How to Open Paint

Microsoft Paint is the raster graphics editor that ships with every supported version of Windows. For Unturned™ mod developers working with 57 Studios™ assets, Paint is the first program you will reach for when you need to create an inventory icon, a vehicle thumbnail, or a single-pixel correction to an existing texture. Before you can draw anything, you must launch the program. This reference covers six distinct launch methods, when to prefer each one, and how to distinguish Paint from Paint 3D, which is a separate application that ships alongside it on some Windows installations.

The choice of launch method is not cosmetic. Each method corresponds to a different posture: hand on the keyboard, hand on the mouse, hand on a file already on disk. Professional icon authors develop muscle memory for at least two of the six methods because the cost of switching postures mid-session is measured in seconds per launch, and a multi-asset pack involves dozens of launches across a working week. The sections that follow document each method in order from the most universal to the most specialized, and the comparison tables and decision flowcharts later in this reference summarize the tradeoffs at a glance.

Beyond the mechanics of launching, this reference also covers the brief but useful history of Paint, the relationship between Paint and Paint 3D, the executable path and what that path implies for security, and the common situations in which Paint either fails to launch or launches in an unexpected state. The reference ends with an extended frequently-asked-questions section and three appendix sections on related operational concerns.

Prerequisites

• A Windows computer running Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, or Windows 11.
• A working keyboard and mouse.
• An account with permission to launch desktop applications.
• For the command-line methods, comfort with PowerShell or Command Prompt at the level of running a single named executable.
• For the right-click method, an existing PNG or BMP file located somewhere accessible in File Explorer.

What you'll learn

• Six methods for launching Microsoft Paint.
• How to verify which version of Paint is installed.
• The differences between Paint and Paint 3D.
• A brief history of Paint from 1985 to the present.
• How to troubleshoot the most common launch failures.
• How to set Paint as the default editor for PNG files.
• How to pin Paint to the taskbar for one-click access.

Background

Paint was first included with Windows 1.0 in November 1985 under the name Paintbrush, then renamed to Microsoft Paint in Windows 95. It has remained part of the Windows operating system for four decades. The program has been rewritten several times. The version included with Windows 11 is a modern rebuild that supports layers, transparency awareness, and AI-assisted features through Microsoft Copilot, while preserving the core toolbar and workflow that long-time users recognize.

The longevity of Paint is partly a product of restraint. Microsoft has resisted the temptation to overhaul the toolbar into a state that long-time users would not recognize. The Pencil, the Eyedropper, the Fill bucket, and the Eraser have occupied the same approximate region of the toolbar since the late 1990s. For a tool that an Unturned modder may use thousands of times across a multi-year project arc, the predictability of the toolbar is itself a productivity feature. The modern Windows 11 build added layer support and transparent canvas handling without disturbing the muscle memory of users who started on the Windows XP build.

The history table below summarizes the principal versions and the changes that matter for icon work.

A history of Paint

Year	Windows version	Notable change
1985	Windows 1.0	Released as Paintbrush, monochrome only.
1990	Windows 3.0	Color support added.
1995	Windows 95	Renamed to Microsoft Paint.
2001	Windows XP	PNG, JPEG, GIF support added.
2009	Windows 7	Ribbon interface introduced.
2017	Windows 10	Paint 3D released as a separate companion app.
2023	Windows 11	Modern rebuild with layers and transparent canvas.
2024	Windows 11	Generative fill and Cocreator integration.
2025	Windows 11	Layer reordering and per-layer opacity controls.
2026	Windows 11	Background removal and transparency-aware export refined.

Each change in this table corresponds to a feature that an Unturned modder may encounter and may choose to adopt. The 2001 introduction of PNG support was the change that made Paint viable for transparent icon work. The 2023 rebuild was the change that made layered icon authoring practical without leaving the application. The 2024 Cocreator integration is the only change that introduces a feature an icon author may want to deliberately disable: generative fill is contraindicated for pixel art because the generated output is invariably continuous-tone and antialiased, neither of which is desirable in an icon destined for the Unturned inventory grid.

Did you know?

The original 1985 Paintbrush was authored by ZSoft Corporation and licensed to Microsoft. The licensing arrangement explains why early versions of Paintbrush could read and write the PCX file format natively while struggling with bitmap variations from other vendors. The PCX dependency was removed in the Windows 95 rewrite when Microsoft brought the codebase fully in-house.

Method 1: Start menu search

The fastest method for users who have not pinned Paint to the taskbar.

1. Press the Windows key on your keyboard. The Start menu opens.
2. Type the word paint. Search results appear as you type.
3. The top result will read Paint with a small icon depicting a painter's palette. Press Enter or click the result.

Pro tip

Search is case-insensitive. Typing pa is usually enough for Paint to appear as the top result.

The Start menu search method is the universal fallback. It works on every Windows version from Windows 7 onward, requires no prior configuration, and produces the same result regardless of whether Paint is pinned, where the file is located on disk, or which user account is signed in. The cost of the method is the time required to lift the hand from the mouse to the keyboard, type the search term, and confirm the result. For users whose hand is already on the keyboard, the cost is negligible. For users whose hand is on the mouse, the cost is measurable and the Run dialog or the taskbar pin is usually preferable.

The search service that backs the Start menu indexes the Windows Apps registry and the file system, both of which contain entries for Paint by default. Users who have removed Paint via Group Policy or the optional features management interface will find no result for the search term, and the response in that situation is to reinstall Paint from the Microsoft Store rather than to substitute a different search method.

Method 2: Run dialog

The Run dialog launches programs by their executable name. Paint's executable is mspaint.exe, which stands for Microsoft Paint.

1. Press Windows + R on your keyboard. The Run dialog opens in the lower-left corner of the screen.
2. Type mspaint into the text field.
3. Press Enter or click OK.

Why this works

The Windows system folder is included in the system PATH environment variable. Because mspaint.exe lives in C:\Windows\System32\mspaint.exe, you can call it by name from anywhere.

The Run dialog method is the fastest method for keyboard-resident users. The dialog has been part of Windows since the earliest releases, the keyboard shortcut has been Windows + R since the introduction of the Windows key, and the dialog accepts an executable name as a direct invocation. For a user whose hands are already on the keyboard, the entire sequence from Windows + R through to a launched Paint window takes approximately one second.

The Run dialog also accepts arguments after the executable name. To open a specific image file directly in Paint, type mspaint "C:\path\to\image.png" and press Enter. The pattern is useful when a known target file lives at a known path and the alternative would be to launch Paint and then navigate to the file through the File → Open menu. Quoting the path is required only when the path contains spaces; for paths without spaces, the unquoted form works.

Method 3: Start menu Pinned section

If Paint has been pinned to the Start menu, it appears in the Pinned area at the top of the Start panel.

1. Press the Windows key to open the Start menu.
2. Look in the Pinned grid at the top of the menu.
3. Click the Paint tile.

If Paint is not pinned, you can pin it by right-clicking the search result from Method 1 and selecting Pin to Start.

The Pinned section method is best for users who launch Paint daily and prefer a deterministic location for the launch action. Once pinned, the tile remains in the same Start menu position across system restarts and Windows updates. The cost of the method is the single configuration step of pinning the tile in the first place, after which subsequent launches require one mouse click on a known target.

The Pinned section is distinct from the All apps list. The All apps list is the alphabetical inventory of every application installed on the system. Paint appears in the All apps list under the letter P regardless of whether it has been pinned. The Pinned grid is the user-curated subset that appears at the top of the Start menu and is intended for high-frequency applications.

Method 4: Command line

For users comfortable with a terminal, Paint can be launched from PowerShell or Command Prompt.

1. Open PowerShell or Command Prompt. (Press Windows + R, type powershell, press Enter.)
2. Type mspaint and press Enter.

The terminal window returns immediately. Paint opens in a separate window.

Power-user technique

You can open a specific image file by passing it as an argument: mspaint "C:\path\to\image.png". This is faster than launching Paint and using File → Open.

The command line method is the most flexible launch method because it composes with the rest of the shell environment. A user with a PowerShell window already open for unrelated work can launch Paint without leaving the shell, and a user who scripts repetitive workflows can include Paint launches inside a larger automation. The cost of the method is the requirement of a terminal window, which most icon authors do not keep open as a default state.

For PowerShell users in particular, the launch command can be combined with file-system navigation. The pattern cd "C:\Project Folder\SHQ\Claude Projects\57 Studios Wiki\assets"; mspaint icon-rifle.png changes the working directory and launches Paint on a relative path in a single line. The pattern is useful when a session involves repeated edits to a single file at a known location.

Best practice

Save a small PowerShell function in your profile that opens Paint on a frequently-edited asset folder. The function makes the launch a single token at the prompt rather than a path argument. For example: function paint-rifle { mspaint "C:\Project Folder\SHQ\Claude Projects\57 Studios Wiki\assets\rifle.png" }.

Method 5: File Explorer address bar

Type the executable name directly into the File Explorer address bar.

1. Open File Explorer (Windows + E).
2. Click the address bar at the top.
3. Type mspaint and press Enter.

The File Explorer address bar method is a useful intermediate between the Start menu search and the Run dialog. The address bar is always present in any open File Explorer window, and typing an executable name into it has the same effect as typing the same name into the Run dialog. For a user who is already navigating the file system in search of an asset, the address bar is the closest launch surface.

The method is also a useful diagnostic. If typing mspaint into the address bar produces an error stating that Windows cannot find the program, the system PATH does not include the system folder. The PATH misconfiguration is rare on a default Windows installation and usually indicates that an administrative policy has modified the environment.

Method 6: Right-click an existing image

If you have an existing PNG or BMP file, you can open it directly in Paint.

1. Locate the file in File Explorer.
2. Right-click the file.
3. Choose Open with → Paint.

If Paint does not appear in the Open with submenu, choose Choose another app and select Paint from the full list.

The right-click method is the best choice when the workflow begins from a known asset. For an Unturned modder reviewing an existing icon, the asset is already located in File Explorer, and the right-click → Open with sequence places the asset directly into a Paint window in a single mouse gesture. The method removes the File → Open step that the other launch methods require for an existing-file workflow.

The Open with submenu's contents depend on the file type and on the system's recent history. For PNG files on a default Windows 11 installation, Paint typically appears in the top three entries of the submenu. For BMP files, Paint is often the default and appears first. For uncommon raster formats (TIFF, TGA, DDS), Paint may not appear in the submenu and the Choose another app dialog is required.

Pro tip

After choosing Paint via Choose another app, check the Always use this app to open .png files box if you want subsequent double-clicks on PNG files to open in Paint by default. The setting persists until you change it or until a software installer overwrites the file association.

Comparison of launch methods

Method	Speed	Skill level	Best context
Start menu search	Fast	Beginner	Paint not pinned
Run dialog	Very fast	Intermediate	Hands on keyboard
Pinned tile	Fast	Beginner	Paint already pinned
Command line	Very fast	Advanced	Terminal already open
File Explorer address bar	Medium	Intermediate	File Explorer already open
Right-click an image	Medium	Beginner	Opening a specific file

The speed column in this table reflects the documented launch time on a default Windows 11 installation with no background indexing pressure. On a system that is rebuilding the search index, the Start menu search method may take noticeably longer because the search service returns no result until the index repair completes. The pinned tile and Run dialog methods are immune to indexing pressure and remain fast on a system under any workload.

Sequence of a Start menu launch

The sequence diagram above shows the cooperating components inside a Start menu launch. The Windows Shell, the Search Service, and the Paint Process are distinct subsystems that communicate via documented Windows APIs. A failure in any one of the three produces a distinguishable symptom: a Shell failure prevents the Start menu from opening at all, a Search Service failure produces an empty result list, and a Paint Process failure produces a brief flash of the launch animation followed by no visible window.

Sequence of a Run dialog launch

The Run dialog sequence is shorter than the Start menu sequence because the Run dialog skips the indexed search step. The Path Resolver step walks the PATH environment variable from left to right and returns the first entry that contains a matching executable. For a default Windows 11 installation the resolver finds C:\Windows\System32\mspaint.exe within milliseconds and the launch completes immediately afterward.

Paint vs Paint 3D

Windows 10 installations may show two similarly named programs in search results. They are not the same application.

Feature	Paint	Paint 3D
Executable name	mspaint.exe	PaintStudio.View.exe
Released	1985	2017
Pre-installed on Windows 11	Yes	Optional
Transparency on save	Limited (modern builds only)	Yes
Pixel-precision tools	Yes	Limited
3D modeling	No	Yes
Recommended for icon work	Yes	No

Choose the correct application

For Unturned icon work, always launch Paint, not Paint 3D. Paint 3D's interface is optimized for 3D scenes and is not well suited to single-pixel editing.

The distinction between Paint and Paint 3D is the single most common source of confusion for new icon authors. Paint 3D was introduced in 2017 as an explicit successor to Paint that pivoted toward consumer 3D scene composition rather than precision raster editing. The pivot did not displace classic Paint, which Microsoft has continued to ship and continued to develop. The result is that Windows 10 installations frequently have both applications installed, and a search for the term paint returns both results.

The two applications have different toolbars, different mouse behaviors, different file-save dialogs, and different default canvases. A user who launches Paint 3D and tries to follow icon authoring guidance written for Paint will find that the Pencil tool does not place single pixels in the expected way and that the file-save dialog does not offer the same PNG transparency controls. The corrective action is to close Paint 3D and launch Paint instead. The Paint 3D application is not contraindicated for its intended use case (consumer 3D composition), but it is contraindicated for pixel-level icon work.

Did you know?

Microsoft announced that Paint 3D would be removed from new Windows installations in 2024 but reversed the decision in response to user feedback. Both applications continue to ship on current Windows 11 builds, although Paint 3D is increasingly an optional install rather than a pre-installed default.

Decision flowchart

Launch method popularity

The chart below summarizes the launch-method preferences reported by Unturned icon contributors who responded to a 57 Studios questionnaire in early 2026. Percentages are the share of respondents who named the method as their primary launch path.

The dominance of the Start menu search and the taskbar pinned icon reflects the dominance of two postures: keyboard-resident and mouse-resident. The Run dialog method comes in third because the keyboard-resident respondents who prefer the Run dialog form a coherent minority who use it across many applications, not only Paint. The command line and File Explorer address bar methods are distinctly minority preferences and tend to correlate with respondents who already keep a terminal or a File Explorer window open as part of their working state.

Advanced considerations

Some corporate or managed Windows installations have Microsoft Paint removed by IT policy. If you cannot find Paint after trying the methods above, open the Microsoft Store, search for Paint, and reinstall it from there. The Microsoft Store version is identical to the version that ships with Windows.

A pinned shortcut on the taskbar provides the fastest launch path of all. Once Paint is open, right-click its taskbar icon and choose Pin to taskbar. Future launches require a single click.

If your work involves opening dozens of icon files in sequence, consider setting Paint as the default application for the PNG file type. Right-click any PNG, choose Open with → Choose another app, select Paint, and check Always use this app.

Default application for PNG

Setting Paint as the default editor for PNG files is the single largest productivity gain for icon authors who review dozens of files per session. The pattern eliminates the Open with submenu navigation step from every file open and reduces the launch sequence to a double-click. The configuration persists across reboots and across Paint version updates.

To apply the setting:

1. Right-click any PNG file in File Explorer.
2. Choose Open with → Choose another app.
3. In the dialog, select Paint.
4. Check the Always use this app to open .png files checkbox.
5. Click OK.

The setting can be reverted at any time by repeating the same sequence with a different application selected. Some users prefer to leave the default at the Photos application for view-only consumption and switch to Paint only for editing. Either approach is reasonable; the choice depends on the share of PNG interactions that are edits versus views.

Pinning Paint to the taskbar

The taskbar pin is the fastest launch path because it requires neither a keyboard nor a Start menu interaction. The pin is configured once per user account and persists across reboots, application updates, and Windows feature updates.

To pin Paint to the taskbar:

1. Launch Paint using any of the six methods documented above.
2. Right-click the Paint icon in the taskbar while Paint is running.
3. Choose Pin to taskbar.
4. Close Paint. The pinned icon remains in the taskbar.

Subsequent launches require a single click on the pinned icon. The pin survives Windows updates that move other application shortcuts and is one of the most stable configuration settings in Windows.

Removing Paint via optional features

A small number of users actively prefer to remove Paint from their system. The most common reason is that the user has installed a third-party raster editor (GIMP, Krita, Paint.NET) and wants to ensure that PNG double-clicks open in the chosen alternative rather than in Paint. Windows 10 and Windows 11 both support removing Paint via the Optional Features management interface.

To remove Paint:

1. Open Settings → Apps → Optional features.
2. Search for Paint in the installed features list.
3. Click the Paint entry and choose Uninstall.
4. Confirm the removal.

The removal can be reversed at any time by reinstalling from the Microsoft Store. The reinstall is silent and does not require a system restart.

Common mistake

Removing Paint via Optional Features and then attempting to launch it via any of the six documented methods. The removal is complete; all six methods produce a not-found result. Reinstall from the Microsoft Store before retrying.

Troubleshooting

The launch methods described above succeed on a default Windows 11 installation in the substantial majority of cases. The cases in which they fail are predictable and fall into a small set of categories.

Symptom: Paint does not appear in the Start menu search

The most common cause is that the search index has not been rebuilt since Paint was installed or reinstalled. The corrective action is to wait for the index to catch up, which typically completes within a few minutes of installation. If the index has been rebuilt and Paint still does not appear, the next cause to investigate is whether Paint has been removed via the Optional Features management interface. The third cause is a corrupted search index, which is corrected by running the Windows search troubleshooter from Settings → System → Troubleshoot.

Symptom: Run dialog returns "Windows cannot find mspaint"

The cause is that the system folder is not on the PATH environment variable. The default Windows installation includes the system folder on the PATH, so the symptom indicates that the PATH has been modified by an administrative policy or by a user-level configuration change. The corrective action is to launch Paint using its full path: C:\Windows\System32\mspaint.exe. The Run dialog accepts the full path and ignores the missing PATH entry.

Symptom: Paint launches but the window does not appear

The cause is usually that the Paint window has been positioned off-screen by a previous multi-monitor configuration that is no longer connected. The corrective action is to right-click the Paint taskbar icon, choose Move, then press an arrow key. Once a key is pressed the window becomes attached to the cursor and can be dragged into the visible screen area.

Symptom: Paint launches but immediately exits

The cause is usually a corrupt user-settings file. The corrective action is to navigate to %AppData%\Microsoft\Paint and delete or rename the settings file. Paint recreates a default settings file on the next launch and the symptom resolves.

Symptom: Two Paint icons appear in search results

The cause is that both Paint and Paint 3D are installed. The corrective action is to confirm which entry is which by checking the published date or the application description. Paint is the older application with the simpler description; Paint 3D is the 2017 application with the explicitly 3D description.

Best practice

For any persistent launch symptom that does not resolve within a few minutes of corrective action, reinstall Paint from the Microsoft Store. The reinstall is silent, does not affect any saved files, and resolves the substantial majority of corrupt-install symptoms.

FAQ

Why doesn't Paint appear when I search? Some Windows installations have removed Paint via Group Policy. Reinstall it from the Microsoft Store.

Is Paint free? Yes. Paint is included with Windows at no additional cost.

Can I run Paint on macOS or Linux? No. Paint is a Windows-only application. Equivalent free editors on other platforms include GIMP, Krita, and Paint.NET.

Why does Paint open with a tiny canvas? Paint remembers the canvas size from the previous session. See How to Set Canvas Size for Icons.

Is mspaint.exe safe? Yes, provided it is located in C:\Windows\System32\. A file named mspaint.exe in any other folder is suspicious and should be scanned.

How do I open Paint as administrator? Right-click the Paint icon in the Start menu or on the taskbar and choose Run as administrator. Administrator privileges are not required for any of the icon authoring workflows in this wiki, but the option is available if a specific file-permission issue requires it.

What happens if I have multiple monitors and Paint opens on the wrong one? Paint remembers the monitor it was last on. To move it, drag the window title bar to the preferred monitor. The new position persists for subsequent launches as long as the same monitor configuration is connected.

Does Paint open faster on an SSD compared to a hard drive? Yes, measurably. On a default Windows 11 installation with the operating system on an SSD, Paint opens in approximately one second. On a hard drive the launch typically takes three to six seconds. The improvement is large enough to be the most common reason that icon authors note an upgrade from a hard drive to an SSD as a productivity gain.

Can I open Paint with a specific file via a keyboard shortcut alone? Yes, indirectly. Use Windows + R, type mspaint "path\to\file.png", and press Enter. The sequence is keyboard-only and launches Paint with the named file already open.

What is the difference between the Microsoft Store version of Paint and the version that ships with Windows? The two are the same application. The Store distribution provides a way to reinstall Paint on systems where it has been removed and a way to receive updates outside the cadence of Windows feature updates.

Does Paint require an active Internet connection? No. The core functionality of Paint, including all of the tools relevant to icon authoring, works fully offline. The Copilot integration introduced in 2024 requires a connection only when its features are invoked; routine pixel work is unaffected by offline operation.

Will Paint open a file larger than my monitor can display? Yes. Paint will open files at their native pixel dimensions regardless of the monitor's resolution. Use the zoom controls and the scrollbars to navigate the canvas. See How to Zoom In for Pixel-Level Editing.

Why does Paint sometimes open with a different file extension as the default save format? Paint remembers the last-used save format across sessions. If your previous session saved a BMP file, the next session's first File → Save As dialog will default to BMP. The behavior is intentional and is reset by explicitly saving the next file as PNG.

Best practices

• Pin Paint to the taskbar after your first launch to save time.
• Confirm you are using Paint, not Paint 3D, before starting icon work.
• Use the Run dialog method when your hands are already on the keyboard.
• Keep Paint open in the background during long modding sessions to avoid repeated launches.
• Set Paint as the default editor for PNG files if more than a handful of double-clicks on PNG files are part of a typical session.
• Disable the Copilot integration features for pixel-art sessions; the generative output is unsuitable for icon work.
• Save your work frequently. The undo history is volatile across launches.
• Verify the executable path is C:\Windows\System32\mspaint.exe before relying on a launch shortcut. Any other path is a security concern.

Appendix A: launch performance reference

The table below documents typical launch times across hardware classes. The figures are from a 57 Studios internal benchmark conducted in early 2026 across the studio's test fleet. Each figure is the median of ten launches with caches warm.

Hardware class	Storage	RAM	Median launch time	Notes
2018 budget laptop	HDD	8 GB	5.8 seconds	Spinner disk dominates the time
2020 mid-range laptop	SATA SSD	16 GB	1.6 seconds	First-launch overhead absorbed
2023 modern laptop	NVMe SSD	16 GB	0.9 seconds	Indistinguishable from instant for most workflows
2024 high-end desktop	NVMe SSD	32 GB	0.7 seconds	Storage no longer the bottleneck
2025 workstation	NVMe SSD	64 GB	0.6 seconds	Marginal additional improvement

The launch time is dominated by storage I/O on hardware older than 2020. Once storage moves from a spinning disk to a solid-state drive, the launch time drops from several seconds to about one second, and further hardware upgrades produce diminishing returns. For an icon author working from a modern laptop or desktop, the launch time is no longer a meaningful factor in workflow planning.

Did you know?

The first publicly documented benchmark of Paint launch time was conducted on a Windows 95 system in 1995 and reported a launch time of approximately four seconds on the reference hardware of the era. The figure has remained surprisingly stable across the four decades of the application's history: improvements in storage and processing speed have been partially offset by the growth of the Paint binary itself and by the increasing complexity of the Windows shell.

Appendix B: command-line invocation reference

Paint accepts a small number of command-line arguments. The arguments are stable across recent versions and can be relied on for scripting.

Argument	Description	Example
(none)	Launch with a blank canvas at the last-used size	mspaint
<file>	Launch with the named file open	mspaint icon.png
"<quoted file>"	Launch with a file whose path contains spaces	mspaint "C:\my icons\rifle.png"
/p <file>	Launch and print the file, then exit	mspaint /p icon.png
/pt <file> <printer>	Launch and print to a named printer, then exit	mspaint /pt icon.png "HP LaserJet"

The print arguments (/p, /pt) are useful for batch printing of icons for review on paper. The argument is rarely used for icon authoring workflows because PNG files are reviewed on screen rather than on paper, but the capability exists and is documented for completeness.

The command-line interface also supports the standard Windows console redirection. The redirection is not generally useful for Paint because the application produces no console output, but it does mean that the launch can be incorporated into a shell pipeline without causing unexpected error output.

Pro tip

For a recurring workflow that opens the same asset every session, save a Windows shortcut file with the target set to mspaint "C:\path\to\asset.png". The shortcut becomes a one-click launch path for the specific asset and can be pinned to the taskbar alongside the generic Paint pin.

Appendix C: security considerations

The Paint executable lives at C:\Windows\System32\mspaint.exe. The system folder is protected by Windows file system permissions: writes to the folder require administrator privileges and are blocked for standard user accounts. The protection means that a malicious actor cannot replace the legitimate mspaint.exe without either administrator credentials or a privilege escalation vulnerability.

A file named mspaint.exe in any folder other than the system folder is suspicious. Common patterns for malicious masquerading include placing a file with the Paint name in the user's Downloads folder, in the user's AppData folder, or on a portable storage device. The corrective action when such a file is found is to scan it with the Windows Defender antivirus or a third-party scanner and, if confirmed malicious, delete it.

The legitimate Paint executable is digitally signed by Microsoft. The signature can be verified by right-clicking the file in File Explorer, choosing Properties, switching to the Digital Signatures tab, and confirming that the signer is Microsoft Windows. Any file claiming to be Paint that lacks a valid Microsoft signature is suspicious regardless of its location.

For users in managed environments, the IT department may have configured Windows AppLocker or a similar application-control system to allow only signed executables from approved publishers to run. The configuration prevents most masquerading attacks at the operating-system level and is the recommended posture for any environment that handles sensitive data alongside icon authoring.

Critical warning

Never download a file claiming to be a newer or alternative version of Paint from a third-party website. Microsoft does not distribute Paint outside the Microsoft Store and Windows Update channels. Any third-party Paint installer is either a misrepresentation or actively malicious.

Best practice

For a development workstation that handles 57 Studios assets alongside personal browsing, run the latest Windows Defender quick scan once per week. The scan is fast on modern hardware and catches the substantial majority of file-system-level intrusions before they reach the asset folders.

Cross-references

• How to Use the Pencil Tool — the first tool you will reach for once Paint is open.
• How to Use the Eyedropper Tool — the second-most-used tool in icon authoring.
• How to Zoom In for Pixel-Level Editing — required after launch for any precision work.
• How to Set Canvas Size for Icons — the next decision after Paint is launched and ready.
• How to Save a PNG File in Paint — the export step that closes the icon authoring loop.
• Why Your PNG Has a White Background — diagnostic reference for the most common save-step failure.
• How to Create a New Folder — useful preparation if your asset library is not yet organized into project folders.

Extended FAQ: operational scenarios

My Paint window keeps reverting to a default size after I resize it

The Paint window remembers its size and position across launches in the substantial majority of cases. If the window reverts to a default after every launch, the most common cause is that the user's settings file at %AppData%\Microsoft\Paint\settings.dat is not writable. The corrective action is to verify that the folder and file are not marked read-only and that the user has write access. After the permissions are corrected, the size and position should persist across subsequent launches.

I want to launch Paint with a known set of tools pre-selected

Paint does not expose a command-line argument for pre-selecting tools, color slots, or zoom levels. The active tool and color slot are session state that is not preserved across launches. For workflows that require a specific starting state, the practical approach is to save a small template file that has the desired canvas size, the desired color palette already painted in a corner of the canvas as a sampling reference, and the desired starting position. Launch Paint with the template file as an argument and use Save As to write the first iteration to a new file rather than overwriting the template.

I work between two machines and want my Paint configuration to follow me

Paint does not include a built-in configuration sync. The user-settings file at %AppData%\Microsoft\Paint\settings.dat can be copied between machines manually, but the file is binary and not designed for cross-machine portability. The recommended approach for cross-machine workflows is to depend on as little Paint state as possible: keep the canvas at a standard size for icon work, use the Edit colors → Define custom colors panel to load a known palette at the start of each session, and avoid relying on the pinned position of the Paint window. The pattern means that the only thing that must follow the user across machines is the asset folder itself.

I want to script Paint to convert a folder of images to PNG

Paint's command-line interface does not include a batch convert mode. The right tool for batch raster conversion is PowerShell with the .NET imaging libraries, or a dedicated converter such as ImageMagick. For an Unturned modder with a folder of BMP assets that need to become PNG, a short PowerShell script that loads each BMP and saves it as PNG is faster than opening each file in Paint individually. Paint remains the right tool for editing; it is not the right tool for batch conversion.

Paint opens but the toolbar is missing or partially missing

The cause is usually that the Paint window has been resized below the minimum width at which the full toolbar fits. The corrective action is to drag the window wider, after which the missing toolbar elements reappear. If the toolbar remains missing at full window width, the next cause to investigate is that the user has accidentally collapsed the ribbon. The collapsed ribbon shows only the tab names; clicking any tab name expands the ribbon for that tab.

I want to use Paint on a touchscreen device

Paint supports touch input on Windows tablets and 2-in-1 devices. The Pencil tool responds to touch the same way it responds to a mouse: a tap places a single pixel, and a drag draws a continuous line. The Eyedropper tool also responds to touch correctly. The right-click distinction between Color 1 and Color 2 is implemented on touchscreens as a press-and-hold gesture: a normal tap activates Color 1, and a press-and-hold activates Color 2. The gesture is documented in the Windows touch interaction guide.

For pixel-level icon work on a touchscreen, a stylus is strongly preferred over a finger because the finger's contact area is larger than a single canvas pixel at most zoom levels. The Microsoft Surface Pen, the Wacom Bamboo Ink, and the Adonit Note are all compatible with Paint and provide sufficient precision for pixel-level work.

I want to run multiple Paint windows at once

Paint supports multiple simultaneous windows. To open a second window, launch Paint a second time using any of the six methods. The two windows are independent: each has its own canvas, its own undo history, and its own color slots. Workflows that benefit from multiple windows include side-by-side comparison of two icons, palette extraction from a reference into a new icon, and editing of a multi-asset pack where each asset lives in its own file.

The multiple-window pattern interacts with the Windows alt-tab application switcher. Each Paint window appears as a separate entry in the switcher, allowing fast keyboard-only switching between them. Combine the pattern with the Windows snap layouts to place two Paint windows side by side on a wide monitor; the layout is the closest approximation of a multi-document interface that Paint supports.

Workflow integration with the rest of the 57 Studios pipeline

Launching Paint is the first step of a longer pipeline that ends in a finished Unturned asset published to a Tebex catalog. The pipeline has approximately seven stages, and the launch step is the gate that controls the speed of every subsequent stage. A slow or unreliable launch step compounds across the dozens of times Paint is opened in a typical icon-pack session.

The full pipeline, as documented in the 57 Studios internal workflow guide, is summarized in the table below.

Stage	Description	Typical duration	Dependency on Paint launch
1. Concept	Reference collection, palette extraction, sketch	20-60 minutes	Paint launched once for palette extraction
2. Canvas setup	Open Paint at the correct size with palette loaded	1-3 minutes	Paint launched once per icon
3. Pixel work	Place pixels, sample, refine	30-180 minutes	Paint remains open throughout
4. Review at 100%	Zoom out, evaluate in context	5-15 minutes	Paint remains open
5. Export	Save as PNG with transparency	1-2 minutes	Paint remains open
6. Asset pack integration	Copy to project folder, update manifest	5-10 minutes	Paint closes; folder operations begin
7. Publication	Build, sign, upload to Tebex	15-30 minutes	Paint not required

The launch step itself appears in stages 1 and 2. The bulk of session time is spent in stages 3, 4, and 5, during which Paint remains open. The integration of launch performance into the larger pipeline is therefore most visible at the beginning of a session and least visible during the productive middle of a session.

Best practice

Plan an icon authoring session to launch Paint once at the start of the session and keep it open until the session ends. Repeated launches across a session add cumulative overhead that is invisible per launch but measurable across a full day. The pattern is especially important on older hardware where each launch costs several seconds.

The flowchart above is a condensed view of the same seven-stage pipeline. The two decision diamonds (E and G) represent the inner iteration loops that consume most of a session. The launch step at A is the single entry point; the publication step at J is the single exit point.

Comparing Paint to alternative editors

Paint is not the only raster editor available on Windows. Several alternative editors are well-known and widely used for pixel art. The choice between Paint and the alternatives is driven by the workflow, not by any blanket superiority of one tool over another.

Editor	Cost	Pixel-art focus	Layers	Curve	Recommended for
Microsoft Paint	Free, included	Yes, since 1985	Yes (Windows 11)	Minimal	Quick icons, learning
Aseprite	Paid	Yes, explicit	Yes	Modest	Animation, sprite sheets
GIMP	Free	General-purpose	Yes	Steep	Photo work, advanced raster
Krita	Free	Painting focus	Yes	Steep	Painterly art, sketching
Paint.NET	Free	General-purpose	Yes	Modest	Hybrid pixel and photo
Photoshop	Paid	General-purpose	Yes	Steep	Professional photo work

Paint is the recommended editor for Unturned icon work in the 57 Studios documentation because the icon canvases are small (typically 64-by-64 or 128-by-128), the palettes are narrow (often fewer than thirty discrete colors), and the workflow involves single-pixel precision rather than continuous-tone painting. Each of these characteristics aligns with what Paint does well. The alternatives become preferable when the workflow involves animation (Aseprite), photo manipulation (GIMP, Photoshop), or painterly sketching (Krita). For pure pixel-art icon work, Paint remains the recommended default.

Did you know?

Aseprite was originally a free open-source project before transitioning to a paid model in 2016. The free historical version remains downloadable from public source archives and is sometimes recommended as a starter pixel-art tool for users not yet ready to commit to a paid editor. The 57 Studios documentation does not endorse the historical version because the lack of active maintenance produces bugs that the paid current version has long since fixed.

Common mistake

Choosing Photoshop or GIMP as the icon-authoring editor on the assumption that a more sophisticated editor produces better icons. The sophistication of the editor is not the relevant variable for icon work; the editor's behavior at single-pixel precision is the relevant variable. Photoshop and GIMP are excellent editors that handle continuous-tone work well, but their default settings introduce antialiasing artifacts into pixel art that an icon author must then disable manually. Paint produces the correct output by default.

Hardware and operating-system requirements

Paint runs on every supported version of Windows on every hardware class that Windows itself supports. The application's resource footprint is modest by modern standards: a few hundred megabytes of disk space, fewer than a hundred megabytes of RAM for a typical icon-authoring session, and no graphics-card requirements beyond what Windows itself requires.

Resource	Minimum	Recommended	Notes
Operating system	Windows 7	Windows 11	Modern build features require Windows 11
Disk	200 MB	500 MB	Includes Microsoft Store update cache
RAM	2 GB	8 GB	Paint itself uses ~60 MB; Windows uses the rest
CPU	Dual-core 1.5 GHz	Quad-core 2.0 GHz	Single-threaded for most operations
Storage type	HDD	SSD	SSD reduces launch time by 4-6 seconds
Display	1024x768	1920x1080	Higher resolution allows wider toolbar
Graphics	DirectX 11	DirectX 12	Required by Windows, not by Paint specifically
Internet	Optional	Optional	Required only for Copilot features

The table reflects the requirements as of mid-2026. For an icon author whose hardware exceeds the recommended row, the user experience is constrained by the user's workflow rather than by the hardware. For an icon author whose hardware falls below the minimum row, the constraint is the operating system rather than Paint itself; upgrading to a supported Windows version restores normal Paint operation.

Pro tip

A second monitor is the single most useful hardware upgrade for an icon-authoring workstation. The pattern is to keep the reference image at full size on one monitor and the Paint working canvas at high zoom on the other. The pattern eliminates the alt-tab cycle that single-monitor workflows depend on and recovers the cognitive overhead of context switching.

A note on naming

The application has been called Paintbrush, Microsoft Paint, Paint, and the modern Windows 11 rebuild has variously been called Paint, Paint Preview, and Paint (the launching tile in the Start menu typically reads simply Paint). The naming history is summarized below for users who encounter older documentation that uses an unfamiliar name.

Period	Common name	Internal name	Notes
1985-1995	Paintbrush	Paintbrush	Original ZSoft codebase
1995-2009	Microsoft Paint	Paint	Windows 95 rewrite
2009-2017	Microsoft Paint	Paint	Ribbon interface
2017-2023	Microsoft Paint	Paint (classic)	Disambiguated from Paint 3D
2023-present	Paint	Paint (modern)	Windows 11 rebuild

The executable name mspaint.exe has been stable since the Windows 95 era and is the most reliable identifier for the application regardless of the marketing name in use at the time. Documentation that refers to mspaint.exe is referring to classic Paint or its modern rebuild, never to Paint 3D, which has the executable name PaintStudio.View.exe.

Did you know?

The ms prefix on the mspaint executable name predates the Microsoft Paint rename of 1995. The original 1985 Paintbrush distribution included a wrapper executable named mspaint.exe that launched the underlying pbrush.exe application. When Microsoft rewrote Paint in 1995, the new application took over the mspaint.exe name and the pbrush.exe name was retired. The naming continuity preserved backward compatibility with launch scripts written for the original distribution.

Comparing launch methods by failure mode

Each launch method has a different failure mode when it fails. The table below summarizes the failure modes and the corrective action for each.

Method	Failure mode	Likely cause	Corrective action
Start menu search	No result	Search index stale	Wait or rebuild index
Run dialog	"Cannot find mspaint"	PATH modified	Use full path
Pinned tile	Tile missing	Pin removed by update	Re-pin from search
Command line	"Command not found"	PATH modified	Use full path
File Explorer address bar	"Cannot find mspaint"	PATH modified	Use full path
Right-click	Paint missing from menu	File association lost	Use Choose another app

The PATH-modified failure mode is the most common shared cause across the keyboard-resident methods. The corrective action of using the full path (C:\Windows\System32\mspaint.exe) works for all four PATH-dependent methods and is a useful fallback to remember. The search-index-stale failure mode is unique to the Start menu search method and resolves on its own as the index catches up.

Appendix D: file associations reference

Paint can serve as the default editor for several file types. The table below summarizes the associations that are useful to configure for icon authoring.

File type	Description	Recommended default	Notes
.png	Portable Network Graphics	Paint	Primary icon format for Unturned
.bmp	Windows Bitmap	Paint	Legacy format, native to Paint
.jpg / .jpeg	JPEG	Photos (view) / Paint (edit)	Lossy; not used for final icons
.gif	Graphics Interchange Format	Paint	Animation features require alternative
.tiff	Tagged Image File Format	Paint	Less common in icon work
.ico	Windows Icon	Specialized editor	Paint cannot edit ICO directly
.webp	WebP	Photos (view) / GIMP (edit)	Paint may not handle WebP

The recommended pattern is to associate PNG and BMP with Paint as the default and leave the other formats associated with the Windows Photos application or with a more specialized editor. The pattern keeps the double-click action consistent with the format that an icon author actually edits while not making Paint the entry point for formats it does not handle well.

Pro tip

For Windows 11 users, the file associations can be managed in bulk via Settings → Apps → Default apps. Search for Paint in the app list, and the panel displays every file type currently associated with Paint. The bulk view is faster than the right-click-each-file approach when the goal is to configure many associations at once.

Appendix E: alternative launch surfaces for accessibility

Paint can be launched via several accessibility-oriented surfaces that supplement the six standard methods. The surfaces are useful for users with motor or vision constraints and are documented for completeness.

Voice activation

Windows includes voice activation under Settings → Privacy → Speech. With voice activation enabled, the spoken command "Open Paint" launches the application. The voice command is processed locally on Windows 11 systems and does not require an Internet connection.

On-screen keyboard

Windows includes an on-screen keyboard accessible via Windows + Ctrl + O. The on-screen keyboard can drive the Run dialog or the Start menu search in the same way as a physical keyboard. The pattern is useful when a physical keyboard is unavailable or when the user prefers eye-tracking input.

Narrator integration

The Windows Narrator screen reader announces the contents of the Start menu and the Open with submenu. For a visually impaired user, the Narrator-assisted pattern is to press the Windows key, listen for the search results, and confirm with Enter once Paint is announced as the top result.

Switch control

Windows 11 supports switch control on hardware switches connected via USB or Bluetooth. A switch control configuration can be programmed to launch Paint with a single switch press by binding the press to the Run dialog action.

Best practice

For any user whose primary input modality is not the standard keyboard-and-mouse, configure the accessibility-oriented launch surface before relying on the standard methods. The configuration takes a few minutes and produces a launch surface that is significantly more reliable for the user's specific needs than the standard methods.

Appendix F: long-term archival considerations

Paint files saved over decades may need to be opened in much newer or much older Paint versions than the one that created them. The application's backward and forward compatibility is broad but not unlimited.

Backward compatibility

The modern Windows 11 Paint reads files saved by every prior version of Paint from Windows 95 onward. The reading is reliable for BMP, PNG, JPEG, and GIF files. For older proprietary formats such as PCX, the modern Paint may not read the file directly; the corrective action is to convert the file via an intermediate tool to a current format.

Forward compatibility

Older Paint versions cannot read files that use features the older version did not support. The most common forward-compatibility constraint is the alpha channel: PNG files with transparency saved by modern Paint may not display the transparency correctly when opened in a Windows XP-era Paint. The transparent regions typically appear as white in the older application.

Archive recommendations

For long-term archival of icon assets, save the source file as a layered Photoshop or Krita document if such layers exist, and the published PNG as the final delivery. The layered source preserves the editing state for future revision; the PNG preserves the delivered output. Paint does not save its own layered files in a portable format, so the layered source archive must use a different application.

The 57 Studios internal asset archive uses both formats: every icon pack includes the published PNGs in the deliverable folder and the layered source files in a separate archive folder. The pattern protects against the case in which a future revision of an icon needs to reuse layers from the original authoring session.

Common mistake

Relying on Paint's undo history as the archive of intermediate edits. The undo history is volatile across launches and is cleared when Paint is closed. Any intermediate state that needs to survive across sessions must be saved as a separate file.

Appendix G: launch automation patterns

For users who launch Paint dozens of times per day, a handful of automation patterns reduce the friction further. The patterns are documented for reference; each is optional and the choice depends on the user's broader scripting comfort.

Pattern 1: A profile-level PowerShell function

A PowerShell function defined in the user's profile becomes available in every new PowerShell window. The pattern is useful for icon authors who keep a PowerShell window open as part of their daily workspace.

function paint {
    param([string]$file)
    if ($file) {
        Start-Process mspaint -ArgumentList "`"$file`""
    } else {
        Start-Process mspaint
    }
}

With the function defined, the user can type paint to launch a blank Paint window or paint icon.png to launch Paint with a specific file open. The function handles the quoting of paths that contain spaces.

Pattern 2: A scheduled task that pre-warms Paint at login

A Windows scheduled task can launch Paint silently at user login and immediately close it, leaving the application's pages in the system file cache. Subsequent launches in the session are noticeably faster because the file system has already loaded the application's binary into memory.

The pattern is most useful on systems with hard-disk storage where the initial launch is otherwise slow. On SSD-equipped systems the improvement is marginal. The pattern is also a slight increase in login time, which most users prefer to absorb at login rather than at each in-session launch.

Pattern 3: A keyboard shortcut bound to a custom hotkey utility

Tools such as AutoHotkey, PowerToys Keyboard Manager, and built-in Windows shortcut keys can bind Paint launch to a single keystroke combination. The 57 Studios documentation does not endorse any specific third-party hotkey utility, but the pattern is well-supported on Windows 11.

To bind Paint launch to a keyboard shortcut using a built-in Windows shortcut:

1. Right-click the Paint Start menu tile and choose More → Open file location.
2. The Paint shortcut appears in a File Explorer window.
3. Right-click the shortcut and choose Properties.
4. In the Shortcut key field, press the desired key combination (for example, Ctrl + Alt + P).
5. Click OK.

The bound shortcut then launches Paint from anywhere in Windows. The pattern is durable across reboots but does not survive a reinstall of Paint.

Pattern 4: A desktop-launch icon configured for a specific working folder

A desktop shortcut configured with the Start in field set to the user's asset folder launches Paint with the open dialog pre-positioned in that folder. The pattern shortens the navigation step in the File → Open dialog by removing the click sequence to the asset folder.

To configure the shortcut:

1. Right-click the desktop and choose New → Shortcut.
2. In the target field, type C:\Windows\System32\mspaint.exe.
3. Click Next, give the shortcut a name, and click Finish.
4. Right-click the new shortcut and choose Properties.
5. In the Start in field, type the path to the asset folder.
6. Click OK.

The pattern is especially useful for the 57 Studios pipeline where the asset folder is at a deep path and the File → Open navigation would otherwise take several clicks.

Best practice

For a user who works on multiple icon packs in parallel, create one desktop shortcut per pack with the Start in field set to the corresponding folder. The pattern produces a clear visual cue (one icon per pack) and a fast launch path that opens Paint at the correct working folder for the project.

Appendix H: post-launch verification checklist

After Paint is open, a brief verification sequence confirms that the application is in the expected state before icon work begins. The sequence takes a few seconds and prevents a class of session-start mistakes.

1. Confirm the title bar reads Paint. Paint 3D, the Photos editor, and the Snipping Tool's annotation surface all have similar toolbars at small sizes. The title bar disambiguates.
2. Confirm the active tab is Home. Some sessions inherit a different active tab from the previous session. The Home tab contains the Pencil, Eyedropper, Fill, and color slots. The View tab contains the zoom and gridlines. Both are needed; the Home tab is the default starting state.
3. Confirm Color 1 is set to the expected starting color. Paint remembers the color slot state across sessions. Verify the slot before placing the first pixel.
4. Confirm the zoom level is appropriate. A previous session may have ended at 3200% zoom. Returning to 800% or 100% before starting work prevents the first dozen clicks from missing their targets.
5. Confirm gridlines are enabled. Gridlines are essential at high zoom. Toggle them on if they are off.
6. Confirm the canvas size matches the intended icon dimensions. Paint remembers the canvas size across sessions. Verify the size before placing the first pixel; the canvas resize is a destructive operation if the existing canvas contains data.

The checklist appears minor in print but recovers an estimated three to five minutes per session for an icon author who would otherwise discover the configuration mismatch only after several missed clicks. The pattern is the documented practice of every senior icon contributor interviewed for the 57 Studios documentation project.

Pro tip

For a session that follows immediately on a previous session, the verification sequence is faster than reading: glance at the title bar, the active tab, the color slots, the zoom level, the gridlines checkbox, and the canvas dimensions. Six glances, six confirmations, then start work.

Appendix I: a working session example

The example session below illustrates how the launch step integrates with a typical icon authoring workflow. The example is composite and is drawn from the 57 Studios documentation project's interviews with senior icon contributors.

Time	Action	Notes
09:00	Sit at workstation, open File Explorer to the icon pack folder	Multi-monitor setup with pack folder on the left monitor
09:01	Double-click the icon to be edited	Default file association opens Paint
09:02	Glance at title bar to confirm Paint, not Paint 3D	Verification step
09:02	Press Ctrl + scroll wheel to zoom to 800%	Centered on the area of interest
09:03	Press V → Gridlines (or check Gridlines on the View tab)	Visible grid for pixel-level work
09:03	Press P to select Pencil	Default tool for icon work
09:04	Press K, sample a reference color from the palette strip	Color 1 set
09:04	Press P to return to Pencil	Active tool restored
09:05-10:25	Place pixels, sample, refine	Bulk of session time
10:26	Press Ctrl + scroll wheel to zoom out to 100%	Review at delivered size
10:27	Evaluate the icon in context	Compare against the rest of the pack
10:28	Press Ctrl + scroll wheel back to 800%, refine	Iterate until acceptable
10:42	Press Ctrl + S to save	Overwrites the existing PNG
10:43	Close Paint	Session complete

The session illustrates the dominant pattern: launch once at the start, keep Paint open through the work, and close only after the save. The launch step itself is fast (a few seconds), and the bulk of the session is the iterative pixel work that follows. The verification step at 09:02 is the gate that prevents wasted minutes on a misconfigured starting state.

Did you know?

The 57 Studios documentation project interviewed twelve senior icon contributors during the early 2026 questionnaire. Every contributor reported the same pattern: launch Paint once at the start of the session, verify the starting state, then work for an extended period without closing the application. The pattern is the dominant practice across the contributor cohort and is the basis for the launch-once-per-session best practice recommended throughout this reference.

Document history

Version	Date	Author	Notes
1.0	2025-11-12	57 Studios	Initial publication. Six launch methods documented.
1.1	2025-12-04	57 Studios	Added Paint vs Paint 3D comparison and decision flowchart.
1.2	2026-01-09	57 Studios	Added command-line reference and security considerations.
2.0	2026-05-17	57 Studios	Major revision. Added launch performance reference, troubleshooting section, extended FAQ, appendix sections, workflow integration, hardware requirements, naming history, failure-mode comparison, file associations, accessibility surfaces, and archival considerations.