GConvert
Icon toolkit for Windows.

GConvert is a full-featured icon toolkit for Windows: it extracts icons from any file, converts them to images, creates icons from your pictures, replaces the icons inside EXE and DLL files, compiles icons into DLL files and manages ICL and ZIP icon libraries, without special knowledge. It reads any icon resource, EXE, DLL, ICL, ICO, CUR, ICNS and ZIP files, shows every image of every icon, and saves them as ICO, BMP, PNG, or PSD files.

GConvert is a free 15-day trial. A single-user license costs EUR 20 or USD 25 without VAT; it turns the trial into the registered edition, with no time restriction, free minor upgrades and priority technical support by e-mail and forum.

Any file containing icons: Windows executables (EXE), DLL, OCX, CPL and SCR files, icon libraries in 16-bit and 32-bit ICL format, Windows ICO files, cursors (CUR), Macintosh ICNS and resource fork RSRC files, and ZIP archives, which are read without unzipping.

Save as ICO, BMP, PNG, or PSD natively, or as GIF and JPEG through plug-ins. The alpha channel of 32-bit icons is embedded in PNG, PSD and 32-bit BMP files, and smaller 8-bit PNG files can be made for web pages.

Choose File | Convert picture to icon, select the picture, keep the whole image or crop a part of it, then set the size and color depth of the icon image. GConvert resizes and converts the colors, and Generate other images adds the other sizes. Export the result as an ICO file, or convert several pictures at once with Batch Create Icons from Images.

An ICL file is a 16-bit or 32-bit DLL that holds only icons, the standard icon library format supported by all versions of Windows. GConvert creates, opens, edits and saves ICL libraries, compiles them into 32-bit icon DLL files like MORICONS.DLL and converts them to ZIP archives, and back.

Yes. The icon patch tool, Tools | Modify Icons in EXE/DLL, opens any 32-bit Windows executable, DLL or OCX file, lists the icons compiled inside it and replaces the one you select with an icon from an ICO file. The file is saved immediately, after a backup copy of the original has been made. Prepare the new icon as an ICO file first, with GConvert if needed.

Open an icon library in GConvert, or turn any icon source into one first: Library | Convert current file to icon library works on an EXE, a DLL, ICO files or a ZIP archive of icons, and the Icon Browser exports a folder scan to a library. Then choose Library | Compile Library to a DLL file (32-bit): the result is a true Win32 icon DLL, similar to MORICONS.DLL. Windows recognizes it, to change the icon of a folder for instance, and applications load it with LoadLibrary and LoadIcon.

Yes. GConvert creates, reads and writes 32-bit icons with an alpha channel, shows the alpha channel on its own tab and keeps it when converting to PNG, PSD or 32-bit BMP. It also opens, creates and saves the 256×256 PNG-compressed icons introduced with Windows Vista, and adds or removes their PNG compression.

Yes. GConvert recognizes Macintosh icons stored in ICNS and resource fork RSRC files, from 16×16 to the 128×128, 256×256 and 512×512 Mac OS X formats, with alpha channel. They work like Windows icons and can be converted to ICO files or images and added to icon libraries. ICNS export is not available in the current version.

Not with paint tools: the GConvert editor has no pen or brush by design. It adds, imports, generates, removes and exports the images of an icon, and its Open image in editor command sends an image to the icon or bitmap editor you already use, then imports the changes back.

GConvert 5.2.0 runs on Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP, and the older Windows 2008, 2003, 2000, ME, 98 and 95. The installer, GCONVSET.EXE, is 3.3 MB and digitally signed.