlass is not supported on Windows 11 26H1 or any versions with build 28000 and above. Microsoft has removed the legacy MIL infrastructure in these builds, which makes it impossible for OpenGlass to continue supporting them. See #260 for details.
Note
OpenGlass only supports Windows builds from the General Availability channel. Builds from other channels (such as Cannary, Dev, Release Preview and Beta) and Windows Server are NOT supported. Running on unsupported builds can crash DWM.
OpenGlass is for advanced users who are comfortable editing the Windows registry and troubleshooting DWM. If you want a simpler option, try DWMBlurGlass.
- Installation: Download the latest Inno Setup package from Releases and follow the installer.
- Configuration: Use the OpenGlass GUI or edit the registry directly (manual registry edits require restarting OpenGlass or changing system color settings to apply).
- Reference: Review the release notes and source code to stay informed about behavior changes and technical updates.
Tip
Emergency Exit: Long press Ctrl+Win+Shift+Q to immediately terminate DWM if the system becomes unresponsive.
If you encounter crashes or technical bugs:
- Collect Dumps: Follow the WER guidelines to enable user-mode crash dumps if DWM fails.
- Submit a Report: Open a GitHub issue with your Windows build, registry settings, steps to reproduce, and visual evidence (screenshots/recordings) if necessary.
Methods: Use the OpenGlass GUI for convenience, or edit the registry directly for advanced control.
Registry locations:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\DWM(per-user, checked first)HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\DWM(system-wide fallback)
Key inheritance: Missing keys use predefined defaults. Variants (e.g., XXXInactive, XXXMaximized) inherit from their base key if not explicitly set. Keys with the Override suffix take precedence and resist resets by uxtheme.dll on Windows 10+.
| Key Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ColorizationColor(Override) ColorizationColorInactive ColorizationAfterglow(Override) |
DWORD | ARGB color used for the glass effect, alpha channel is ignored. ℹ️ ColorizationColorInactive is only used when GlassType = 0x0ℹ️ ColorizationAfterglow(Override) is only used when GlassType = 0x1 |
| ColorizationColorBalance(Override) ColorizationAfterglowBalance(Override) ColorizationBlurBalance(Override) |
DWORD | Composition parameters for Windows 7 Aero effect shader. ℹ️ Only used when GlassType = 0x1 |
| GlassOpacity GlassOpacityInactive |
DWORD | The intensity of the color (0-100%). Default value is 63%. ℹ️ Only used when GlassType = 0x0 |
| ColorizationColorCaption ColorizationColorCaptionInactive ColorizationColorCaptionMaximized ColorizationColorCaptionInactiveMaximized |
DWORD | Color used for drawing window titles. Format is 0xBBGGRR.
|
| ColorizationOpaqueBlend | DWORD | Controls the transparency of glass effect (default = 0). |
| ColorizationBaseTransparent ColorizationBaseMaximized ColorizationBaseOpaque |
DWORD | ARGB base color used for color blending.
|
| ColorizationOpaqueBlendPriority | DWORD | Behavior of choosing opaque blend base color.
ColorizationBaseMaximized is preferred, whereas for Windows 7 it is ColorizationBaseOpaque. |
| ColorizationOpacity ColorizationOpacityInactive ColorizationOpacityMaximized ColorizationOpacityInactiveMaximized |
DWORD | (Additional) factors applied to glass color blending. (0%-100%).
|
| Key Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| GlassType | DWORD | The type of glass effect.
|
| GlassOverrideAccent | DWORD | Overrides accent blur surfaces with OpenGlass glass effects (e.g. the win10 taskbar). Default is 0. |
| CustomThemeReflection | String | Path to file with texture that is stretched over whole desktop and rendered above glass regions (default is Aero Glass Win7 reflection texture) |
| ColorizationGlassReflectionIntensity | DWORD | The overall multiplier applied to the intensity of reflection effect (0-100%). Default value is 0%. opacity = base_opacity * intensity * 2 |
| ColorizationGlassReflectionOpacity ColorizationGlassReflectionOpacityInactive ColorizationGlassReflectionOpacityMaximized ColorizationGlassReflectionOpacityInactiveMaximized |
DWORD | The base opacity of reflection effect (0-100%).
|
| ColorizationGlassReflectionParallaxIntensity | DWORD | The parallax intensity of the reflection effect (e.g. when moving the windows side to side). Default value is 13%. |
| ColorizationGlassReflectionPolicy | DWORD | Controls where reflections should be rendered (default = 0xFFFFFFFF).
|
| BlurDeviation | DWORD | Standard deviation for gaussian blur, default = 30 (which means σ = 3.0) Value 0 results in non-blurred transparency. ℹ️ Only effective when UseDirect3DRendering = 0x0 |
| BlurOptimization | DWORD | Quality of gaussian blur
|
| RoundRectRadius | DWORD | The radius of glass geometry (default = 0), Win8=0, Win7=6 |
| CustomThemeMaterial | String | Path to file with texture that is rendered (tiled) above glass regions (default is Acrylic noise texture) |
| MaterialOpacity | DWORD | opacity of material texture (default = 0) |
| UseDirect3DRendering | DWORD | Set 1 to use d3d11 as glass renderer backend, and the blur radius is hardcoded to 3. (default = 0) |
| Key Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| CaptionButtons | DWORD | Changes caption buttons sizes, icon left margin and the opacity of the button glyphs.
|
| CenterCaption | DWORD | Controls how title bar text is aligned.
|
| TextGlowMode | DWORD | Specifies how window caption glow effect will be rendered
|
| CustomThemeAtlas | String | Path to PNG file with theme resource (bitmap must have exactly the same layout as msstyle theme you are using!). 💡 OpenGlass also looks for a .layout file with the same name (e.g., theme.png.layout) to determine the layout of the atlas. |
| DisableModernBorders | DWORD | Disable modern rounded window borders.
ℹ️ Only effective in Win11 |
These settings are intended for HKLM and should only be modified if necessary.
Caution
Do not modify this section unless you fully understand the impact.
| Key Name | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| DisableGlassOnBattery | DWORD |
|
| DisabledHooks | DWORD | Controls which module's hooks are disabled, which will also control the availability of features.
|
| GlassSafetyZoneMode | DWORD | Set 0 to disable glass safety zone. (default = 1) |
Provided by @aubymori. Wallpaper: metalheart jawn #2 by @kfh83.
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OpenGlass is developed in my free time and distributed under the GPLv3 license.
As DWM does not officially support extensibility, OpenGlass relies on undocumented techniques. While designed for stability and performance, future Windows updates may cause breakage. Efforts will be made to maintain functionality, but continuous support cannot be guaranteed.
If you find OpenGlass valuable, please consider supporting the project via Ko-fi. By donating, you agree that:
- Your donation is voluntary without expectation of consideration.
- You donate as a natural person.
