Win 7 Style Gauges for Access Connections & Power Manager

This is a guide on how to replace the default improper design of the ThinkVantage gauges for Access Connections (referred to as AC) and PowerManager (referred to as PWM) with gauges designed to look good with the Windows 7 taskbar.

Default look:


Because how the gauges look when used together as opposed to when only using one of them I had to make separate images for each usage type:
A: For those of you who are ONLY using the AC gauge or ONLY using the PWM gauge make sure to use the files located in the "Singles" folder.
B: For those of you who are using both the AC & PWM gauges make sure to use the files located in either the "Coupled" or "Joined" folder.

There are two major designs in the attached zip. The first one is Square and the second one has Rounded edges:


Installation (10-15 minutes)
1. Backup original files
A: For AC go to "C:\Program Files (x86)\Lenovo\Access Connections\", copy the file "AcDeskBand64.dll" to your desktop and rename the original file to "AcDeskBand64.dll.org".
B: For PWM go to "C:\Program Files (x86)\ThinkPad\Utilities\" and do as described in step A for the files "PWMTR32V.DLL" and "PWMTR64V.DLL".
Note: Do not rename the files you copied to your desktop, but the ones found in the folders mentioned. Also, your directory and file name might vary from mine depending on where you installed the applications and which version you are running.

2. Download and Install Restorator
The FREE trial version is fully functional for 30 days. Hopefully you'll be able to finish up before the trial ends.
A: The FREE 30 day trial version can be found here

3. Download and Extract the .png files
A: Download the zip file attached to the bottom of this post.
B: Open the zip file and extract the folders "AccessConnections" and "PowerManager" to your desktop.
Note: These folders are found after navigating to the end of your desired gauge design.

Now it's time to start up Restorator and edit the DLL files you copied to your desktop.

4. Edit the DLL file used by AC
A: Drag and drop the file "AcDeskBand64.dll" (from the desktop) to the Resource Tree Pane in Restorator.
B: Go to the "PNG" folder in the DLL using Restorator.
C: Right click on the resource "126" and click Assign... >> Assign To...
D: Navigate to "...your desktop\AccessConnections" in the window that pops up and select the file "126.png".
E: Redo steps C and D for the resource "127"
F: Click File >> Save >> OK
Note: Delete the backup file that restorator creates (you have allready made backups in step 1.).

5. Edit the first DLL file used by PWM
A: Drag and drop the file "PWMTR32V.DLL" (from the desktop) to the Resource Tree Pane in Restorator.
B: Go to the "RT_RCDATA" folder in the DLL using Restorator.
C: Right click on the resource "200" and click Assign... >> Assign To...
D: Navigate to "...your desktop\PowerManager" in the window that pops up and select the file "200.png".
E: Redo steps C and D for resources "201", "202" and "203".
F: Click File >> Save >> OK
Note: Delete the backup file that restorator creates (you have allready made backups in step 1.).

6. Edit the second DLL file used by PWM
A: Redo step 5. for the file "PWMTR64V.DLL"

7. Move your modified DLL files back into the correct directory
A: "AcDeskBand64.dll" goes into "C:\Program Files (x86)\Lenovo\Access Connections\"
B: "PWMTR32V.DLL" goes into "C:\Program Files (x86)\ThinkPad\Utilities\"
C: "PWMTR64V.DLL" goes into "C:\Program Files (x86)\ThinkPad\Utilities\"

Restart your ThinkPad and Enjoy!

Note: To roll back to the default design simply delete the DLL files that you modified, remove the .org extension from the original DLL files and restart your ThinkPad.
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