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I followed the instructions on question 41846 (How to show window contents while dragging in Windows Server 2008 R2?), that is:

  • Open the System Properties dialog (I have to enter the Administrator's password for that).
  • In the Performance fieldset, click the Settings button to open the Performance Options dialog.
  • On the Visual Effects tab, press the Adjust for best appearance radio button.

I've done this once for the Administrator and the settings are remembered after a reboot. For other users, I have to do it after every reboot. However, the checkboxes in the list are all checked.

How can I make Windows Server 2008 R2 remember and use the Visual Effects settings for non-admin users?

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2 Answers 2

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Try giving the users temporary admin rights, change the settings as per How to show window contents while dragging in Windows Server 2008 R2? article, restart the computer and remove the admin rights.

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  • This is not the solution that I hoped for (that's why I didn't even think about it). It's quite a hassle to do this for each new user. But it works.
    – Oswald
    Jun 22, 2011 at 13:32
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Unfortunately, visual effect tab is placed inside advanced system settings dialog only admin users are allowed to invoke.

As you might have noticed yourself, the visual effect settings are user, not machine related.

By doing a registry comparison of HKEY_CURRENT_USER registry hive of administrator user on Windows Server 2016 changing visual effects from Best Performance to Best Appearance, the following values get changed:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]
"DragFullWindows"="1"
"FontSmoothing"="2"
"UserPreferencesMask"=hex:be,3e,07,80,12,00,00,00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\WindowMetrics]
"MinAnimate"="1"

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced]
"IconsOnly"=dword:00000000
"ListviewAlphaSelect"=dword:00000001
"ListviewShadow"=dword:00000001
"TaskbarAnimations"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\VisualEffects]
"VisualFXSetting"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\DWM]
"EnableAeroPeek"=dword:00000001
"AlwaysHibernateThumbnails"=dword:00000001

(Some differences were omitted, judging they are not related to visual effects.)

  1. Sign-in as the non-admin user.
  2. Import registry settings above.[1][2][3]
  3. Sign-out and sign-in again for settings to take effect.

[1] Usual Modify your registry at your own risk; author of this post takes no liability applies.

[2] The REG file configures current user visual effects to Best Appearance. You can apply individual registry values separately if full Best Appearance experience is not desired.

[3] Please note, that regedit.exe will still invoke UAC prompt. However, for importing REG files containing only HKEY_CURRENT_USER entries, regedit.exe is sufficient to receive current non-admin user credentials.

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