Wallpaper in Windows 7 locked down by domain group policy?

I was able to get around by going to this location in the registry:

HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System

Inside, there's a key called Wallpaper. I deleted it and re-set the desktop background, and it worked.

You'll have to do that every time you log on though, as group policy refreshes itself. (It can also be set to refresh automatically.)

Even if there were a hack, GPO is rechecked and reset regularly and each time you log in.

I assume this policy was probably created as an over-reaction to potentially offensive desktop background images.

Petitioning your IT org to change this setting and simply rely on people making the right choice or getting talked to by their managers may be a more effective solution.

Easy...just do a search for the name of the wallpaper. Once you find the location that has the filename (i.e. wallpaper.jpg), simply rename that file to wallpaper-Old.jpg (or something like that). Next place either the image, or a link to an image, that you want to use in that location with the name wallpaper.jpg ( or whatever the original file's name was). This is just continuing with what W. Jackson was hinting at...

That said, do you know the location of the file that is used for the desktop background? Can you take the wallpaper you want and save it in that location? – William Jackson

This is just a workaround that does not require hacking the registry or any of the sysadmins' settings from A/D or the local machine.